And the thing that I always tried to do with important singers when I met them was to sit down and record everything they knew, give them a first real run-through of their art.

The essence of America lies not in the headlined heroes...but in the everyday folks who live and die unknown, yet leave their dreams as legacies

The dimension of cultural equity needs to be added to the humane continuum of liberty, freedom of speech and religion, and social justice.

People were saying that Southern folk song was dead, that the land that had produced American jazz, the blues, the spirituals, the mountain ballads and the work songs had gone sterile.

The modern computer with all its various gadgets and wonderful electronic facilities now makes it possible to preserve and reinvigorate all the cultural richness of mankind.

Folk Music is the map of singing.

I knew Bobby Dylan back in the days when he lived in the village. He used to come and see me and sing songs for me, saying they ought to go into my next collected book on American folk music.

the thing you are mostafraid to writewrite that-- advice to young writers

To know the good from the bad, measure the heart. Actions reveal the true coloring of one's heart, not their intentions.

I think what you notice most when you haven’t been home in a while is how much the trees have grown around your memories.

There is a certain type of greasy hair that you get only when you are writing with no breaks.

The only thing mothers have in common with each other is the fact that they slept with a man while they were ovulating without the appropriate protection

If you go long enough without a bath, even the fleas will leave you alone.

Nice to see you, to see you nice

Life insurance can be numbingly complicated. Clients often turn off their brains and surrender their judgment to the very agent or planner who brought on their coma in the first place.

Being privileged to work hard for long hours at something you think is worth doing is the best kind of play.

Don't believe the man who tells you there are two sides to every question. There is only one side to the truth.