A song that sounds simple is just not that easy to write. One of the objectives of this record was to try and write melodies that continue to resonate.

However I am is however I am. When you see me onstage or in the press, there's not a lot of thought and calculation that goes into it.

I have a philosophy that everything you write doesn't have to be good for everybody. There are going to be people that get irritated by some of the things I write-including my parents. And then there are going to be people that you draw in because of the pointedness of certain things.

You can't be in the public eye without making mistakes and having some regrets and having people analyze everything you do.

I propose a limitation be put on how many squares of toilet paper can be used in any one sitting.

Once over there [Balkans], I felt extremely patriotic. Here are these people, from 18-year-olds to military veterans, enduring real duress for the cause of peace. I don't ever want to play for a regular audience again, only military folks who are starving for music.

I would never put a video in front of my kid. While I don't use videos as a babysitter, they have come in handy on the airplane.