Jimmy Buffett

And you find as a writer there are certain spots on the planet where you write better than others, and I believe in that. And New Orleans is one of them.

The stores and the things like that, the business side of things came out at the point when, I'd say probably in the early '70s, it looked like the year of the singer-songwriter was over, 'cause music changed in our time and the spotlight was out.

I still consider it a summer job, though. So, I try to maintain that summer job as long as I can. But it's exciting to be able to have the opportunity to do things I always dreamed of as a kid.

I always said that I wouldn't use a teleprompter, and if I start to sing real flat, I'll hang it up.

I sell escapism.

Quitting doesn't enter my mind.

My mother insisted that her children read.

There's something missing in the music industry today... and it's music. Songs you hear don't last, it's just product fed to you by the industry.

You know, as a writer, I'm more of a listener than a writer, cuz if I hear something I will write it down.

At 57, to have a No. 1 album, I wasn't expecting it.

Well, I'm still here. Didn't have to go to rehab, and I'm not broke.

We are the people our parents warned us about.

Instinct taught me 20 years ago to pace a song or a concert performance. That translates into pacing a story, pleasing a reading audience.

I'm a big follower and reactor to weather.

And I wound up in New Orleans for all those years and it was a great place, really a catalyst creatively.

Phish and Dave Matthews really know their audiences and really treat them well.

To describe my scarce leisure time in today's terms, I always default to reading.

I can only say the first thing that pops into my mind is I remember, years ago, seeing kind of a has-been country singer working - when I first moved to Nashville - in a bar in a Holiday Inn.

Elvis was the only man from Northeast Mississippi who could shake his hips and still be loved by rednecks, cops, and hippies.

And I try to give the best bang for the buck. I love performing more than anything else.