I think every Negro over fifty should get a medal for putting up with all that crap.

So What or Kind of Blue were done in that era, the right hour, the right day. It's over; it's on the record.

You know why I quit playing ballads? Cause I love playing ballads.

My future starts when I wake up every morning.

If you love them in the morning with their eyes full of crust; if you love them at night with their hair full of rollers, chances are, you're in love.

In other words, an instrument should be an extension of you; it's supposed to sound like you - the way you walk, the way you dress, you know.

That was my gift . . . having the ability to put certain guys together that would create a chemistry and then letting them go; letting them play what they knew, and above it.