The stores and the things like that, the business side of things came out at the point when, I'd say probably in the early '70s, it looked like the year of the singer-songwriter was over, 'cause music changed in our time and the spotlight was out.Collection: Business
I'm inspired by people who keep on rolling, no matter their age.Collection: Age
Humor has bailed me out of more tight situations than I can think of. If you go with your instincts and keep your humor, creativity follows. With luck, success comes, too.Collection: Humor
I hate to mention age, but I come from an era when we weren't consumed by technology and television.Collection: Age
Wrinkles will only go where the smiles have been.Collection: Smile
It takes no more time to see the good side of life than it takes to see the bad.Collection: Good
There's something missing in the music industry today... and it's music. Songs you hear don't last, it's just product fed to you by the industry.Collection: Music
If it doesn't work out there will never be any doubt that the pleasure was worth all the pain.Collection: Work
Searching is half the fun: life is much more manageable when thought of as a scavenger hunt as opposed to a surprise party.
I can only say the first thing that pops into my mind is I remember, years ago, seeing kind of a has-been country singer working - when I first moved to Nashville - in a bar in a Holiday Inn.
If I couldn't laugh I just would go insane, If we couldn't laugh we just would go insane, If we weren't all crazy we would go insane.
Places I've lived since then had to have some kind of uniqueness and character about them. And logically Key West, and then Down Island. So, all of that stuff sort of had it's roots in New Orleans and went crazy.
I still consider it a summer job, though. So, I try to maintain that summer job as long as I can. But it's exciting to be able to have the opportunity to do things I always dreamed of as a kid.
Moderation is the key so I work certain amount of time and then I take a certain amount of time off.
I always said that I wouldn't use a teleprompter, and if I start to sing real flat, I'll hang it up.
Elvis was the only man from Northeast Mississippi who could shake his hips and still be loved by rednecks, cops, and hippies.
And I wound up in New Orleans for all those years and it was a great place, really a catalyst creatively.
Instinct taught me 20 years ago to pace a song or a concert performance. That translates into pacing a story, pleasing a reading audience.
These old ballparks are like cathedrals in America. We don't have big old Gothic cathedrals like they do in Europe. But we got baseball parks.
And you find as a writer there are certain spots on the planet where you write better than others, and I believe in that. And New Orleans is one of them.
You know, as a writer, I'm more of a listener than a writer, cuz if I hear something I will write it down.
I have always looked at life as a voyage, mostly wonderful, sometimes frightening. In my family and friends I have discovered treasure more valuable than gold.Collection: Love
Grief is like the wake behind a boat. It starts out as a huge wave that follows close behind you and is big enough to swamp and drown you if you suddenly stop moving forward. But if you do keep moving, the big wake will eventually dissipate. And after a long time, the waters of your life get calm again, and that is when the memories of those who have left begin to shine as bright and as enduring as the stars above.Collection: Stars
If there’s a heaven for me, I’m sure it has a beach attached.Collection: Beach
Go fast enough to get there, but slow enough to see.Collection: Running
It takes no more time to see the good side of life than to see the bad.Collection: Inspirational
It's those changes in latitudes, changes in attitudes nothing remains quite the same. With all of our running and all of our cunning, if we couldn't laugh, we would all go insane.Collection: Running
Be yourself, be pleasant, play hard and have no regrets.Collection: Being Yourself
Some of it's magic and some of it's tragic but I had a good life all the way.Collection: Inspirational
Oh, yesterdays are over my shoulder, So I can't look back for too long. There's just too much to see waiting in front of me, and I know that I just can't go wrong.Collection: Yesterday
Sail the main course in a simple sturdy craft. Keep her well stocked with short stories and long laughs. Go fast enough to get there but slow enough to see. Moderation seems to be the key.Collection: Simple
Therapy is extremely expensive. Popping bubble wrap is radically cheap.Collection: Insanity