“I've known Prince for many years - I worked on the "Raspberry Beret" video - and Kirstie [Alley] and I used to fight about him.He once sent a card [saying] he had penned a song about me, called "Palomino Pleasure Ride." I remember bringing this card to work one time and showing Kirstie and saying: "See? Now who's the better friend?" It was so ridiculous.” YearsRememberUsedSongFightingPleasureKnownRidiculousVideoCardsOne TimeAlleysRaspberries Author:Kirstie Alley
“Since the songs were written over a five-year period, I think these are little snapshots. Some people call it political or topical, but I think each song is self-contained. I think it fits together as a picture of the last half-decade of time.” PeopleThinkingYearsLittlesSelfTogetherLastsPoliticalSongHalfFiveWrittenPeriodsFitDecadesFive YearsSnapshotsSelf Contained Author:Conor Oberst
“I always thought my days spent in darkness [as a child she had cataracts and was unable to see for nearly four years] gave me a very special sensitivity. Much later, when I really wanted to hear, really 'see' a song, I'd close my eyes, and when I wanted to bring it out of the very depths of myself, out of my guts, out of my belly, when the song had to come from far away, I'd close my eyes.” YearsChildrenEyeWantedSongDarknessFourSpecialDepthGutsFour YearsFar AwaySensitivityBelly Author:Edith Piaf
“But there were years when, in search of what I thought was better, nobler things I denied these, my people, and my family. I forgot the songs they sung - and most of those songs are now dead; I erased their dialect from my tongue; I was ashamed of them and their ways of life. But now - yes, I love them; they are a part of my blood; they, with all their virtues and their faults, played a great part in forming my way of looking at life.” PeopleWayYearsSongFamilyVirtueBloodMy FamilyFaultsTongueMy WayAshamedDeniedFamily LifeDialect Author:Agnes Smedley
“I don't kind of want to be known as a one-trick pony who just does the adult-alternative song once a year that makes it onto the radio and people sort of think it's nice.” PeopleThinkingWantYearsKindDoeSongKnownNiceAdultsRadioTricksAlternativesPonies Author:Ed Sheeran
“He [Alan Lomax] started right off trying to find people who could introduce folk songs to city people. He found a young actor named Burl Ives and said, "Burl, you know a lot of great country songs learned from your grandmother, don't you know people would love to hear them?" He put on radio programs. He persuaded CBS to dedicate "The School of the Air" for one year to American folk music. He'd get some old sailor to sing an old sea shanty with a cracked voice. Then he'd get me to sing it with my banjo.” PeopleKnowsTryingYearsSaidCountrySchoolYoungSongActorsFoundVoiceCitiesAirSeaProgramFolksRadioGrandmotherIntroducingSailorCrackedFolk MusicGreat CountryYoung ActorsBanjosYour GrandmotherFolk Songs Author:Pete Seeger
“Now any person who plays an acoustic guitar standing up on stage with a microphone is a folk singer. Some grandmother with a baby in her arms singing a 500-year-old song, well, she's not a folk singer, she's not on stage with a guitar and a microphone. No, she's just an old grandmother singing an old song. The term "folk singer" has gotten warped.” YearsWellsPersonsPlaySongTermStageBabyArmsSingingStandingGuitarFolksSingersGrandmotherAcousticsMicrophonesAcoustic GuitarOld Song Author:Pete Seeger
“There are many people writing songs. That is absolutely wonderful. Who knows, there may be some kid in diapers and he or she might succeed in capturing in a few dozen words what great writers have spent years trying to say. Just the right word in the right place with the right melody behind it and the right rhythm. It might get around the world inch by inch, and people realize that this world is in danger, that we're in danger. That's the way "This Land Is Your Land" got to be so well known.” PeopleKnowsWorldWayWritingTryingYearsWellsMayMightKidsSongRealizingBehindsKnownWonderfulLandDangerThis WorldSucceedRhythmAround The WorldMelodyDozenInchesWell KnownRight PlaceWriting SongsGreat WritersRight WordsDiapers Author:Pete Seeger
“If I hear a conversation and somebody says something intriguing, my first thought is, Is that a song? I write all year long, and at the end of the year I pull these forty or fifty things out and say which of these things do I want to record.” IfsWantWritingYearsFirstsLongEndsSongRecordsConversationFiftyFortyIntriguing Author:Toby Keith
“In the years that Ive seen concerts, when Ive paid to see somebody I want to see, there would be a certain amount of songs Id want to hear. So whether its stuff I want to play every night or not - or stuff Ive been playing for years or stuff you get tired of playing - you have to play what people pay for and make it fair for them.” PeopleWantYearsPlayWould BeNightCertainSongStuffPayAmountFairsPaidTiredConcertsEvery Night Author:Toby Keith
