Raitt began playing guitar at an early age, something not a lot of her high school girlfriends did. "I had played a little at school and at camp," she later recalled in a July 2002 interview. "My parents would drag me out to perform for my family, like all parents do, but it was a hobby—nothing more...I think people must wonder how a white girl like me became a blues guitarist. The truth is, I never intended to do this for a living. I grew up...in a Quaker family, and for me being Quaker was a political calling rather than a religious one."
In 1967 Raitt continued her pursuit in that path when she entered Harvard's Radcliffe College as a freshman, majoring in African Studies. "My plan was to travel to Tanzania, where President Julius Nyerere was creating a government based on democracy and socialism," Raitt recalled. "I wanted to help undo the damage that Western colonialism had done to native cultures around the world. Cambridge was a hotbed of this kind of thinking, and I was thrilled."
One day, Raitt was notified by a friend that blues promoter Dick Waterman was giving an interview at WHRB, Harvard's college radio station. An important figure in the blues revival of the 1960s, Waterman was also a resident of Cambridge. Raitt went to see Waterman, and the two soon became friends, "much to the chagrin of my parents, who didn't expect their freshman daughter to be running around with 65-year-old bluesmen," recalled Raitt. "I was amazed by his passion for the music and the integrity with which he managed the musicians."
During Raitt's sophomore year, Waterman relocated to Philadelphia, and a number of local musicians he counted among his friends went with him. Raitt had become a strong part of that community, recalling that "these people had become my friends, my mentors, and though I had every intention of graduating, I decided to take the semester off and move to Philadelphia...It was an opportunity that young white girls just don't get, and as it turns out, an opportunity that changed everything."
Raitt eventually went back to school, but her time performing in Philadelphia had encouraged her to pursue music as a career. When Waterman contacted her and invited her to tour with The Rolling Stones, she made a second trip to the admissions office at Radcliffe and told them, "I'm going to take a leave of absence, but this is only going to last a year." As Raitt would later recall, "Imagine being 20 in 1970—wouldn't you have gone on tour with the Rolling Stones?"
By now, Raitt was also playing both folk as well as rhythm and blues clubs in the Boston area, performing alongside established blues legends like Howlin' Wolf, Sippie Wallace, and Mississippi Fred McDowell, all of whom she met through Waterman. In the fall of 1970, while opening for Fred McDowell at the Gaslight Cafe in New York, a reporter from Newsweek Magazine saw her and began to spread word of her performance. Scouts from major record companies were soon attending her shows to watch her play. She eventually accepted an offer with Warner Bros. who soon released her eponymously titled debut in 1971. The album was warmly received by the music press, many of which praised her skills as an interpreter and as a bottleneck guitarist; at the time, very few women in popular music had strong reputations as guitarists.
While admired by those who saw her perform, and respected by her peers, Raitt gained little public acclaim for her work. Her critical stature continued to grow but record sales remained modest. Her second album, Give It Up, was released in 1972 to universal acclaim, and though many critics still regard it as her best work, it did not change her commercial fortunes. 1973's Takin' My Time was also met with critical acclaim, but these notices were not matched by the sales.
Raitt was beginning to receive greater press coverage, including a 1975 cover story for Rolling Stone Magazine, but with 1974's Streetlights, reviews for her work were becoming increasingly mixed. By now, Raitt was already experimenting with different producers and different styles, and she began to adopt a more mainstream sound that continued through 1975's Home Plate.
In 1976, Raitt made a notable appearance on Warren Zevon's self-titled album with Warren Zevon's friend Jackson Browne and Fleetwood Mac's Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks.
1977's Sweet Forgiveness gave Raitt her first commercial breakthrough when it yielded a hit single in her cover of Del Shannon's "Runaway." Recast as a heavy r&b recording based on a rhythmic groove inspired by Al Green, Raitt's version of "Runaway" was disparaged by many critics, but its commercial success prompted a bidding war between Warner Bros. and Columbia Records. "There was this big Columbia – Warner war going on at the time," recalled Raitt in a 1990 interview. "James Taylor had just left Warner Bros. and made a big album for Columbia...And then, Warners signed Paul Simon away from Columbia, and they didn't want me to have a hit record for Columbia — no matter what! So, I renegotiated my contract, and they basically matched Columbia's offer. Frankly the deal was a really big deal."
