"They used to say it was bad for Indians to drink, but it's bad for anybody. When they drink, they lose their cool, a lot of us. Like when we played with Sonny Boy, I would never get paid, you know. He would drink up all the money"
About this Quote
The phrase “lose their cool” is doing quiet work. Cool, in Black musical culture, is composure, control, professionalism - the ability to stay sharp under pressure. Alcohol isn’t just a moral problem here; it’s an economic weapon that dissolves discipline and turns a gig into chaos. Turner’s “a lot of us” is a loaded admission: solidarity without romance, a weary acknowledgment that the scene he came up in was full of talent and full of self-sabotage.
Then he gets specific, and the quote turns into a story about power. “When we played with Sonny Boy, I would never get paid… He would drink up all the money.” That’s not abstract addiction talk; it’s wage theft with a bottle as the accomplice. Turner’s intent feels twofold: correct the racist framing, and document how addiction ripples outward, especially in a music economy where the margins are thin and the person holding the cash can erase everyone else’s labor by getting drunk.
Quote Details
| Topic | Anger |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
| Cite |
Citation Formats
APA Style (7th ed.)
Turner, Ike. (2026, February 18). They used to say it was bad for Indians to drink, but it's bad for anybody. When they drink, they lose their cool, a lot of us. Like when we played with Sonny Boy, I would never get paid, you know. He would drink up all the money. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/they-used-to-say-it-was-bad-for-indians-to-drink-91080/
Chicago Style
Turner, Ike. "They used to say it was bad for Indians to drink, but it's bad for anybody. When they drink, they lose their cool, a lot of us. Like when we played with Sonny Boy, I would never get paid, you know. He would drink up all the money." FixQuotes. February 18, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/they-used-to-say-it-was-bad-for-indians-to-drink-91080/.
MLA Style (9th ed.)
"They used to say it was bad for Indians to drink, but it's bad for anybody. When they drink, they lose their cool, a lot of us. Like when we played with Sonny Boy, I would never get paid, you know. He would drink up all the money." FixQuotes, 18 Feb. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/they-used-to-say-it-was-bad-for-indians-to-drink-91080/. Accessed 21 Feb. 2026.
