Arlo Guthrie quotes:

Santa Claus wears a Red Suit, he must be a communist. And a beard and long hair, must be a pacifist. What's in that pipe that he's smoking?

We live in an increasingly sophisticated world that makes it difficult to make simple comments on stuff. There are too many people on both sides of the border who are taking advantage of circumstances and the situation.

Folk music is music that everyday people can play, and it inspired a lot of people to make their own music. That trailed into making your own pop music, and that's why garage bands started springing up everywhere.

Everyone has a responsibility to not only tolerate another person's point of view, but also to accept it eagerly as a challenge to your own understanding. And express those challenges in terms of serving other people.

My mother had introduced me to a lot of my father's friends because she believed that I would get to know the guy my dad was better through his friends than just in the hospital visits.

Yes, I was born in Coney Island. The Holy Land.

You get people talking about being worried about their art, and dances... their culture being wiped out or taken over, and yet these same people are taking advantage of their people to use them as cheap labour.

The New York State Freeway's closed, man. Far out!

Music is a nice friend to have around, whether it is just for yourself or for other people. If you can enjoy it, being professional is almost secondary.

At the same time the folk boom was happening, the civil rights movement was happening, the anti-war movement was happening, the ban the bomb movement was happening, the environmental movement was happening. There was suddenly a generation ready to change the course of history.

Probably my two biggest musical influences were the Everly Brothers and the Beatles, in chronological order. Both of them have had a very simple-sounding musical style that's actually quite complex as far as popular songs are concerned.

My only description for me is that there's no throwaway people. That's the creed that I live by. It doesn't matter if I'm singing or not. That's the kind of person that my father and mother wanted me to be. The end obligation is to make people feel good about who they are.

Basically, I think you need two things to get by in this world: a sense of humor and the ability to laugh when your ego is destroyed.

Ostrich is a very lean meat. Bison is a very lean meat. Chicken is a very lean meat. Notice something about my favorite meats?

Thank God that the people that run this world are not smart enough to keep running it forever. You know, everybody gets a handle on it for a little while.

I think of my parents as a single unit, and it's interesting because they shared so much, and they were totally opposite. My mother, a Martha Graham dancer, had a classical background; my father had a back-porch background.

With the advent of radio and recording, music became an industry rather than just a tradition.

But think of the last guy. For one minute, think of the last guy. Nobody's got it worse than that guy. Nobody in the whole world.

We would turn everything into songs in those days.

Building walls isn't going to work in the long run. Some people are happy with the wall in Israel, but somebody will get a weapon someday and knock it over or something. Walls aren't the answer between countries, though.

I don't want a pickle, I just want ride on my motorcikle. I don't want to die, I just want a ride on my motorcy........cle.

But think of the last guy. For one minute, think of the last guy. Nobodys got it worse than that guy. Nobody in the whole world.

There are people all over the world who are willing to exploit others. You can't just point the finger at America.

Building walls isn't going to work in the long run. Some people are happy with the wall in Israel, but somebody will get a weapon someday and knock it over or something. Walls aren't the answer between countries, though

I'd rather have friends who care than friends who agree with me.

Any big organization can be subverted by governments or multinational special interests. They have the resources to cast doubt and fear over any group they feel threatened by.

We had a great time on the bench talking about crime, mother-stabbin', father raping, all kinds of groovy things.

I don't write as many songs as I used to. But, I find myself writing for social media more - times have changed. And I love photography, so a lot of my creative energy gets caught up that way.

I don't want a pickle, just want to ride on my motorsickle

I don't want a pickle, just want to ride on my motorsickle.

Greed and globalization aren't just America's fault.

People were talking about songs of the common man in order to make the common man. With Woody Guthrie and Lead Belly, they were so common it was just uncommon.

I'm not just a singer-songwriter doing songs in the key of me.

There's only one God. Call him whatever you want.

If you want to end war and stuff, you gotta sing loud.

Songs are like fish. You just gotta have your line in the water. And it's a bad idea to fish downstream from Bob Dylan.

Everyone has troubles. Finding yourself in the same boat with everyone else is the first sign of spirituality.

Be serious. Folk songs are serious. That's what Pete Seeger told me. Arlo, I only wanna tell you one thing. Folk songs are serious. And I said Right.

You can't have a light without a dark to stick it in.

Only the words of love kept alive are worthy of not being wasted.

Being famous is not the same as being important. A lot of important people aren't famous, and a lot of famous people aren't important.

We would turn everything into songs in those days...A lot of people think "Alice's Restaurant" was an anti-war song. It's not.

Coming into Los Angeles, bringing in a couple of keys. Don't touch my bags, if you please Mr. Customs man.

The death of what's dead is the birth of what's living.

If readers understand that they do not understand what they are reading then they must possess an understanding which is superior to the meaning which caused that misunderstanding.

You teach kids how to succeed when they successfully foil the educational system.

I've been singing this song now for twenty five minutes. I could sing it for another twenty five minutes. I'm not proud... or tired.

No Judgment = No Expectations: That's my motto.

I froze in time! And I thought "My God......I'm free!

We went back, afterward, after the show was over that night, I took my kids backstage and said, "You know what? I know my dad's songs...

There are people all over the world who are willing to exploit others. You can't just point the finger at America

There's only one God. Call him whatever you want

What's in that pipe that he's smoking?

Songwriting is like fishing in a stream; you put in your line and hope to catch something. And I don't think anyone downstream from Bob Dylan ever caught anything.

It's about the time I was riding my Motorcycle, going down a mountain road at 150 miles an hour, playing my guitar.

You don't need spirituality to discover the troubles that come your way. But, it's good to know that troubles are not unique to you alone.