With few exceptions, every major pop singer in the US during her generation has been touched in some way by her genius. It is Billie Holiday who was, and still remains, the greatest single musical influence on me. Lady Day is unquestionably the most important influence on American popular singing in the last twenty years.

You better get busy living, because dying's a pain in the ass.

You treat a lady like a dame, and a dame like a lady.

Las Vegas is the only place I know where money really talks--it says, Goodbye.

Should have a Ph.d. on the subject of women. Anyhow the fact of the matter is I've failed usually. I'm exceptionally enamored with women; I respect them. Yet, in the same way as all men, I don't comprehend them.

A friend to me has no race, no class and belongs to no minority. My friendships were formed out of affection, mutual respect and a feeling of having something strong in common. These are eternal values that cannot be racially classified. This is the way I look at race.

The best is yet to come, and won't that be fine? You think you've seen the sun, but you ain't seen it shine.