“There's a band in a garage right now writing songs for an album that will do the same thing 'Nevermind' did some 20 years ago. We don't know who and where, but it will f***ing happen again. All it takes is for that storm to break.” KnowsWritingYearsHappensSongBreakRight NowBandYears AgoAlbumsStormWriting SongsGarageNevermind Author:Dave Grohl
“Paper or razor blade, never give up And just remember just to hold out more A couple years ago I couldn't just control that thought You'd find me buskin' on the street When it was cold outdoors And now I'm sweating on the stage With the sold out tours Writing love songs for the sake of it Never to make a hit” GivingWritingYearsRememberSongStreetsStageColdCoupleGiving UpPaperYears AgoSakeNever Giving UpBladesFind MeRazorsSweatingSold OutWriting LoveWriting Love Songs Author:Ed Sheeran
“My sound is constantly progressing and maturing. It's hard with all the songs that I have written over the years to compile them all into one album. It's almost impossible to categorize them into one genre.” YearsHardSongSoundProgressImpossibleWrittenAlbumsGenreMature Author:Asher Monroe
“I look at some of the songs I wrote years ago and I can't believe I wrote such crap.” YearsBelieveLooksI CanSongYears AgoCrap Author:Billy Joel
“I was very impressed with Hanson's performance. I thought that little drummer was a kick-ass drummer, and uh, that they sang great, I mean I didn't know either, y'know, that these little boys, y'know, I was very impressed. I think they'll probably be around in 20 years writing good songs, and being a great band.” ThinkingKnowsWritingYearsMeanLittlesSongBoysBandPerformancesAssKicksImpressedDrummerLittle BoysKick Ass Author:Stevie Nicks
“I just always wrote songs as a side hobby. So it was sort of a natural thing to write comedy songs. But when I started writing songs, I wrote very serious songs. Or things that a 13-14 year-old would think are very serious issues.” ThinkingWritingYearsSongSidesNaturalIssuesComedySeriousHobbiesWriting SongsNatural ThingsSerious Issues Author:Kyle Dunnigan
“The hills are alive with the sound of music, with songs they have sung for a thousand years.” YearsSongSoundMusicAliveThousandMusicianHillsThousand YearsSound Of MusicSound And MusicFilm And Music Author:Oscar Hammerstein II
“I can't constantly be trying to write the unwritten song, the song that the 15-year-old girl needs. I need to write the song that I need.” NeedsWritingTryingYearsI CanSongGirlUnwritten Author:Kathleen Hanna
“The first song I ever learned to sing and play on the piano was 'I Remember Sky' when I was 10 years old. I remember thinking, This is the most beautiful song I will ever hear. And that remains true for me to this day. His music is the sole reason I wanted to be on Broadway. I wanted to sing music that transports us to the most important place one can travel, our hearts.” ThinkingYearsFirstsHeartImportantReasonPlayWantedBeautifulRememberSongSkyMusic IsRemainsPianoThis DaySoleBroadwayTransport Author:Laura Benanti
“George Jones has been a major part of my personal and professional life for a long time. I have been inspired by his music for the last 50 years and for 42 of those, I had the pleasure of knowing him personally and professionally. He was IT to me. George was and will always be my guy. I am luckier than a lot of people on this Earth because God let me be a part of George's life and him a part of mine. And on this day, his song couldn't be more true: 'He Stopped Loving Her Today.'” PeopleYearsLongHas BeensTodayEarthLastsGuySongPleasureKnowingMinesMajorsLong TimeLet MeInspiredThis DayProfessional LifeGeorge JonesPersonal And Professional Life Author:Sammy Kershaw
“Now are the days, of humblest prayer, When consciences to God lie bare, And mercy most delights to spare. Oh hearken when we cry. Now is the season, wisely long, Of sadder thought and graver song, When ailing souls grow well and strong. Oh hearken when we cry. The feast of penance! Oh so bright, With true conversion's heavenly light, Like sunrise after stormy night! Oh hearken when we cry. Oh happy time of blessed tears, Of surer hopes, of chast'ning fears, Undoing all our evil years. Oh hearken when we cry. Chastise us with Thy fear; Yet, Father! in the multitude Of Thy compassions, hear!” YearsWellsLongSoulLightLyingNightSongEvilFatherStrongGrowsPrayerCompassionCryTearsConscienceMercySeasonsBlessedDelightConversionHeavenlySunriseMultitudesSparesStormyPenanceUndoingHappy TimesStormy Nights Author:Frederick William Faber
“Yes, I did lock myself in my room for about two years and write some songs and things like that. But I don't feel like I missed out on a whole lot.” FeelsWritingYearsTwoWholeSongRoomsTwo YearsLocks Author:Hunter Hayes
“When I was 13 or 14, I took seven months off from touring. I did a lot of weekend gigs in Louisiana. We have fairs and festivals every weekend. But I took seven months off. That's when I really started digging deep. I wrote a couple songs that year that I still play every now and then for people.” PeopleYearsStillsPlaySongMonthsCoupleFairsSevenWeekendNow And ThenFestivalsTouringGigsDiggingLouisianaSeven MonthsDigging Deep Author:Hunter Hayes
