When they were putting oil rigs up and down the California coast, the whole issue of safe energy and the addiction to fossil fuels really came into focus.

I'm certain that it was an incredible gift for me to not only be friends with some of the greatest blues people who've ever lived, but to learn how they played, how they sang, how they lived their lives, ran their marriages, and talked to their kids.

I'm one of those people who just doesn't plan my personal life. I plan my professional life.

I was raised with the blessing of being involved with peace and social justice, and the environmental movement. I have my parents to thank for that.

I've watched my peers get better with age and hoped that would happen with me.

It is still a surprise when people tell me that I've had an influence on them, particularly when it's someone I really respect.

The generation I grew up in was the beginning of "stand up for yourself," whether being a singer-songwriter or a feminist. In my college years, the feminist movement was really coming to fore, so we wouldn't have put up with guys treating us less than equal.