I think a lot of men are afraid of pretty things, and I'm not, I like pretty songs.

I think that it's the job of the artist to be in transition and constantly learn more.

I try and eat good. On the road, that's next to impossible. And we eat a lot of unhealthy things when we're in Texas - that's what you do there.

Nashville's like any other hometown - after a while, it's stifling.

You have to live what you write, or you have to know it. There are exceptions, like story songs, where you just have to have your facts straight. But I think you don't have to live a hard life to be a good or interesting songwriter.

There's a certain urgency that comes from the records of the early 60s before overdubbing and multitracking came into play.

What I'm doing is basically the same as Bob Dylan did with folk songs and Woody Guthrie songs, the same as folk music's always done. I'm not going to sing about ploughing, but I'll write a song that sounds like it should be about ploughing.