John Darnielle Quotes

The people I chose to work with me on this album are there because I have a personal relationship with them.

There was absolutely no intention of splitting up. We had so many great ideas to use on the new album. John Paul Jones was incredible, coming to the studio each day with new instruments to play.

When you're making music, it's meant to be shared with people. Sometimes, even if I'm writing a song, someone else brings a vibe. There's something different about it. If someone can play a better bassline than me, I'll let them do it. I'm just here to fit in and see where it goes.

Even when I'm making my own solo records, I'm collaborating with people. It keeps things interesting for me.

The best thing that I got was rehearsing with my father. It was always about the process of figuring things out, and trying something new, and having another take on something and keeping it alive.

When you're playing the same dirty dozen night after night, the moments that keep it fresh are those when you just let go and trust everyone.

I would like to think that Ben and myself have begun a partnership that will take us into different areas of music that we can continue to write, enjoy and keep me involved with music other then what I do with RUSH.

So I didn't have anything to do with picking the songs, but I got to musically take them in places I thought might be interesting, so it was a real neat collaboration among the three of us.

What keeps you confident in a healthy way is knowing that everyone else around you is going to support you and teach you and you're going to learn from them. I just feel open to learning from people.

I just love to collaborate with people who take my ideas real serious, and they don't put up walls around them.

As always in a musical collaboration: One has to like each other. As simple as that.

I had my own musical ideas that Mick helped me with as well.

Everything I do is collaborative. It's just my way. I'm really very interested in how the other musicians perceive the song.

I'm somebody who doesn't feel the need to be in the driver's seat all the time. I appreciate the perspective of being in the passenger's seat sometimes, and I feel fortunate for that because I've learned a lot from that perspective.

Everyone that I work with is a friend. I won't make a record with anyone unless we kick it.

You really have to listen and be vulnerable and open to the other actors and the environment.

I used to be opposed to collaboration, and that's probably why the music in the past wasn't as good. Writing with other people, especially the great writers that I've had the privilege to write with, it activates something in your mind that you wouldn't use alone.

With good relationships and a good environment, you can achieve things more easily.

One of the things that I loved about working on that first album was working with Billy Mann, who produced the album, and all the people who worked to finish it. Just seeing how they did things and learning.

I have a team who I respect immensely, so if they have opinions, I'm interested in hearing them.

You don't have to be best friends with people to make music.

When I'm in the studio with a writer, I don't mind for them to take the lead and show me something new.

I love writing with really experienced producers and co-writers who open my mind to things I never would have thought otherwise. We may think the same way about something, but they might say it in a way that I never would have thought to say it.

I'm open to working with anybody and everybody as long as I have faith in them and they have faith in me.

Collaboration is part of what keeps me interested in music.