John Mayall

It’s part of what the blues does, to write about these things. JB Lenoir was the main one in this regard – he wrote about Korea, too, in fact. Songs that reflect these current situations – in his case, racial issues for the most part: in my case, what has happened to me, and I was in Korea.

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

The blues fitted in with the early 60s, the social way of life at the time.

Once you start collecting records you learn more and more about Jazz and Blues.

Check out the albums, … Check out the live performances. That’s the reality of it all. Music is such an energizing thing.

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

Although it’s painful at the time, most of the things that people have said about us negatively – some of them are true and you can work on them, and the ones that you don’t agree with, you don’t work on.

I’m pleased with how ridiculous I am. I like me. Though I’m not a huge fan. I know when to switch me off.

Anthony Weiner’s alter ego is a Bolivian action hero slash porn star. ‘Danger… is my user name.’

You can’t even imagine how it felt to have a cassette that you could take with you with a microphone so you could put down an idea and not have to hum it a million times to remember what it was.

Trying to be a leader in a sort of very atypical workplace like ‘Saturday Night Live’ forces you to realize that no one wants you to be their leader. If you can help them get their thing on TV or whatever, they want that. But no adult is looking for a role model.

I think I’m prone to panic.

You just have to play every scene honestly and forget about a reaction and what the audience is going to think. I think the more seriously you take something, the more funny it might be.

I love funky styles. Not preppy or rock, just funky!

I’m speaking for all of us. I’m the spokesman for a generation.

I have to tell you, and I don’t mean this as sour grapes or anything, but it is hard to play for fans who see you all the time, makes it much harder.

I feel like true icons shift music, uplift music, switch music, have the balls to take a chance.

When I was flying to Rome, we flew over London; I felt like bursting into tears. It’s part of me, so I can’t leave London behind for good.

There’s not a lot of towns that I can go to and take family – too many incongruous knocks on doors – “Hello, honey. Have you missed me?”

I think the way for me to win America’s heart is to perform, and if I really was concerned about breaking big then there’d be a tour.

At some point, I would like to write a book and other things, but I work best when there is some sort of deadline in my own mind, but not when fifty people or fifty million people are breathing down the back of my neck.