I'm not like a persona. I'm not a caricature of myself.

I wanted to be part of a high-class scene of musicians. It was half-inspired because I didn't have many friends, and I was hoping that I would meet people and fall in love and start a community around me, the way they used to do in the '60s.

New York's architecture alone is enough to inspire a whole album. In fact, that's what happened at first - my early stuff was mostly just interpretations of landscapes.

I was never successful in a noteworthy way, no one wrote about me, and I didn't have recognition. I've met a lot of musicians along the way who thought I was good, and they knew that was important to me. Having a simple career as a musician who liked music was good enough for me.

In New York I pretty much live in diners - I order French Fries, Diet Coke floats and lots of coffee.

No money, no place to live – I’ve been in more dangerous situations than other people.

Who belonged to no one, who belonged to everyone. Who had nothing, who wanted everything.