Dee Dee Ramone Quotes

I would say that I'm very proud that Metallica plays heavy music - but equally proud that we don't think like a heavy-metal band.

Rock 'n' roll is ridiculous. It's absurd. In the past, U2 was trying to duck that. Now we're wrapping our arms around it and giving it a great big kiss.

I think that it can be said of a lot of artists, and myself included, that we made the same record over and over from the beginning.

For the longest time, I was trying to be DJ Shadow, I think. But I slowly developed my own style. It was trial and error, for sure.

I've never made R&B. I've never made gospel. I've never made hip-hop - I don't think I'm going to, but I just want to keep challenging myself.

I did alternative rock before. That's why my style is the way it is now.

I started out in rock, but I didn't want to stay there, and haven't.

If you actually go back and listen to my first album, there are some things on there that are kind of rock 'n' roll.

We started the band when I was about 19 or 20. At that age, it would have been kind of hard to imagine a lot of the stuff that I've written. We were playing garage rock. I wanted to dash out three chords and scream. But if you do that for 20 years, what's the point?

I've established a certain voice over my albums. It can be an obstacle, but in the end, I think it's a strength, because I can build upon that voice, which is ultimately very much mine.

Even on tour, where I perform songs from 'City Of Black And White,' I still do songs from 'Nothing Left To Lose.' I never turned my back on that material. On some albums, you change - that's all. The trick is to follow your heart and do what feels right.

It just seemed like all the records I have made since Creedence Clearwater Revival have all been sort of pushed off center. I felt like I was dancing around the outskirts of what is my true center. With this album, I really wanted to stay on the mark, right in the middle, right where rock 'n' roll is. I wanted this one to be easier, a lot more fun than some of the past records have been.

I liked rock music, I kind of moved into that sphere, somehow thinking that somewhere along the line I'd be able to put the two together. And I suppose I very nearly did with the Ziggy character.

If you want to put your rock 'n' roll into mythology, [A Period of Transition] is from the Daddy Cool school.

I started recording the album four years ago. It was very different then - totally rock and roll.

So yeah, it's nothing that I'm doing on purpose, I just think that the more records, the more songs that I write, the more records that I make, you're obviously going to fall into a specific style and thank God it's a style that people are into.

Hip-hop is rock & roll. What the hell is Wu-Tang but Motorhead?

A lot of [my] songs have a sexuality to them, a vibe to them. ... I call it sexy rock and roll.

I've always loved the rock & roll element to live shows, because whatever else I do, I'm basically a rock/pop performer, and that's what I like.

Anything that's new wave is new. As far as punk rock goes, I've never really been exposed to any.

It's really vital to have rock music because it connects the generations. It's important in that way.

I have always touched on different genres whether it has been hip-hop, country and the rock element.

My hope is to continue to make new music and go with the flow. I think I'll always be creative. I want to keep making good music, put myself into positions where I need to rise to the occasion of playing in front of an audience, and continually get better at what I'm doing.

I love all the '90s kind of grunge, and I love classic rock: That's where the spectrum lies.

As I define it, rock and roll is dead. The attitude isn't dead, but the music is no longer vital. It doesn't have the same meaning. The attitude, though, is still very much alive - and it still informs other kinds of music.