I have daughters who are writers and actors but no musicians.

Sarah Palin is a great example of someone that just stirs the pot for the sake of the attention. No vision, no critical thinking, no backup to her statements. Just to incite little riots everywhere and capitalize upon it financially. To me, she is a microcosm of the ultimate cynicism in American politics.

I think any young person who is going into the same field as their parent whose parent has been very successful, it's complicated.And it was complicated for me.

If you're playing in a tradition and you have no reference point to it, no understanding and have not studied it, I can't respect that.

I dream of songs. I dream they fall down through the centuries, from my distant ancestors, and come to me. I dream of lullabies and sea shanties and keening cries and rhythms and stories and backbeats.

Work ... is redemption.

Isn't that the goal, as you grow older? That you start reclaiming those parts of yourself you didn't recognize or didn't think were there all along? That's what happened when I made The River and the Thread record.