My grandmother had this high-tech security system - a rusty nail she used to lock the door.

Eight kids and a stepmother, and I just wanted to be out of there and so when I got a scholarship from Boston to the Schillinger House, which is now the Berklee School of Music, I couldn't wait to get out of there.

The process is the most beautiful part.

You cannot get an A if you're afraid of getting an F.

We were in the heart of the ghetto in Chicago during the Depression, and every block - it was probably the biggest black ghetto in America - every block also is the spawning ground practically for every gangster, black and white, in America too.

Every day you must be able to say, I have to get up because I'm needed by someone. As long as you have that, you're healthy.

Let's not get too full of ourselves. Let's leave space for God to come into the room.