You have to know 400 notes that you can play, then pick the right four.

If you have a tone like mine that is recognizable. No matter what I play, when you hear my tone you can tell it's me.

Jazz is the big brother of Revolution. Revolution follows it around.

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

Jazz is an Uncle Tom word. They should stop using that word for selling. I told George Wein the other day that he should stop using it.

I was minding my own business when something says to me, "you ought to blow trumpet." I have just been trying ever since.

Audiences - they like colour, you know. I can go out there wearing a red suit, man, and they'll say I'm out of sight ... I think they should be educated; you should always drop something on an audience ... When you get in front of an audience, you should try to give 'em something. After all, they're there looking at you like this. You can't go out and give 'em nothing.