It's funny that people think because you don't have a movie or record out, you disappear into a frozen chamber someplace. They think you're dead when you're not in the public eye.
A lot of people thought my career was over. If you're not releasing records, then something must be wrong. Either the record company doesn't like your music, or you've been dropped. It has to something negative. It's not like you wanted to take a break, or want some balance, or smell the roses.
There are too many leaders anointed because they have a public voice - television, radio, or record, or whatever. That even includes myself. In the past, I'd say, 'Don't anoint me when you can anoint yourself.'
I must have some sort of record in failing to get into the charts.
I am extremely proud and honoured to have beaten Pete's record as he was my childhood hero and I have always looked up to him.
Da Pak was a group out of Chicago. It was a put-together group. We actually met for the first time at this showcase. They were like 'Yo, you should do a song together.' So we did. It just so happened that the name of the song was 'Wolf Pak.' They said, 'Y'all should be a group called Da Pak, and here's a record deal.'
I think what separates me from the candidates is the fact that I have a proven track record of being a fighter. A fighting for what people believe in, whether it is popular or not. Despite the opposition, I stand true. Because people know that I will do what I say. And that I say what I do.
Part of the joy of looking at art is getting in sync in some ways with the decision-making process that the artist used and the record that's embedded in the work.
When we race in London a world record will be the last thing on our minds.
People don't always realize that a record is forever. It'll always be there under your name. You've got to be certain that it's right.
You have to create a track record of breaking your own mold, or at least other people's idea of that mold.
I'm not going to do the Ben Harper house record or the Ben Harper drum 'n' bass record.
Housing has led our nation's economic expansion over the past few years, accounting for 16 percent of our Gross Domestic Product. New housing starts and home sales hit record levels from 2003 through 2005.
It is such a crazy idea that maybe something that I wrote or something that I put on a record would affect people at all.
People think when you get a record deal all your problems will go away. We know that the bigger we get, the more problems we'll have. I guess Puff Daddy was somewhat - what's the word? - prophetic in that respect.
I'm very happy with this new record. It's dealing with different aspects of love-it's me making a statement about people doing something with their lives. It is about caring for others.
It was a difficult second record. I had moments where I couldn't write; had moments where I was writing lots. It was just a massive learning process for me.
The Midwest breeds funny, eccentric people, to varying degrees. You play shows not because you're expecting to get a record deal, but to do something fun outside of mowing lawns. Everything else is just gravy... Or mustard.
Do not let any record company disturb your creative flow. You are not writing for the record company. You're writing for the public.
You don't want the biggest record deal as far as money goes, you just want to make sure that the people at the label really support your band and the music and stuff.
I think the music business is probably not happy with what we've done, because the people buying the record have actually got to pick what they want to buy, rather than being told what they should buy.
You could put this record on and not get jarred half-way through. I wanted it to be all cut from one cloth, and that was the way we took it through the whole production process.
I built a reputation as a songwriter in the industry before my own hits. People were used to coming to me for songs. There were songs like 'Clown' and 'Mountains' that were my songs that I wanted to keep. But the record labels saw me as a songwriter. It was hard to get people to believe in me as an artist.
The record company really pissed me off when they told me to lose weight. I couldn't be bothered with looking a certain way. So I left the business. I don't regret it.
Of all the things we have done, the most important - the one that history will record as the principal contribution of our generation - is that we understand how to turn the armed struggle into a Revolution; that we realized that it was essential to create a new mentality to build a new society.
I would go on the record with my respect for Mike Madigan, which will probably upset a lot of friends. He's enormously skillful at what he does. The only speakers of any House who survive are the ones who can keep their majority and keep everyone going largely in the same direction. Mike Madigan is superb at that.
I guess I set a world record for errors. I had a pretty good arm, see, but I didn't have much control.
I find the songs I want to record by listening to as much music as I can. 'When I hear things I really like, I ask the writers to send me a tape of everything they've ever written.
I don't think they like the idea that the people who are buying the record get to choose what goes out, because it's their job. The fans even pre-ordered stock to make sure that I had some sort of presence.
Just for the record, I personally do agree with some of the sentiments of Rabbi Meir Kahane. I think he was right about certain things, wrong about other things, but I have absolutely nothing, no association whatsoever with Kahane Chai leaders.
My record shows that I'm not the kind of player who wants to change clubs every season, and I would have no problem playing in England for many more years.
Look at the history of peace accords in Africa. They have a terrible record. They are shredded even before the ink on them is dry.
The first record I bought was a Carl Perkins record, because I saw him at The Festival at Sandpoint, Idaho. I loved Elvis and I found out that he wrote 'Blue Suede Shoes'... so connecting that experience of going to see him play was pretty awesome. That's when I realised I wanted to play guitar.
I've actually always wanted to make something like an acoustic record.
Its very sort of spontaneous and organic, not a preconceived sort of jamming. Now we record everything, cause sometimes you'll forget, you know, 'what was that thing again?' So we record everything.
When it all started, record companies - and there were many of them, and this was a good thing - were run by people who loved records, people like Ahmet Ertegun, who ran Atlantic Records, who were record collectors. They got in it because they loved music.
