Ma Rainey

You hear about the Duke Ellingtons, the Jimmie Luncefords, and the Fletcher Hendersons, but people sometimes forget that jazz was not only built in the minds of the great ones, but on the backs of the ordinary ones.

Jazz is one of the best things that you can find in your life, it can always be your friend.

Music is my life, professionally, for nearly 60 years. To be recognized by the academy is still the highest honor.

And as long as people have problems, the blues can never die.

Music has to be accessible.

If you must listen to bad music, please use headphones.

Regardless of what you play, the biggest thing is keeping the feel going.

Jazz is an art that makes a person completely naked.

Get around, be on the scene, play it clean, be seen, be keen and be over eighteen.

You only go around once and this ain’t no rehearsal.

You could go out and eat and come back and the note would still be playing.

What we hear is the quality of our listening.

I’m not thinking about what needs to be on the radio. I’m not thinking about anything other than – I’m just going to let this music come out of me and not have any sort of preconceived notion of what I should do. I’m just going to do it.

Master your instrument, master the music and then forget all that and just play.

Musically, I love to talk just off the top of my head and that’s what Jazz is all about.