I'm against the idea that rock stars have to live a life that's completely understandable or predictable to their audience....Maybe I'll just be the mysterious figure that'll never be able to truly be defined. Maybe that's what my thing is.

I don't mind if my skull ends up on a shelf as long as it's got my name on it.

The only person I really believe in is me.

That undercurrent of the forbidden was always a part of rock.

I really, really like writing songs. Capote wrote every day. He said that's the only way, you have to sit down every day and do it...Something that's written out is okay, but it's not always a clear indication of what a person means.

I always say the new album is the best one yet. I always feel that - I really do, because it's the latest and it's the newest and it's a little bit better.

I don't think that the punk sound really became the punk sound until much later. The punk era wasn't really just one musical sound. There are a lot of differences among Television, the Ramones, and the Talking Heads.