Alanis Morissette

I’m really clear about what my life mission is now. There’s no more depression or lethargy, and I feel like I’ve returned to the athlete I once was. I’m integrating all the parts of me – jock, musician, writer, poet, philosopher – and becoming stronger as a result.

I’ll be writing songs till I die. There’s just no question.

I felt like I was making a record under the radar, and that is my favorite way to do anything.

I remember thinking during those times that I wanted to write in a way where there are no rules.

We’ll love you just the way you are if you’re perfect.

What I try to keep in mind is that there are going to be a lot of articles that are going to be misrepresentative of what I’m about as a person and as a writer.

I look for a deep, gutty feelin’ in a guitar tone. I don’t use picks. People ask, “How you get that?” It’s just there. There’s a lot of people try to play real fast chords-da da da da da-that ain’t the hard, solid blues. It’s synthetic. It has not feeling to it. You sit down and play some funky, funky guitar. Take your time! Don’t rush it. Just let it come flowing through you. I can play guitar so funky, it’ll bring teardrops to your eyes.

I loved Billie Holiday more than any other person other than myself on the stage.

A musician must make music, an artist must paint, a poet must write to ultimately be at peace with himself.

I’ve never thought the blues was a matter of copying other people. The blues singer should sing songs about his own life. And once the ball got rolling, I felt confident enough to do that as well as cover other people’s songs, and the tributes. You’ve got to think about representing your own life in the music, and for me that meant bringing in an element of jazz; I was brought up on jazz, it was my father’s work, it was in the house.

When you begin to see the possibilities of music, you desire to do something really good for people.

Jazz is a democratic musical form. We take our respective instruments and collectively create a thing of beauty.

I decided that I would be one of the biggest new names; and I actually had some little fancy business cards printed up to announce it, ‘Count Basie. Beware, the Count is Here.

People involve themselves with the superficiality of Jazz without digging for its soul.

I’ve never written a political song. Songs can’t save the world. I’ve gone through all that.

I’m not claiming divinity. I’ve never claimed purity of soul. I’ve never claimed to have the answers to life. I only put out songs and answer questions as honestly as I can… But I still believe in peace, love and understanding.

When the music changes, so does the dance.

If you like an instrument that sings, play the saxophone. At its best it’s like the human voice

If you dig it, do it. If you dig it a lot, do it again.

After the music is over it’s gone in the air. You can never capture it again.

It’s a matter of who would be right for each song. Mickey Hart for ‘All We Need is An Island’ – he’s the only guy I know who has Tahitian drums and every kind of drum on the planet.