I don't consider myself a musician who has achieved perfection and can't develop any further. But I compose my pieces with a formula that I created myself. Take a musician like John Coltrane. He is a perfect musician, who can give expression to all the possibilities of his instrument. But he seems to have difficulty expressing original ideas on it. That is why he keeps looking for ideas in exotic places. At least I don't have that problem, because, like I say, I find my inspiration in myself.

Man, that cat [Ornette Coleman] is nuts.

Anybody talented in any way - they're called eccentric.

I always believed in being myself.

I can shoot pool, and I can play ping-pong. I'm pretty good at those games.

Miles'd got killed if he hit me.

It can't be any new note. When you look at the keyboard, all the notes are there already. But if you mean a note enough, it will sound different. You got to pick the notes you really mean!