“Being singer is different than being an actor, where you call up sources from your own experience that you can apply to whatever Shakespeare drama you're in. But an actor is pretending to be somebody, a singer isn't. And that's the difference. Singers today have to sing songs where there's very little emotion involved. That and the fact that they have to sing hit records from years gone by doesn't leave a lot of room for any kind of intelligent creativity.” YearsKindLittlesDifferentFactsTodaySongActorsDifferencesRoomsEmotionCreativityGoneRecordsSourceInvolvedDramaIntelligentSingersPretendingYears Gone By Author:Bob Dylan
“Technology is mechanical and contrary to the emotions that inform a person's life. The country music field has especially been hit hard by this. All my songs have been written by people who went out of fashion years ago. Just like da Vinci and Renoir and van Gogh. Nobody paints like that anymore. But it can't be wrong to try.” PeopleTryingYearsPersonsHas BeensCountryHardSongEmotionTechnologyWrittenFashionFieldsYears AgoPaintContraryVansRenoir Author:Bob Dylan
“I'm good with songs I haven't written, if I like them. I'm glad I didn't write any of them. I already know how they go, so I have more freedom with them. I understand these songs. I've known them for 40 years, 50 years, maybe longer, and they make a lot of sense. So I'm not coming to them like a stranger.” IfsKnowsWritingYearsSongKnownKnow HowWrittenHavensStrangerGlad Author:Bob Dylan
“You travel the world, you go see different things. I like to see Shakespeare plays, so I'll go - I mean, even if it's in a different language. I don't care, I just like Shakespeare, you know. I've seen Othello and Hamlet and Merchant of Venice over the years, and some versions are better than others. Way better. It's like hearing a bad version of a song. But then somewhere else, somebody has a great version.” IfsKnowsWorldWayYearsMeanDifferentPlayCareSongLanguageDon't CareHearingVersionsI Don't CareDifferent ThingsSomewhere ElseVeniceMerchantsTravel The WorldDifferent LanguagesMerchant Of VeniceShakespeare Play Author:Bob Dylan
“I need all kinds of songs - fast ones, slow ones, minor key, ballads, rumbas - and they all get juggled around during a live show. I've been trying for years to come up with songs that have the feeling of a Shakespearean drama, so I'm always starting with that.” NeedsTryingYearsKindShowsFeelingsSongKeysDramaStartingCome UpAll KindsMinorsBalladsRumba Author:Bob Dylan
“I could write all songs all day long about what I think about the music industry or music in general. Sometimes I gotta be like, "Let's write about something else." You don't want to say the same thing over and over again. In a lot of ways, I look at records as a year or two of my life encapsulated in songs. They're almost like journal entries.” ThinkingWayWantWritingYearsLooksLongTwoSometimesSongRecordsIndustryJournalMusic IndustryEntry Author:Laura Jane Grace
“I do an act, and I've been doing an act for 50 years. I do a variety show, which is a musical comedy show. I do comedy, and I do singing, Broadway show tunes and different songs that I like. Been doing it for many, many years.” YearsDifferentShowsSongComedySingingMusicalVarietyTunesBroadwayBroadway ShowsComedy ShowsShow Tunes Author:Debbie Reynolds
“Our shows have always been sort of an all-generations thing, people from 6 to 60. The other night, we played a show and we had a woman who was probably 70 to 75 years old, and she was there alone and she was singing every song. On the other end of the spectrum, there was a 7-year-old on his dad's shoulders and the dad is singing along.” PeopleYearsEndsShowsNightSongGenerationsDadSingingShouldersSpectrum Author:Andy Biersack
“I've been writing songs since I was 10 years old and always had a penchant for rhyming. I started listening to hip hop through my friends and fell in love with it.” WritingYearsSongListeningMy FriendsHip HopHipsHopsWriting SongsRhyming Author:Hoodie Allen
“I've been writing songs and making music since I was probably ten years old...so my inspirations back then, I don't know - I guess it was something that was innate. I was really shaped to make hip-hop music and love hip hop.” KnowsWritingYearsInspirationSongTenAnd LoveHip HopHipsHopsInnateWriting SongsMusic And LoveHip Hop Music Author:Hoodie Allen
“I started just concentrating on songwriting when I was abut 20; I'd been in rock bands six or seven years, kinda got that out of my system, I said, "ok, you ain't gonna be a rock star, you don't look like a rock star, it probably ain't gonna happen. So what you should do is write songs and maybe other people will do your songs."” PeopleShouldWritingYearsLooksSaidHappensSongStarsRocksBandSixSevenSongwritingSeven YearsRock StarConcentratingRock Bands Author:Billy Joel
“Through my years as a writer, I've learnt how to simplify the message and pen songs that have a more specific quality - it's not just about my ego and trying to meet girls.” TryingYearsSongGirlQualityEgoMessagesPensSimplify Author:Jason Mraz