In 1958, I decided that I was going to live in Europe permanently. So in 1959 I moved to Lugano, Switzerland.
I don't think I will ever do any tours again in the United States. I rather think that that's over with.
I don't think that jazz, as any kind of an art form, has any permanence attached to it, apart from the practitioners of it.
The history of all big jazz bands shows was, first they played for dancing, and then they played for singing.
Ella can work nightclubs that Duke might not be able to work, because of having the big band. Where they go now is strictly a matter of their own names and talents.
Germany is probably the richest country in Western Europe. Yet they wouldn't take any television with Duke and Ella, their reaction being that people weren't interested in it.
I don't say that the supposed Civil Rights development is a myth, but it's a matter of dealing with reality. It's purely peripheral and, in many cases, it's just a facade.
The economic picture in the States today doesn't allow for jazz concerts in a tour fashion. People now are too used to the Festival, which gives them more names for the same price.
There are many artists that I present that I admit I like less than I do others. But I think that they warrant being presented by my own, personal standards.
There are very few groups that really stay together. The leaders of groups make enough money to be able to afford to work a maximum of 35-40 weeks a year.
To play today in London, next week in Madrid and the week after that in Warsaw is a bit better than playing Newark and Baltimore and Philadelphia. I've been doing that for 20 years.
Amsterdam must have more than a million people. But the only area where jazz is really profitable and successful in an economic sense is in Japan. That's because they haven't been exposed enough.
Jazz is America's own. It is played and listened to by all peoples - in harmony together. Pigmentation differences have no place... as in genuine democracy, only performance counts.Collection: Differences
If you don't get substantially what you want, be ready to walk. And don't look back.Collection: Looks
The whole reason for Jazz at the Philharmonic was to take it to places where I could break down segregation.Collection: Jazz
You’re probably smarter than you present yourself.Collection: Smarter
At Verve, my bookkeeper would invariably say, 'Well, why do you want to put out Roy Eldridge?' Or 'Why do you want to put out Ben Webster? They don't sell.' And I'd say, 'Well, whether they sell or not, they're important, they should be recorded and they're what Verve stands for, so we don't have to discuss that any further.Collection: Important