Everybody who I ever cared about has told me that they like my music: Bob Dylan, Paul McCartney, Al Green, The Spinners, Smokey Robinson. Everybody that matters.

I love antique architecture, so if I have any indulgences, I have owned and renovated and reconstructed a lot of old houses.

When you have that first flash of what you think is going to be a great idea-from the mouth, from the hands-that's an amazing feeling. I don't think anything's quite as good as that.

If you take a bunch of superstars and put them in a room where they don't have their assistants and entourage, it's funny to see what happens.

Most artists try to avoid cliches, but it's pretty hard to avoid them if you yourself end up being one.

Being at college, I think that's the time when you really start searching for things outside yourself.

The biggest honor of my career was when I won R&B Artist of the Year back in the 1970s. I look at that as a major honor.