Music, of course, is what I hear and something that I more or less live by. It's not an occupation or profession, it's a compulsion.

There is nothing to keeping a band together. You simply have to have a gimmick, and the gimmick I use is to pay them money!

I like any and all of my associations with music: writing, playing, and listening. We write and play from our perspective, and the audience listens from its perspective. If and when we agree, I am lucky.

Now I can say loudly and openly what I have been saying to myself on my knees.

By and large, jazz has always been like the kind of a man you wouldn't want your daughter to associate with.

I don't need time. What I need is a deadline!

If you have a great band with a mediocre drummer, you have a mediocre band. If you have a mediocre band with a great drummer, you have a great band!