Every artistic form has its golden age, and unfortunately I think the golden age for whatever I do probably ended about 1990.

Nobody's going to sell 10 million records by not working hard.

I never felt entitled to anything. I'm the hardest worker I know.

Every artistic form has its golden age, and unfortunately I think the golden age for whatever I do probably ended about 1990.

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.

I was just like a 21st century person waiting to be born, and this is the medium that I thrive in. And I feel stronger now than I did any time since I've been a teenager - I mean, musically, creatively.

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.