The fact that my songs take a long time to write is no guarantee of their excellence.

We've got to temper anything we say with that. On the other hand, you've got to be serious about what you do. And you've got to understand the price you pay for frivolity or just for greed - it's a very high price, especially if you're involved in this sacred material, which is about the human heart and human desire and human tragedy.

Please make me empty, if I'm empty then I can receive, if I can receive it means it comes from somewhere outside of me, if it comes from outside of me I'm not alone! I cannot bear this loneliness. Above all it is loneliness.

A sip of wine, a cigarette, And then it’s time to go. I tidied up the kitchenette; I tuned the old banjo. I’m wanted at the traffic-jam. They’re saving me a seat.

Ah, grief makes us precise!

When things get really bad, just raise your glass and stamp your feet and do a little jig. That's about all you can do.

It's hard to be serious about so many things. [Look at the whole emphasis] on the charts, if you're a songwriter.