It's important to face down your demons.

Music is the only thing in this world, with the exception of sneezing and looking at the sunset, that takes you to a place that's above the mundane. Everything else is just bullshit.

Sometimes something will come along, and it feels easy and sometimes you'll get 85 percent there on a song and the last 15 percent will elude you for three years.

I try to be the fixer of situations and I gravitate to people who are institutional misfits.

I have this really beautiful Martin guitar, and it just kind of writes songs for me.

When people come together around music, there's something ancient going on. It has to come from a genuine place and that's part of the challenge. You have to cultivate that authenticity everyday.

I see rock music as the best example of modernday storytelling that exists in our society. Songs are narratives that help the listeners cope with the reality of life that can't be easily spoken about in everyday conversation. It is a hugely powerful process of helping people find themselves through music.