Innovative Artists Quotes

I do admire a lot of artists now who are completely multi-faceted - they're doing seven different jobs all at once and it doesn't seem to faze them whatsoever. It just astonishes me completely and I have nothing but admiration for them.

I'm someone who admires artists like Madonna and David Bowie, who really change their sound drastically between each record.

Prince, you never knew what to expect from him from one album to the next. Miles Davis was like that. You know, once you get used to one style, boom, he switched it and, you know, switched gears on you. So those artists are very exciting to me, very exciting to follow their path, you know, and their journey.

The extremes of who I'd love to be onstage are David Bowie, Prince, and, I don't know, Bjork.

All really great artists, Jackson Pollack, John Cage, Beckett or Joyce - you are never indifferent to them.

The Beatles did everything first, and they did it the best.

Frank Zappa... was Beethoven for insane rock guys.

The modern recording studio, with its well-trained engineers, 24-track machines and shiny new recording consoles, encourages the artist to get involved with sound. And there have always been artists who could make the equipment serve their needs in a highly personal way - I would single out the Beatles, Phil Spector, the Beach Boys and Thom Bell.

Every now and then, someone comes along - we used to call it 'New Jack' - tries to do something new, tries to take all the credit, without acknowledging the past.

I think [Guettel is] probably one of our most special writers now, pushing things in ways that are unique.

I would love to be looked at some day - and I'm not ever saying I'm at this level - but I'd love to be mentioned in the same breath as a Bowie or an Eno. Those are the people that I admire artistically, their career trajectory, the integrity throughout their career, the bravery of their career.

If you look at the history of popular music, the most successful musicians have started out being really marginal and esoteric. The Beatles and the Rolling Stones. Madonna. Prince. Bruce Springsteen. Fleetwood Mac. David Bowie. Public Enemy. Nirvana.