Around '75 when the recession hit, club owners started going to disco because it was cheaper for them to just buy a sound system than it was to hire a band.

Success is fickle, but creativity is a gift.

I never did heroin, because I thought that meant I was doing heavy drugs, which shows you the insanity of doing drugs. I probably should have done heroin, because I understand heroin actually makes you feel good. Cocaine just makes you stupid.

I was born in Alabama and my first live music experiences were in church. Every Sunday we watched regional gospel groups on television singing their hearts out

I soon gave up instruction for self-teaching

When I was about 3, my grandfather used to give me and my sister a nickel to sit out on the front porch with him and sing songs.

As a solo artist, I just felt cemented in front of the mike stand. There was very little time to play with the audience and be a band member