Charlie Parker

Music is your own experience, your thoughts, your wisdom. If you don’t live it, it won’t come out of your horn. They teach you there’s a boundary line to music. But, man, there’s no boundary line to art.

I can play all I know in eight bars.

Once I could play what I heard inside me, that’s when I was born.

I kept thinking there’s bound to be something else? I could hear it sometimes, but I couldn’t play it.

The time is now.

Music is your own experience, your own thoughts, your wisdom. If you don’t live it, it won’t come out of your horn. They teach you there’s a boundary line to music. But, man, there’s no boundary line to art.

I always wanted to be a spontaneous composer.

A drummer has to be kind-hearted.

It angers me how scholars associate the blues strictly with tragedy.

The whole concept for the Yeezus album is that we’re not going to be using CDs in the future and since this is the last time we’re going to see it, this is an open casket for the CD.

You’re just as beautiful as you feel.

Men have died for this music. You can’t get more serious than that.

I’ll play it first and tell you what it is afterwards.

If you take the time and your talent is real, it will last.

People who are meant to be drawn to your music will find you.

Everyone is working who should be.

One shouldn’t be in the habit of quoting oneself.

It is Jazz’s very nature to change, to develop and adapt to the circumstances of its environment.

The joy of music should never be interrupted by a commercial.

I kinda went back to that period between ’88 and ’94 where I felt like I was the most creative, without being hindered by powers that be. I was no longer going to try to hinder myself to what I thought was going to be on the radio.

We may not be changing the world dramatically, but we’re improving it one note at a time.