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" I think I represent a more left-wing view of what jazz is. "

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" People sometimes say it takes a long time to become a jazz fan, but for me it took about five seconds. "

" I don't worry too much about the fundamentalist principles that are in almost any discussion about jazz. "

" A lot of jazz artists think people should like what they're doing just because it's jazz. I don't buy that. "

" I'm always inspired when there's a robustness to the material in front of me. "

" 'The Unity Band' project has been life-changing for me. I have led many groups of talented musicians, but this is unlike anything else. "

" There are some musicians who are talented and see themselves as some kind of natural geniuses or something because of a certain amount of natural ability. But that is often rarely the case over the long term. "

" If you come to my house, you won't see a wall of trophies or things like that. I'm sort of 'on to the next thing' all the time. "

" No two notes are ever the same volume. With the guitar, you really have to model in your mind this wider thing; you're trying to create the illusion of a bigger dynamic range. "

" What I look for in musicians is a sense of infinity. "

" I love playing and working on music. It is something that I feel really lucky to be able to spend my life doing. And I don't sleep much! "

" If we are going to list guitar influences, the biggest one by far is Wes Montgomery. Also, Gary Burton was obviously huge for me in a number of ways. But beyond that, Clifford Brown, Miles Davis and Freddie Hubbard. "

" The first thing I learned was the theme from Peter Gunn. "

" I have three young kids and a great family. I love hanging out with them more than anything. "

" I was able to work with the best musicians in Kansas City starting when I was really young. "

" There are musicians who go through their lives sort of shedding their skins. For me, I've always felt backward-compatible to Version 1.0. "

" I didn't want there to be a computer on stage. When I see people with computers on stage, I think, 'Are you sending e-mail?' That's so corny. "

" I don't know if I would qualify as mainstream. I think I have managed to function pretty successfully on the fringes of the music world and have been able to play exactly what I have wanted the way I have wanted. "

" For me, let's keep jazz as folk music. Let's not make jazz classical music. Let's keep it as street music, as people's everyday-life music. Let's see jazz musicians continue to use the materials, the tools, the spirit of the actual time that they're living in, as what they build their lives as musicians around. "

" The pianist Cecil Taylor is extremely melodic; the guitarist Derek Bailey is extremely melodic, and Ornette Coleman. "

" I'm triggering acoustic instruments. I'm literally beating, smacking, hitting, blowing, doing physical things. It's an incredibly exciting way to make music. "

" I'm always trying to find 'connections' between things. That art is the juxtaposition of a lot of things that seem unrelated but add up to something recognizable. "

" Whatever my recorded output is, it's a reflection of a general love of music. "

" The guitar for me is a translation device. It's not a goal. And in some ways, jazz isn't a destination for me. For me, jazz is a vehicle that takes you to the true destination - a musical one that describes all kinds of stuff about the human condition and the way music works. "

" The beauty of jazz is that it's malleable. People are addressing it to suit their own personalities. "

" Listening is the key to everything good in music. "

" Jazz is not something that can be defined through blunt instruments. It is much more poetic than that. "

" When talking about writing, I often use the analogy of archaeology. There are these great tunes all around. Your skill as a musician allows you to pick them out without breaking them. "

" From 1962 to 1965, the guitar became this icon of youth culture, thanks mostly to the Beatles. "

" I would always contend that talent is an element, but over the long run, ultimately, a minor part of it all; it is mostly hard work. "

" I think I have a basic sound aesthetic that is in most of what I do. "