It is evidently known, beyond contradiction, that New Orleans is the cradle of Jazz and I, myself, happened to be the creator in the year 1902.

Get up from that piano. You hurtin' its feelings.

My contributions were many: First clown director, with witty sayings and flashily dressed, now called master of ceremonies.

Jazz music is a style, not compositions; any kind of music may be played in Jazz if one has the knowledge.

Jazz music is to be played sweet, soft, plenty rhythm.

Rejoice at the death and cry at the birth: New Orleans sticks close to the Scriptures.

I do not claim any of the creation of the blues, although I have written many of them even before Mr. Handy had any blues published. I heard them when I was knee-high to a duck.

In the year of 1902, when I was about seventeen years old, I happened to invade one of the sections [in New Orleans] where the birth of Jazz originated from.

You can't make jazz without using certain elements of Latin music.

Do what is right, not what is easy nor what is popular.

There are two types of people: those that are going somewhere and those that ain't.

We cheated on our math tests, we carved some dirty words on the desk.

Fame is a Bleet, man.

What if my words Were meant for deeds.

New York has always prided itself on its bad manners. That is the real source of our strength.

Accept nothing nearly right or good enough

Meditation provides a way of learning how to let go. As we sit, the self we've been trying to construct and make into a nice, neat package continues to unravel.

Everybody's weird, fundamentally everybody is a snap. Sometimes it's a sexual thing and sometimes it's a different kind of weirdness, but one way or another everybody's nuts.

Innovation distinguishes a leader from a follower.