Shawn Colvin Quotes

I always had wished somebody else would sing my songs, but there wasn't anybody who knew them, so I sang them myself and eventually became a better singer and guitar player.

I went to college at North Carolina School of the Arts and took a lot of singing classes, and it really is so connected to emotions.

Singing with Aaron Neville, he pulled stuff out of my voice I never could have gotten, because if he's providing XYZ, I have to put in ABC, and usually I don't have to put in ABC.

Well, I started writing songs about three years ago when I learned to play the guitar, but I've been singing since I was eleven.

I never considered myself a songwriter, but now since I've been working with Nick Lowe, I am contributing to an extent. But I'm the guitarist and he's not, so we compliment each other in a way.

When I write a song and come up with an arrangement and a vocal part, it's always a challenge trying to find a singer who can interpret it sort of the way that I hear it, and it's a very difficult thing to do. I mean, singing is like playing an instrument - everybody does it a little bit different - singing maybe even more so.

I had an amazing French teacher in high school - it was the one class that I enjoyed. And I studied opera for 11 years, so I did a lot of singing in French.

My sister plays piano, and my brother used to be on the drums. My dad sings; he's got a good voice.

I'd rather be known as a songwriter than a guitarist, although I love to play the guitar.

For me, it's always easier playing with a drummer.

I never saw myself as the classic singer/songwriter who sticks to his guitar.

Well, it grow together. It's like, first time I try to write a song is the first time I try to play the guitar. And so I can write a song without the guitar. But it really grow together. I really like stay with my guitar. But it just happen, is the inspiration come through man. Because, I personally, it look like, could I write a whole heap a tune, it look like. But I pick special tune to write. Cause a man can think of plenty things. Yuh know wah ah mean.

All you gotta do is think of the song in your head. And it doesn't matter whether you can play it or not, you can get somebody to play it. With songs I've written, there's a song called "The Statue", which I can't play. There are songs that I've written that I've actually just hummed on - there's a song on one of the albums they have there on the Internet called "My Love Was True" and it's almost operatic. I can't play it. But I can sing it.

I try to, at least, think very melodically, and my band forces me to think very melodically.

I love singing my own stuff, but I also love being a guitar player. Doing both keeps things interesting.

I discovered at the age of five that I could sing, and I realised people liked it. The sound that came out made people happy, so I kept doing it.

I like singing all kinds of songs, be it a soft number or a peppy track.

Generally, I think of myself as a guitar player, but when I do find the right song to sing lead on, I try to do my best.

When you play with another piano player, it's just second nature to play the parts that need to be played.

My dad always had me sing alongside him while he played guitar. He taught me how to harmonize to an old song of his, 'Missing You.'

Singing is something that I have learnt. I have given exams for it.

I can't do too much musical movement with a lot of MC's, because they don't know how to follow me. But with Souls of Mischief, I could go anywhere because they are musicians - they rap as musicians, and they play instruments and produce, so they get that.

With 'Fate's Right Hand,' I think I reached a level of completeness in forming and articulating ideas at around the same time I reached a place where I could match it with my singing voice. It was a kind of coming together.

When you start a band, you have to find people that are good, have the same sort of mindset as you musically.

I like to see myself as a composer first and only then as a singer.