Carmen McRae

The expression of freedom that is Jazz improvisation mirrors the ethos of the best parts of society.

Just ’cause I’ve forgotten more than I can play, doesn’t mean it’s not Improv.

The piano ain’t got no wrong notes.

There’s only one thing that everyone in this world has in common: whether you want to love somebody and you want to be loved in return.

When you listen to a pianist, each notes should have an identity, each note should have a soul of its own.

For me, music and life are all about style

Music is the tool to express life – and all that makes a difference.

Jazz is such a powerful cultural statement that it’s almost as if it’s intertwined with society.

Jazz is an art form that depends on its antecedents. There must be respect for the people that have gone before.

I was born with music inside me. Music was one of my parts. Like my ribs, my kidneys, my liver, my heart. Like my blood. It was a force already within me when I arrived on the scene. It was a necessity for me-like food or water.

I never thought about being famous or rich. I just thought, Oh, I’ll get a nice little girl and go and play every night, and I’d be happy. And that worked for a while. But the little girl’s mother didn’t trust a guy with a horn.

The more vulnerable and the more confused the song is, the equal and opposite effect is how I feel after having written it.

Don’t worry about playing a lot of notes. Just find one pretty one.

Know the business; you need to know the business side of things.

In our local Baptist church, I sang in the choir and formed a gospel quartet. When our minister caught me messing with his guitar, he taught me three positions – one, four and five. After that, I taught myself to play.