We're not going to play the blues anymore. Let the white folks play the blues. They got 'em, so they can keep 'em.

Some of [drummers] drop time because they want to hear what you're doin'.

Some musicians play with their heart, you know what I mean? I don't know what to tell a person that can't - if you can't tell a person what you're talkin' about when they're rushin' or droppin' the tempo, you get somebody else.

In music, silence is more important than sound.

Lionel [Richie] said, "Yeah, I learned chords and stuff playin' against your albums."

We don't play to be seen. I'm addicted to music, not audiences.

Monk was a gentle person, gentle and beautiful, but he was strong as an ox. And if I had ever said something about punching Monk out in front of his face - and I never did - then somebody should have just come and got me and taken me to the madhouse, because Monk could have just picked my little ass up and thrown me through a wall.