Every man prays in his own language.
DUKE ELLINGTONThere are simply two kinds of music, good music and the other kind the only yardstick by which the result should be judged is simply that of how it sounds. If it sounds good it’s successful; if it doesn’t it has failed.
More Duke Ellington Quotes
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I never had much interest in the piano until I realized that every time I played, a girl would appear on the piano bench to my left and another to my right.
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If anybody was Mr. Jazz it was Louis Armstrong. He was the epitome of jazz and always will be. He is what I call an American standard, an American original.
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A Satin Doll is a woman who is as pretty on the inside as she is on the outside.
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The most important thing I look for in a musician is whether he knows how to listen.
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The Europeans who went to Africa came back with “modern’ art. What is more African than a Picasso?
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Self-discipline, as a virtue or an acquired asset, can be invaluable to anyone.
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People do not retire. They are retired by others.
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Playing ‘bop’ is like playing Scrabble with all the vowels missing.
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You’ve got to find a way of saying it without saying it.
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I don’t need time. What I need is a deadline!
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Without a deadline, baby, I wouldn’t do nothing.
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I don’t need time, I need a deadline.
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Music is my mistress and she plays second fiddle to no one.
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Of the One O’Clock Lab Band after hearing their performance, and sitting in with them at the White House: “I wish it were mine”.
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Everybody in Canada seemed to listen to what they enjoyed, and nobody could tell them what to like, or what was the popular, or what was the In thing. Even today, it is very hard to brainwash a Canadian.
DUKE ELLINGTON