Harmelody allows everybody to be an individual who does not have to imitate anybody else.

For me, being an innovator doesn't mean being more intelligent, more rich, it's not a word, it's an action.

I had a really good time in New Orleans, although I had some very tragic times in Baton Rouge. Some guys beat me up and threw my horn away. 'Cause I had a beard, then, and long hair like the Beatles.

I've never had a relationship with a record executive. I always went to the record company by someone that liked my playing. Then they would get fired, and I'd be left with the record company. And then - because they got fired - the record company wouldn't do anything for me.

To me, human existence exists on a multiple level, not just on a two-dimensional level, not just having to be identified with what you do and what you say.

The human being receives the pleasure from music, not from the argument over what it is.

Jerry Garcia was one of the original American icons. He played naturally and beautifully.