Popularity has everything to do with business and nothing to do with music.

I'm starting to get older, and began to think about mortality a little more. My mother died in 2003 and that was a big shock. When your parents start to die off, that's going to be a revelation. So for me, this album - although it might sound quite cheery - is really talking about death.

I had a dream that Britney Spears rubbed her breasts in my face and Jennifer Lopez gave me head while Salma Hayek sucked my toes and the Olsen twins videotaped everything. I would have kept dreaming it, too, if I hadn't set off the smoke detector.

Randy Newman seemed like an even worse singer than me. I liked Ray Charles, Levi Stubbs, Jack Jones, Joe Tex, Wilson Pickett.

I took some lessons as a kid but trained myself by ear. I did it the way jazz musicians used to learn years ago, which is to play records and slow them down to figure out the notes. At first I tried to imitate Red Garland, who was my favorite jazz pianist.

Anthemic rock music is inherently fascist - anything intended to move huge masses of people is politically offensive to me.

I like it when songs develop in some way. Four minutes usually isn't enough time for something to develop musically.

I've never been comfortable as a lead performer, and I never wanted to be a singer, particularly.

People are usually afraid to say what's on their mind.

When you get a groove going, time flies.

Now why the hell would I want to increase the volume of my ejaculation ? They can already hear me in the apartment next door.

What a beautiful world this will be What a glorious time to be free

I think of Steely Dan as being of its time, and it may be inseparable from its time.