Risk is what separates the artist from the artisan.

Almost everything The Beatles did was great, and it's hard to improve on. They were our Bach. The way to get around it may be to keep it as simple as possible.

Probably the deepest use of music and of art is to create conscience.

I don't hear any of the popular stuff unless it's good 'cause I pay no attention to popular culture, at all.

My original idea was to produce and not make records myself.

In other words, I'd say the whole story of Bob Dylan is one man's search for God. The turns and the steps he takes to find God are his business. I think he went to a study group at the Vineyard, and it created a lot of excitement.

The essence of show business is, if you see a tight-rope walker go across a tight rope, everybody claps. But, if you see him wobble, everybody gasps.