My music is homegrown from the garden of New Orleans. Music is everything to me short of breathing. Music also has a role to lift you up - not to be escapist but to take you out of misery.

When you're playing live, those people who you're trying to please and reach, they're right there giving you feedback. And you don't get that feedback in the studio.

And do respect the women of the world; remember you all had mothers.

To travel and to get around different places, especially in station wagons, you could really see America.

As an early child, I tried to play every kind of music that I heard. I thought everyone was doing that.

As a young child, I thought that all pianists played everything. I mean, I thought anything on piano - any piano music, all pianists played it.

Whenever I wrote songs - particularly back then - it would always be for a particular artist.