Warner Bros. held higher expectations for Raitt's next album, 1979's The Glow, but it was released to poor reviews as well as modest sales. Raitt would have one commercial success in 1979 when she helped organize the five MUSE (Musicians United for Safe Energy) concerts at Madison Square Garden. The shows spawned a three-record gold album as well as a Warner Bros. feature film, No Nukes. The shows featured co-founders Jackson Browne, Graham Nash, John Hall, and Raitt as well as Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, The Doobie Brothers, James Taylor, Gil Scott-Heron, and numerous others.
For her next record, 1982's Green Light, Raitt made a conscious attempt to revisit the sound of her earlier records, but to her surprise, many of her peers and members of the press would compare her new sound to the burgeoning New Wave movement. The album received her strongest reviews in years, but her sales did not improve and this would have a severe impact on her relationship with Warner Bros.
In 1983, as Raitt was finishing work on her follow-up album, titled Tongue & Groove, Warner Bros. cleaned house, dropping a number of major artists from their roster. Van Morrison and Arlo Guthrie were two of the most high-profile cases, and the day after mastering was completed on Tongue & Groove, Raitt was notified that she was to be dropped too. The album was shelved indefinitely, and Raitt was left without a label. By now, Raitt was also struggling with alcohol and drug abuse.
Despite her personal and professional problems, Raitt continued to tour and participate in political activism. In 1985, she sang and appeared in the video of "Sun City," the anti-apartheid record written a produced by Steven Van Zandt. Along with her participation in Farm Aid and Amnesty International concerts, Raitt would later travel to Moscow in 1987 as part of the first joint Soviet/American Peace Concert later shown on Showtime television. Also in 1987, Raitt would organize a benefit in Los Angeles, for Countdown '87 to Stop Contra Aid, featuring herself, Don Henley, Herbie Hancock, Holly Near and others.
Two years after dropping her from their label, Warner Bros. notified Raitt of their plans to release Tongue & Groove. "I said it wasn't really fair," recalled Raitt. "I think at this point they felt kind of bad. I mean, I was out there touring on my savings to keep my name up, and my ablility to draw was less and less. So they agreed to let me go in and recut half of it, and that's when it came out as Nine Lives." A critical and commercial disappointment, 1986's Nine Lives would be Raitt's last new recording for Warner Bros.
In late 1987 she joined k.d. lang and Jennifer Warnes as female background vocals for Roy Orbison's television special, Roy Orbison and Friends, A Black and White Night. By now, Raitt was clean and sober, having broken her substance abuse — for which she would credit Stevie Ray Vaughan in a Minnesota State Fair concert[1] the night after Vaughan's 1990 death. Following this highly acclaimed broadcast, she began working on new material. During this time, Raitt considered signing with Prince's own label, Paisley Park, but negotiations would ultimately fall through. Instead she began recording a bluesy mix of pop and rock under the production guidance of Don Was at Capitol Records.
Raitt had met Was through Hal Wilner, who was putting together Stay Awake, a tribute album to Disney music for A&M. Was and Wilner both wanted Raitt to sing lead on an adult-contemporary arrangement created by Was for "Baby Mine," the lullaby from Dumbo. Raitt was very pleased with the sessions, and she asked Don to produce her next album.
After more than twenty years of singing and recording popular music, Bonnie Raitt achieved immense success with her 10th album. Released in 1989, Nick of Time went to the top of the U.S. charts and won three Grammy Awards. At the same time, she walked away with a fourth Grammy Award for her duet "In the Mood" with John Lee Hooker on his album "The Healer".
She followed up this success with three more Grammy Awards for her 1991 album, Luck of the Draw, then, in 1994 she added two more Grammy's with her album Longing in Their Hearts. Both of these albums were multiplatinum successes. Raitt's collaboration with Was would amicably come to an end with 1995's live release, Road Tested. Released to solid reviews, it sold well enough to be certified gold.
For her next studio album, Raitt hired Mitchell Froom and Tchad Blake as her producers. "I loved working with Don Was but I wanted to give myself and my fans a stretch and do something different," Raitt said. Her work with Froom and Blake was released on Fundamental in 1998.
In March of 2000, Raitt was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Silver Lining was released in 2002 while Souls Alike was released in September of 2005.
Nick Of Time
Bonnie Raitt Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And she calls me on the phone
Sees babies everywhere she goes
And she wants one of her own
She's waited long enough she says
And still she can't decide
Pretty soon she'll have to choose and it tears her up inside
She's scared, scared she'll run out of time
I see my folks, they're getting old
And I watch their bodies change
I know they see the same in me
And it makes us both feel strange
No matter how you tell yourself
It's what we all go through
Those eyes are pretty hard to take
When they're staring' back at you
Scared to run out of time
When did the choices get so hard?
