If I don’t have friends, then I ain’t nothing.
BILLIE HOLIDAYIf I don’t have friends, then I ain’t nothing.
BILLIE HOLIDAYThe blues to me is like being very sad, very sick, going to church, being very happy … it’s sort of a mixed up thing. You just have to feel it.
BILLIE HOLIDAYSinging songs like ‘The Man I Love’ or ‘Porgy’ is no more work than sitting down and eating Chinese roast duck, and I love roast duck.
BILLIE HOLIDAYIf nobody can learn from the past, then there’s no point in raking it up.
BILLIE HOLIDAYSomebody once said we never know what is enough until we know what’s more than enough.
BILLIE HOLIDAYI don’t think I’m singing. I feel like I’m playing a horn, What comes out is what I feel.
BILLIE HOLIDAYOne day a whole damn song fell into place in my head.
BILLIE HOLIDAYSometimes it’s worse to win a fight than to lose.
BILLIE HOLIDAYNew Orleans is the only city in the world you go in to buy a pair of nylon stockings they want to know your head size.
BILLIE HOLIDAYWhen you sing, always tell the truth.
BILLIE HOLIDAYThey think they can make fuel from horse manure – now, I don’t know if your car will be able to get 30 miles to the gallon, but it’s sure gonna put a stop to siphoning.
BILLIE HOLIDAYIn this country, don’t forget, a habit is no damn private hell. There’s no solitary confinement outside of jail. A habit is hell for those you love. And in this country it’s the worst kind of hell for those who love you.
BILLIE HOLIDAYIf you think dope is for kicks and for thrills, you’re out of your mind. There are more kicks to be had in a good case of paralytic polio or by living in an iron lung.
BILLIE HOLIDAYGod bless the child that’s got his own.
BILLIE HOLIDAYThe whole basis of my singing is feeling. Unless I feel something, I can’t sing.
BILLIE HOLIDAYI never hurt nobody but myself and that’s nobody’s business but my own.
BILLIE HOLIDAY