Scott Avett quotes:

It was Rick's Rubin idea to have the 'Brooklyn' verse repeat. It already was a story, but having that made it a folk song. Instead of this rambling march of verses, Rick understands that music needs hooks. You need that repeated chorus, that everyone can sing along to.

I very much enjoyed Leo Tolstoy's What is Art? I can't quote it, it's been a while, but at the end of the day, the idea is that "art that does good in the world is art, and what doesn't is not. It's propaganda or something else. It's bad."

To me, humor is part of a conversation with an audience.

In the music world, when we're making work, we are obligated to no longer be completely free from what we are to someone else - sort of like an athlete, where you become a role model to someone.

Sometimes I'm extremely afraid of the unknown, but I'm so grateful to be on that journey.

Whether it's about children or not, we have to move forward.

A great show means we have to connect; we have to prove to [the audience] that we do something great or blow their socks off, but it has to be with them if it's going to be sustained for any length of time.

Always remember there is nothing worth sharing, like the love that let us share our name.

I had a dream that Louis Armstrong was playing the 'Swept Away' melody. I have no idea where it came from. But Louis Armstrong was playing it and singing the song to me. I woke up-it's a borrowed melody no doubt-and wrote it down. If I hear a song and I choose not to put it down, that's me neglecting to accept that song. I think there's a very spiritual and godly-type ting that happens, and it happens to way more people than we know. It's just that very few of us choose to engage it.

I have always considered myself an artist and painting was the first medium that I claimed.

I think everyone on the planet is a fan of a painting because everyone is a fan of visual stimulation, but I've had freedom in the world [of painting] because I've kept it to myself.

If humor is not present, I tend to be concerned about the artist, or distrusting of what they're presenting - unless there is an obvious tragedy being talked about.

In painting, the key is not taking myself seriously to the point where it kills sincerity.

In the world of music, the audience is not just fans of music; they're fans of many things.

One of the things that I love about painting is that I never consider myself to have an audience.

Someone like John Prine can write a song that tears into your soul, turn it over, and write a song that makes you laugh and feel light as a feather. With someone like him, you're getting a real picture of a person, a real expression.

We have to continue to grow within and outwardly. We have to keep going.

When it comes to performing and entertaining, the art removes itself from the writing.

Women of all looks, shapes, sizes, everything, if they recognize how beautiful they are-because they all are-then they carry it that way. And you can see that. Confidence is reflected in how they walk and how they dress and how they speak and how they carry themselves. It's just amazing. And that can turn anybody's head pretty quick, especially mine.