I have complete artistic control, and I just do my best album every time and trust it to fate.

It may be that my most helpful contributions to music aren't my compact discs but my articles about other great singers of the past for American Heritage magazine.

Thank God for beautiful songs about feeling despair when you yourself are in despair. They really get us through.

Please believe that I do this because I am convinced that my illness cannot be helped for any length of time and I cannot bear to be a burden on anyone any longer.

When I dance, I love the romance and sexiness of it, and love having it be clear to both dancers that the man leads! But the man has to know what he's doing!

Somebody called me a 'bruised romantic' once, and I like that.

If I love a song I hope to find a way to get other people to love it too.

I had no desire to become a singer until I heard Billie Holiday. The first time I heard her on a record, it was a revelation. She sounded like a woman singing about herself.

I'm very happy to have a small, long, career instead of one big hit and then oblivion.

If you sing honestly and sincerely to kids, they will respond with all their hearts.

No matter how bad the situation, do not lose heart.

GUNS ARE NOT THE ISSUE. WE ARE.

About 10, 000 years ago, males and females were acting equitably and were treating one another as equals, and then males took over the power, because they have physical power and physical strength.

It is amazing that the wisdom of the chattering class to the Republicans is always, always, always 'Surrender your principles and agree with the Democrats.' That's been true for my entire lifetime.

Time is the enemy of freedom.

It's pre-photography, a fossilization of time, Americans have done the Zen garden to death. I wanted to do something different.

It may be that when the angels go about their task praising God, they play only Bach. I am sure, however, that when they are together en famille they play Mozart.

This thou must always bear in mind, what is the nature of the whole.

Write about the thing that frightens you most.

I wanna run, i wanna stay. hold every piece, so it won't break.