I always saw songwriting as the top of the heap. No matter what else you were going to do creatively... writing songs was king.

I see myself as a traditionalist. I like traditional things. I like things of substance and value that have been proven. Conceptually, as the songs started to come together, I followed that lead, which is the language I work in.

The songs I write should only be gauged by what other writers or peers are doing today. If the barometer for all songwriters was to match his body of work, then anyone you might mention alive or dead is a failure. But I've learned to not be too hung up on what's fair or not fair.

My songs have always had hope and perseverance in them - I never write songs that have no escape hatch, no positivity.

My father said it himself in an interview many years ago: 'Husband and wife failed, but mother and father didn't.' I've got a life that really matters to me, and that's because of the way I was raised. My ethics are high because my parents did a great job.

I liked getting the Grammy more than not getting it.

Tolerance can lead to learning something.