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For me, rhythm is a type of divine mathematics in a way. No matter where you're from, we can all understand the mathematics of rhythm. I try to apply this mathematical thinking to my playing.

John McLaughlin

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John McLaughlin
Age: 82
Born: 1942
Born: January 4
Guitarist
Jazz Musician
Musician
Recording Artist
Songwriter
Divine
Playing
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Mathematical
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More quotes by John McLaughlin

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When Indian musicians play a raga it's very restrictive. But, in a way these restraints are essential to liberate yourself through them, if that makes sense. I'm very much of this school of rhythm, it's the direction I'm drawn in when I'm writing and improvising.
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I never read comics growing up. I didn't have money and I don't like to touch paper.
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I'm not any different from you or the guy down the street or across the globe, we're all connected in some way and hopefully my music can integrate that feeling of human connectedness.
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I'm never trying to preach to anybody with my music, but I'm aware of the universal nature of the human experience and I try to reach out and connect with people in that manner.
John McLaughlin
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Question: Does it frost Jackson, Jesse Jackson, that someone like Obama, who fits the stereotype blacks once labeled as an Oreo -- a black on the outside, a white on the inside -- that an Oreo should be the beneficiary of the long civil rights struggle which Jesse Jackson spent his lifetime fighting for?
John McLaughlin
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Music that touches the transcendental aspect of a human being is reserved for a marginal audience
John McLaughlin
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There is really no spiritual message that I'm trying to convey with my music, it's just a personal thing. I really believe that the more personal we get, in a way, the more universal the implications.
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You can have the greatest player in terms of mastering an instrument and you could be yawning your head off when you hear them. So, it's not what you do, but the way you're doing it and in the end that's all that we have
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Spirituality is worthless if it's not practical. Music is my work. I am a musician.
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There are two kinds of success. One is musical or artistic and the other is commercial.
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At the risk of sounding hopelessly romantic, love is the key element. I really love to play with different musicians who come from different cultural backgrounds.
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Music speaks from spirit to spirit and in that sense you could call it a true spiritual language.
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I practice all the scales. Everyone should know lots of scales. Actually, I feel there are only scales. What is a chord, if not the notes of a scale hooked together?
John McLaughlin
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When I hear a great musician, I can feel his life inside the music.
John McLaughlin
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The mathematics of rhythm are universal. They don't belong to any particular culture.
John McLaughlin
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Everyone can lock into the rhythm on a tune. It's organic in nature. It connects the band as a whole and connects the band to the audience.
John McLaughlin
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I think I'm built like a painter. I have friends who are painters and they reflect a similar psychological attitude towards their work. They don't know what's coming next, they just wait for the message, for orders to come and then off they go on their next project.
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I just want to keep exploring music and hopefully the orders will keep coming in and I'll be able to keep growing the interior and exterior sides of my life.
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The moment you start to talk about playing music, you destroy music. It cannot be talked about. It can only be played, enjoyed and listened to.
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Interplay and interaction are the integral parts of music - they're as important as the notes.
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