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" I've just always written songs in a style that appeal to me personally. "

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" Songwriters aren't always performers, and even performing songwriters aren't always the kind of show-biz performers you think they'd be. "

" A woman comes to a table, and you're supposed to get up. Period. But I don't always do it. In general, you're supposed to do it every time. But sometimes you're seated against the wall, and it's awkward. "

" My first performance was in second grade with my friend Rodney Fisher, and we worked up versions of 'Long Tall Texan' and 'I Want to Hold Your Hand.' It gave me a little early confidence that I could actually do this music thing. "

" The most important thing you can do as a performer is to be yourself, or be an onstage version of yourself. If you're not being true to yourself, and somebody likes that other version of you, you're kind of stuck. "

" Tipping your hat to a lady is good form. If you're at a dinner table, you'd most certainly take your hat off - cowboy hat, baseball hat, or otherwise. "

" Somehow you can tell the difference when a song is written just to get on the radio and when what someone does is their whole life. That comes through in Bob Dylan, Paul Simon, Willie Nelson. There is no separating their life from their music. "

" I've always thought that writing isn't really that hard. It's having a good idea that's hard. "

" If someone gives you a belt buckle, it's like a piece of jewelry. It has the same sort of emotional significance. It would be something you would intend to keep forever. "

" If you forget the words to your own song, you can always claim artistic license. Forget the words to the national anthem, and you're screwed. "

" I sort of cringe when I hear myself say the word 'work.' Getting to do something you love to do never really feels like work. "

" In school, I didn't speak up often in class. I was never the person to yell out an answer. If I knew it, I might whisper it to my buddy and let him answer. I kept quiet. "

" It's difficult to get started-when it comes to dealing with an unknown quantity, people are reluctant to trust their own opinion. It helps if two or three people give you a boost. "

" My music has always been sort of in between categories. Sometimes record stores - back when there were record stores - they'd put my records in the country music section, but other record stores would put my records in the pop or even the rock section. As long as it's in the store somewhere, I'm OK with it. "

" It's really a lot easier to write about things that are problematic. Who wants to hear how happy you are? "

" I've always worked with people who have been supporters of me creatively. "

" Never guess a woman's age. Never guess a woman's weight. Never even talk about weight in front of a woman. And never, ever ask a woman when she's due. "

" I'm not really a competitive person, and I'm not naturally comfortable in front of people. "

" Dad often told me, 'My job is to help my boss do his job and make him look good.' That was my dad's objective. Everything about the way he conducted himself was to communicate support for his superiors and respect for his coworkers. The way he dressed was his starting point in that communication. "

" Both my parents worked, so I was home alone a lot, and I would listen to their records. They belonged to the Columbia House record club, so they had records! "

" I'm really in no danger of being perceived as a famous movie actor! "

" Growing up, the last thing I ever thought I'd do is be an entertainer. "

" When I first was trying to play the clubs around Houston to start playing my own songs, songwriters like Eric Taylor and Vince Bell and Townes Van Zandt and Don Sanders were just really encouraging to me and would let me sit in with them during their sets and introduce me to the person that owned and booked the club. "

" Every crowd is different. But that's something that I enjoy, and you can feel it in the first few seconds when you walk out on stage. You know, how a crowd is. "

" One of my favorite things is when people will ask for a song that I hadn't planned to play. It is really fun to see if you can remember something, and you don't always. I mean, sometimes it's just crash and burn. "

" Records are very powerful promotional tools to go out and be able to play on the road, but you do have to think about it as a way of sustaining itself at some point. "

" Wear what you want to wear. Do what you want to do. Be who you are. Pick out your own clothes. Be a man. And if that's too much to ask, as it almost always is for me, think of someone you consider to be a man and pretend to be like him. I pretend to be like my dad. "

" I've gotten to work with some wonderful directors and people who have been great teachers to me. "

" Fortunately, I've never had a job. "

" You don't have to have anything in common with people you've known since you were five. With old friends, you've got your whole life in common. "

" You can't second-guess your audience. You can only do what you think is right. If you do that, your audience will appreciate you. "