The Europeans who went to Africa came back with “modern’ art. What is more African than a Picasso?
DUKE ELLINGTONMusic, of course, is what I hear and something that I more or less live by. It’s not an occupation or profession, it’s a compulsion.
More Duke Ellington Quotes
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Art is dangerous. It is one of the attractions: when it ceases to be dangerous, you don’t want it.
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A goal is a dream with a finish line.
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If you have a great band with a mediocre drummer, you have a mediocre band. If you have a mediocre band with a great drummer, you have a great band!
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People do not retire. They are retired by others.
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Create, and be true to yourself, and depend only on your own good taste.
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A musical profit outweighs a financial loss.
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Music is the tonal reflection of beauty.
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Simplicity is a most complex form.
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I fluffed off the guy who kept requesting tunes all night, then found out he was the King’s son.
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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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Be a number one yourself. And not a number two somebody else.
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There are 2 rules in life: Number 1- Never quit. Number2- Never forget rule number 1.
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New York is a place where the rich walk, the poor drive Cadillacs, and beggars die of malnutrition with thousands of dollars hidden in their mattresses.
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Gray skies are just clouds passing over.
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New music? Hell, there’s been no new music since Stravinsky.
DUKE ELLINGTON