With so much more at stake
Life gets mighty precious
When there's less of it to waste
Scared to run out of time
Just when I thought I'd had enough
And all my tears were shed
No promise left unbroken
There were no painful words unsaid
You came along and showed me
How to leave it all behind
You opened up my heart again
And then much to my surprise
I found love, baby
Love in the nick of time
I found love, darling
Love in the nick of time
I found love, baby
Love in the nick of time
The song Nick of Time by Bonnie Raitt is a poignant reflection on the passage of time and the fear of running out of time. The lyrics tell two stories that are deeply intertwined. The first story describes a woman who is struggling with infertility and desperately wants to have a child. She is torn between the fear of making the wrong decision and the fear of running out of time to have a child. The second story describes the singer's relationship with her parents, who are getting older and experiencing the physical changes that come with age. In the second verse, she reflects on her own mortality and the inevitability of aging.
The chorus, "Scared to run out of time," is a powerful and universal theme that resonates with many people. It reminds us that time is a finite resource, and that we must use it wisely. We all have to make difficult choices and face the consequences of those choices. The fear of running out of time can be a powerful motivator to live life to the fullest.
The final verse is a hopeful message about the power of love to overcome the fear of running out of time. The singer describes finding love "in the nick of time," which has given her the strength and courage to face the challenges of life. It is a reminder that love is a powerful force that can heal even the deepest wounds.
Overall, Nick of Time is a moving and insightful reflection on the human experience, reminding us that time is a precious gift that we must not take for granted.
Line by Line Meaning
A friend of mine she cries at night
My friend is overwhelmed at night and cries alone.
And she calls me on the phone
She turns to me for support and comfort.
Sees babies everywhere she goes
She has a strong desire to have a child.
And she wants one of her own
She has a deep yearning to experience motherhood.
She's waited long enough she says
She has been patient, but feels like she's waited long enough.
And still she can't decide
She is struggling with the decision of whether to have a child or not.
Pretty soon she'll have to choose and it tears her up inside
Time is running out for her to make a choice and it's causing her emotional distress.
She's scared, scared she'll run out of time
Her fear of running out of time to have a baby is causing her great anxiety.
I see my folks, they're getting old
I notice my parents getting older.
And I watch their bodies change
I observe their aging bodies deteriorating.
I know they see the same in me
They are aware that I am also aging and changing.
And it makes us both feel strange
The shared experience of aging is uncomfortable for us.
No matter how you tell yourself
Despite how you may rationalize the aging process.
It's what we all go through
Aging is a universal human experience.
Those eyes are pretty hard to take
Confronting our aging appearance is difficult.
When they're staring' back at you
As we look at ourselves in the mirror.
When did the choices get so hard?
As we age, the decisions we face become increasingly challenging.
With so much more at stake
As time passes, the consequences of our decisions become more significant.
Life gets mighty precious
As time becomes increasingly limited, life becomes more valuable.
When there's less of it to waste
With less time left, there is a stronger imperative to make the most of it.
Just when I thought I'd had enough
After experiencing hardships.
And all my tears were shed
After crying and feeling like there was nothing left to give.
No promise left unbroken
No commitments have gone unfulfilled.
There were no painful words unsaid
All necessary communication has taken place and nothing has been left unspoken.
You came along and showed me
You arrived and demonstrated a better way.
How to leave it all behind
How to let go of all the negativity and pain that was previously experienced.
You opened up my heart again
You broke down my emotional barriers and allowed me to feel again.
And then much to my surprise
To my amazement.
I found love, baby
I discovered love, my dear.
Love in the nick of time
Love arrived just in time to save me from my despair.
I found love, darling
I found love, my sweetheart.
Love in the nick of time
Love came just in time to rescue me from my pain.
I found love, baby
I found love, my love.
Love in the nick of time
Love appeared just when I needed it most.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: Bonnie Raitt
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@ronmay5589
This song is a masterpiece. Bonnie is a great singer, songwriter, and player. Sings effortlessly with great feel, and tone.
@erlineandrews
"Life gets mighty precious when there's less of it to waste" - So powerful
@Pheelyp
Indeed!
@five-forty3431
Truth!
@kimberlybass1824
Always love that line
@johnlewinski6359
They don't write them like this anymore
@Usercantwelve
Yup
@SongmanKK
The songwriting, production, vocals and melody on this song are at a different level. No wonder Bonnie won a Grammy for it. She even wrote the song alone, which is rare these days.
@StillTheVoid
Rare these days? Did you sleep under a rock?
@SongmanKK
@@StillTheVoidAre you dumb or something? Look at most songs nowadays, most of them have several songwriters in collaboration.