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" Grammy nominations are certainly pleasant, but you can forget about them and lead a perfectly happy life - provided you have the approval of the musicians you work with. "

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" I really thought I was gonna have a straight gig. But these jazz musicians put their arms around me time and again and said, 'Hey, young fella, you're one of us. Come with us.' That's a big deal when you're young and looking for your way in the world. "

Kurt Elling

World

You

Time

" My intellect was quickened at divinity school, and my abilities to discern were strengthened, and that's always valuable. "

" People want to have access to jazz because it has a vibe that's very strong. "

" If I was going to sell out, I would do it for more than 10,000 records. "

Kurt Elling

Going

Out

" I spend upwards of 200 nights a year on the road. "

" If you're going to be transparent, you're going to have to let the music come that wants to come. "

" Why limit yourself to one discipline or field of study? "

" Romance is one of the things that most countries share, and I've noticed how different communities have their own ways of singing about love and heartbreak. "

" I'm a jazz musician, and I really wanted to not miss an opportunity to have the full connection to jazz. "

" I like the power and versatility of a big band and how an orchestra can vary the dynamics from very loud to very quiet, and SNJO covers those bases. "

Kurt Elling

Big

Power

" Each of the CDs prior to 'Flirting With Twilight' were more like roller-coaster rides. "

Kurt Elling

CDs

Twilight

" I'm lucky that I enjoy touring as much as I do. I'm not going to make a living just making records. "

" Out in L.A., things relax even further than they do in Chicago. There's such a looseness to it, and there's a potentially refreshing advantage to that. "

" I haven't been afraid of John Coltrane or Miles Davis or Bill Evans or Wayne Shorter or Herbie Hancock. Why would I be afraid of the Beatles? "

" Man, I just feel so fortunate to be a jazz musician at all. I have a hard time thinking of it any other way. It's such a fulfilling vocation. I love it. "

" That's the thing: There are so many art songs in jazz. It's a much more rich experience for the singer than people think. "

" Chicago has a burly, action-oriented but still self-assured and relaxed confidence to its stride. The city has a lot of wide-open space and all the possibilities that suggests. There's a lot of horizontal grandeur here. "

" Part of my joy as a singer is to give gifts to people, and one way I try to connect to them is to add something in French or German or whatever. "

" Salacious? I suppose every once in a while the salacious thing is not a bad thing. It's kind of monochromatic if that's all you do. "

" You can never predict what the specific shape of your life is going to be, and you won't really know its general shape until, God willing, you're advanced in years and you have the time and opportunity to look back in a coherent way and see what your life was about. "

" I was very lucky that more experienced musicians allowed me to caterwaul until I figured out what it was really about. "

Kurt Elling

Lucky

" You don't want to make records so you can win a Grammy. You make records because you want to be a musician. "

" I couldn't do what I do without the encouragement and influence of the musicians I played with in Chicago. "

" Chicago is my home. And the way Chicago sounds will always be a part of who I am. "

" I try to stick with things that I can sing with honesty. "

" A lot of people are put off by the idea of scat singing. Either that or it's something to be made fun of. "

" You don't show respect to Frank Sinatra and his great example by trying to sound exactly like him. You show it by sounding exactly like you, and that's the way jazz has always progressed as an art form. "

" I hope that I'm also maturing emotionally as a human being as things go on. "

" I've tried to educate myself in the world and what's beautiful and what has meaning and is lasting. Then I just follow my intuition and see how it fits. "

" I've got more low notes than I had when I started. "