The thing that influenced me most was the way Tommy played his trombone. It was my idea to make my voice work in the same way as a trombone or violin-not sounding like them, but "playing" the voice like those instrumentalists.

It took me a long, long time to learn what I now know, and I don't want that to die with me.

The best revenge is massive success.

And now the end is near, and so I face the final curtain.

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.

My greatest teacher was not a vocal coach, not the work of other singers, but the way Tommy Dorsey breathed and phrased on the trombone.

What is the point of singing wonderful lyrics if the audience can't understand what is being said or heard?