If you have something to say of any worth then people will listen to you.

Sweets [Edison] can say more with one note than any other Jazz player alive... an approach that stresses simplicity, glorious tone, natural potency and an unmatched affinity. He is a unique stylist in our music.

I don't do something because I think it will sell 30 million albums. I couldn't care less. If it sells one, it sells one.

Some people try to get very philosophical and cerebral about what they're trying to say with jazz. You don't need any prologues, you just play. If you have something to say of any worth then people will listen to you.

I don't require lust, sex, or classic beauty; I require trust, respect, and honesty. All else builds from there.

The music field was the first to break down racial barriers, because in order to play together, you have to love the people you are playing with, and if you have any racial inhibitions, you wouldn't be able to do that.

Montreal was a very active jazz center until club owners started putting in strippers instead of music. Before long, there was nothing to hear.