Jack Nicholson

If you want to play somebody’s music, you’d better go into his house.

As far as playing jazz, no other art form, other than conversation, can give the satisfaction of spontaneous interaction.

Les Paul was one of the great innovators of the early electric guitar, and he made some fantastic guitar records. To me, Les Paul is very much it.

I never wanted to be like other blues singers. I might like hearing them play, but I’ve never wanted to be anyone other than myself. There are a few people that I’ve wished I could play like, but when I tried, it didn’t work.

They’re singing your praises while stealing your phrases.

When I write songs that touch on social relevance, all you have to do is pick up a newspaper.

The beauty of Jazz is that it’s malleable. People address it to suit their own personalities.

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

In my music, I’m trying to play the truth of what I am. The reason it’s difficult is because I’m changing all the time.

Well if I could play like Wynton, I wouldn’t play like Wynton.

Music activates the brain at a high level.

The extreme dynamic and percussive possibilities of an acoustic guitar amplified through a bridge pickup have, over many years of performing, informed not only the way I play, but the way I write and sing too. My guitar taught me to sing in textures, from the roundest lingering harmonic to the sharpest snap of a pulled string. Being a percussion instrument as well as a melodic instrument, my guitar also teaches me about the relationship between rhythm and melody. Portable. Did I mention it also taught me about being portable?

But the guitar, my lady, whether well played or badly played, well strung or badly strung, is pleasant to hear and listen to; being so easy to learn, it attracts the busiest of talented people and makes them put aside loftier occupations so that they may hold a guitar in their hands.

How do I know why Miles walks off the stage? Why don’t you ask him? And besides, maybe we’d all like to be like Miles, and just haven’t got the guts.

I wanted to put jazz on the record, all the loves of music that I had on the record, so I could show people I was ahead of my 19 years. It may have been over the heads of some people.