Basically my influences have been American influences. It's been blues, gospel, swing era music, bebop music, Broadway show music, classical music.

Jazz is not background music. You must concentrate in order to get the most out of it. You must absorb it.

I will search for hidden talents that I didn't know I had and do my best to cultivate them. I am grateful for each day, and I will try to use each day as a stepping stone to greater achievements.

Musical composition should bring happiness and joy to people and make them forget their troubles.

We all have to open our minds, stretch forth, take chances and venture out musically to try and arrive at something new and different.

Jazz is not background music.

The ensemble playing is as clean as a whistle. The band plays in tune and with dynamics. Also, there is some fine arranging and orchestrating going on here, and the soloists perform at top level.

I personally do not believe in politics, hatred, or anger in my musical composition.

People are pretty forgiving when it comes to other people's families. The only family that ever horrifies you is your own.

If you grow up in a home where actions don't lead to predictable consequences, you don't develop strategies to control your impulses.

I just play intuitively and work the same way in the studio. I don't have any magical effects or anything that helps me to get my particular sound.

It's very lonely bringing up a child on your own.

An essential element of any art is risk. If you don't take a risk then how are you going to make something really beautiful, that hasn't been seen before?

All really successful coaches have a system.

I live near a remedial school. There is a sign that says, slow... children. That can't be good for their self esteem. But look of course on the positive side, they can't read it.

I certainly don't want to be an angry old artist.

If you don't risk anything you risk everything

Openness fundamentally affects a lot of the core institutions in society - the media, the economy, how people relate to the government and just their leadership.