Duke Ellington

I merely took the energy it takes to pout and wrote some blues.

My attitude is never to be satisfied, never enough, never.

A problem is a chance for you to do your best.

I’m sure critics have their purpose, and they’re supposed to do what they do, but sometimes they get a little carried away with what they think someone should have done, rather than concerning themselves with what he did.

There is no art without intention.

If it sounds good and feels good, then it IS good!

We’re here to have a ball.

Man, as long as people want to hear Jazz, I’ll give it to them.

Joe’s been my drummer for 14 years, and we’ve been buddies for six years.

You only get better by playing.

The essentials of Jazz are: melodic improvisation, melodic invention, swing and instrumental personality.

Jazz music will continue to thrive, possibly in unexpected ways.

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

When rock music came in, I wasn’t bitter about it. I was puzzled.

You don’t know what love is, until you’ve learned the meaning of the blues, until you’ve loved a love you’ve had to lose.

I’m not much on gimmicks. I never have been because they don’t last.

We all do ‘do, re, mi’ but you got to find the other notes yourself.

I went back and listened to the first three albums I made and tried to figure out what was special about them, why people keep going back to them. I think it was because I didn’t know what I was doing. I had no idea if they were going to play it on the radio or anything. All I did was write songs, so that’s what I got back to.

If you want to make money in music, get into the band uniform business.

You can play a shoestring if you’re sincere.

I know what I’ve done for music, but don’t call me a legend. Just call me Miles Davis.