[Early on,] the attitude was that what I was doing wasn't music.

There are people who've prepared their whole lives for real heavy success and bask in it. They're so good at it and they obviously love it. I'm just happy to be making a record.

The only way I was allowed to play was by convincing bands to let me do a few songs while they set up. That went on for years.

I think everybody should just turn off their TV machines and make up their own songs about whatever comes to mind-their couch, their friends their loaves of bread. Everybody's got their own songs. There should be so many songs out there that it all turns into one big sound and we can put the whole thing into a pickup truck and let it roll off the edge of the Grand Canyon.

You have to shelve a lot of your inspiration. There's only so much you can do with one record.

There's a perception that if an artist produces another artist, they're going to imprint on them. But I'm the opposite.

I'm more critical of my songwriting than anybody, but I've worked really hard in the last five to 10 years to improve.