Joe Bonamassa Quotes

I've always been the first to admit that Jimi was a very big influence on my early stuff.

I always did have a kind of candle shining for Peter Green. I mean, he was my god.

The Rolling Stones... The Rolling Stones have a reflection to my music; I wouldn't deny it. I think that's honest.

Jimi Hendrix is one of the main influences on why I wanted to play guitar. He really shook me. I think it was his whole style - the look and what he did with the guitar.

Mention Hubert Sumlin, as well, because Hubert's a great man, and again, you know, I don't play the guitar very good, but when I'm playing this kind of music, I always have him in my mind. I wish I could play like Hubert.

If it weren't for the Beatles, I would not be a musician.

But, I would be naive not to recognize the number of musicians who tell me they have been influenced by me and sight me - as well as Alex and Neil - as a musician who has been a positive influence on their playing.

Rock n' roll means so much more to people; it enriches the culture. Also, it inspires people; there's no half-feeling. When I first got into it, I was inspired by people who had come before me, and I found myself in the position of handing that on.

Everything that I do on stage comes from seeing the Black Crowes in '95 in Charlotte. For 'Let Her Cry,' I was just trying to write 'She Talks to Angels.'

As a kid, looking at Michael Jackson, Marvin Gaye, New Edition, the Temptations, Motown, people who I felt were huge artists, they made me wanna do something.

I love Eric Clapton and what he did with Cream; 'Spoonful' and 'Crossroads,' those are probably the coolest solos.

I worked with George Harrison - who was the reason I started playing guitar.

As far as actual playing, Clapton - by far - is my biggest influence, and you can tuck Jeff Beck underneath that.

Even in 1971, J. Geils was into the Stones. When I heard Geils, I realized that a lot of other people hearing them had never heard the Stones.

I heard Robert Johnson way before I heard about Eric Clapton.

I think The Beatles are the lasting influence on me, even more so than Dylan.

When I started, all I wanted to do was play like Chuck (Berry)

I think Clapton is brilliant. He's the only one who moved me. The only one who made me want to play the guitar.

I started out playing guitar because Jimi Hendrix was my hero, so my roots were really based on Jimi Hendrix and his style of playing.

It was when I saw Iggy Pop, that's what did it for me. That changed my life pretty much.

It's like there's the rest of the world, and then there's America. Part of the reason I would really love continue to making music over here because so much of American music has inspired me, whether it's Jeff Buckley, Joni Mitchell, Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen.

If there was no Black Sabbath, I could still possibly be a morning newspaper delivery boy. No fun.

What I used to play was rhythm guitar before I saw Jack Bruce. I said, That's what I want to do in life. He was definitely the main influence.

Probably more than anybody else, I loved Nat 'King' Cole as a performer - not only his singing but his piano playing. Whenever he had a new record come out, I'd get it and try to learn how he was playing. And he was one of the nicest people I'd ever met.

My real musical discovery started when I was 10 with Stevie Wonder and the Jackson 5, and acts that I connected with because they were young when they were doing it, like me. Then I kind of came into my own a couple of years later; I found new artists that shaped my musical landscape. For instance, Kings of Leon played a big part in that.