Not everybody has to sing the melody.

A song is like a picture of a bird in flight; the bird was moving before the picture was taken, and no doubt continued after.

I came from an intellectual family. Most were doctors, preachers, teachers, businessmen. My grandfather was a small businessman. His father was an abolitionist doctor, and his father was an immigrant from Germany.

I think folk music helps reinforce your sense of history. An old song makes you think of times gone by.

You'd be surprised how many stupid mistakes I've made. I make stupid mistakes all the time, and some of them have been very big stupid mistakes.

I guess I've learned more from the Clearwater than anything else. All I did was help to plant a seed, and I didn't know what the hell I was doing.

The key to the future of the world is finding the optimistic stories and letting them be known.