I Grew Up Playing In Clubs -

There's A Desire In Me To Express Something - To Match What I Hear In My Head.

I Have Always Been Resistant To Doctrine, And Any Spirituality I Had Experienced Thus Far In My Life Had Been Much More Abstract And Not Aligned With Any Recognized Religion. For Me, The Most Trustworthy Vehicle For Spirituality Had Always Proven To Be Music. It Cannot Be Manipulated, Or Politicized, And When It Is, That Becomes Immediately Obvious.

The Only Planning I Do Is About A Minute Before I Play. I Desperately Try To Think Of Something That Will Be Effective, But I Never Sit Down And Work It Out Note For Note.

I Remember When I Thought Of Singing As The Bit That Went Between The Guitar Playing - Something I Couldn't Wait To Get Out Of The Way. Singing Was Originally Like A Chore That I Didn't Really Enjoy.

I Listened To King Oliver And I Listened To Louis Armstrong, Jelly Roll Morton, Thelonious Monk, Charles Mingus, John Coltrane, Archie Shepp... I Listened To Everything I Could That Came From That Place That They Call The Blues But, In Formality, Isn't Necessarily The Blues.