The first time I heard Clyde McPhatter singing with the Dominoes at the Apollo I just fell off my chair

People like Clyde McPhatter who came out of the black churches - like Sam Cooke and Aretha Franklin - were all church singers who became great pop singers because gospel singing is very close to the blues.

The songwriters whom we think of being the greatest songwriters usually write one hit and six or seven flops.

I used to drink a bottle of vodka a day, every day, for about 40 years and it never occurred to me it'd kill me. If I'd have continued it might have killed me. My doctor said I should stick to wine.

The Ertegun Jazz Hall of Fame will provide a center where the lives and the artistry of the greatest jazz musicians will be celebrated, and where people will come to learn about jazz, something to which my brother devoted his lifes work.

A singer's biographical film should have their music and their voice.

I became a jazz fan quite early and never went off the path thereafter.