Herbie Hancock

Creativity and artistic endeavors have a mission that goes far beyond just making music for the sake of music.

The true artform is being a human being.

When I was coming up, I practiced all the time because I thought if I didn’t I couldn’t do my best.

It’s not the style that motivates me, as much as an attitude of openness that I have when I go into a project.

I’m always looking to create new avenues or new visions of music.

I’m always interested in looking forward toward the future. Carving out new ways of looking at things.

Music allows the great opportunity to play with people you love.

A Jazz man should be saying what he feels: humor, sadness, joy… all the things that humans have.

If you want to make beautiful music, you must play the black and the white notes together.

To me, the guitar cuts through. It carries more than the organ, but the organ has got more guts.

Improvisation is the most widespread of all musical activities. Why did so many people spend so long pretending it never happened?

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.

Once in a while, the thumb that fits over the neck of the guitar kinda bothers me a little bit, but not that much yet. I figure in time I won’t do much because of my age.

The drummer; he inspired me to play like no one else I have ever met.

Always keep reaching.

Actually, I think the more Ben [Taylor] sings, the less like James he sounds.

I’m fortunate that I’m making a living at it now because I’m not equipped to do anything else.

Jazz stands for freedom.

I’m an experimenter. It’s rich because every album I’ve done, except for a couple of techno-y records, are different. Really you’ve got to hand it to the Fender Strat, because there are songs in that guitar. It’s a tool of great inspiration and torture at the same time because it’s forever sitting there challenging you to find something else in it, but it is there if you really search.

Practice as if you are the worst, play as if you are the best!

People always ask, “Why jazz?” and I’m like “Why not?” It’s kind of like asking Seurat, “Why so many dots?” I imagine if you asked Bjork, “Why the Tibetan bells?” She’d probably be like “That’s just what I heard.” It’s the same thing. This is just the way I see music.