I only hope that one day, America will recognize what the rest of the world already has known, that our indigenous music - gospel, blues, jazz and R&B - is the heart and soul of all popular music; and that we cannot afford to let this legacy slip into obscurity, I'm telling you.
Interpretation
This quote emphasizes the importance of indigenous American music genres as foundational to popular music worldwide.
Quincy Jones expresses a deep hope that America will come to acknowledge and appreciate the rich contributions of its indigenous music styles, such as gospel, blues, jazz, and R&B. He highlights that these genres are not only integral to American culture but are also vital to the global music landscape, cautioning against allowing this significant legacy to fade away unnoticed.
In practice
This quote could be used in a speech about the cultural significance of music in America.
Just blow in it and sound bad for about a year and then make it sound a little bit better, and you get a little band together, and then you get a few jobs. You take four guys that sound half bad, but if they're 25 percent each, they can give 100 percent, you know?
Music in movies is all about dissonance and consonance, tension and release.
When you produce an album, you're dealing with it theatrically. It has to have a structure, and the inner response to that is that the ear loves it.
You can study orchestration, you can study harmony and theory and everything else, but melodies come straight from God.
I got a scholarship to Seattle University and I was writing arrangements for singers and everybody. But the music course was too dry and I really wanted to get away from home.
I tell my kids and I tell proteges, always have humility when you create and grace when you succeed, because it's not about you. You are a terminal for a higher power. As soon as you accept that, you can do it forever.
I'm not everybody's cup of tea. But sometimes criticism can be hurtful. Be respectful I'm a good piano player, I can sing well, I write good songs. If you don't like it, fair enough. But give me a break.
A lot of people from my generation of music are so focused on playing things correctly or to perfection that they're stuck in that safe place.
They're powerful, those songs. At times they've been my only way back, the only door out of the dark, bad places the black dog calls home.
I have sung for Americans of every political persuasion, and I am proud that I never refuse to sing to an audience, no matter what religion or color of their skin, or situation in life.
I didn't want to play it boring and safe. I also didn't want to innovate too much. Second albums, man, they're even scarier than first ones.
I get a thrill meeting kids who are into alternative music.
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