black
grey
blue
red
brown
white

The Europeans who went to Africa came back with “modern’ art. What is more African than a Picasso?

Duke Ellington

There is nothing to keeping a band together. You simply have to have a gimmick, and the gimmick I use is to pay them money!
DUKE ELLINGTON

Money Myself Pay Togetherness
On becoming more acquainted with the word of the Bible, I began to understand so much more of what I had been taught, and of what I had learned about life and about the people in mine.
DUKE ELLINGTON

Beginning Learning People Teaching Understand Word
Billy Strayhorn was my right arm, my left arm, all the eyes in the back of my head, my brainwaves in his head, and his in mine.
DUKE ELLINGTON

Bond Friendship Myself Right
A musical profit outweighs a financial loss.
DUKE ELLINGTON

Financial Loss Musical Profit
There is no art without intention.
DUKE ELLINGTON

Art Creation Creativity Intention One Liner
There 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.
DUKE ELLINGTON

Failure Kind Music Result Success
People do not retire. They are retired by others.
DUKE ELLINGTON

People Retirement
Gray skies are just clouds passing over.
DUKE ELLINGTON

Cloud Pass Sky
The most important thing I look for in a musician is whether he knows how to listen.
DUKE ELLINGTON

Himself Important Known Listening Musician
The problem of expressing the contributions that Benny Carter has made to popular music is so tremendous it completely fazes me, so extraordinary a musician is he.
DUKE ELLINGTON

Contribution Expression Music Myself Problem
I like any and all of my associations with music: writing, playing, and listening. We write and play from our perspective, and the audience listens from its perspective. If and when we agree, I am lucky.
DUKE ELLINGTON

Association Audience Listening Music Perspective Play
I don’t need time, I need a deadline.
DUKE ELLINGTON

Limitation Myself Time
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”.
DUKE ELLINGTON

Hear Myself Performance
Music is my mistress and she plays second fiddle to no one.
DUKE ELLINGTON

Herself Mistress Music Play
Yet, every time God’s children have thrown away fear in pursuit of honesty-trying to communicate themselves, understood or not, miracles have happened.
DUKE ELLINGTON

Children Communication God Honesty Miracle Time
The wise musicians are those who play what they can master.
DUKE ELLINGTON

Knowledge Master Musician

The Europeans who went to Africa came back with “modern’ art. What is more African than a Picasso?

Related Topics

Popular Authors

The Europeans who went to Africa came back with “modern’ art. What is more African than a Picasso?

Related Topics

Popular Authors

More Duke Ellington Quotes