There's just not a lot of guys around playing like that these days; a lot of steel players are plugging into stomp boxes, trying to sound like Jeff Beck on a steel guitar.

When I made Blue Moon Swamp, there was a lot of trial and error; I was trying to find people who would be simpatico with my style, and with what I had in mind for the album.

And I now think that Stratocasters and Telecasters are way cool.

But I think beautiful is simple and elegant, like a ballad with simple harmony.

Even though I have often recorded alone, I still feel the best music is made by musicians playing off each other.

Even though James Burton was my idol, I didn't think I could carry his shoes back then.

I don't know that all the demons have been beaten, but I'm very, very proud of those songs.

I usually destroy unreleased material. It has a way of coming back to haunt you.

I went pretty much for one tone, and I knew at that time that I wanted to play a Rickenbacker.

I work hard at that, but the fact that there are a lot of good songs means there are also a lot of really bad songs I've written that you never hear.

I'm much more energetic now; you might say live performance is my mission.

I'm now comfortable playing a lot of the old songs, and I've gotten out a lot of the old equipment.

I've also become much more the musician I've always wanted to be.

On Eye of the Zombie, I had so-called studio musicians.

That song has the full extent of my mandolin abilities; I'm not a good mandolin player at all.

The ones I have got great necks; of course, all of the Fenders from that era are incredible.

The only sliding I did was on the kind of instrument that you put on your lap; no Spanish electrics.

The Telecaster doesn't really sound that good for the kind of rock and roll that a lot of people played.

Washburn's an old American name, but this one was assembled overseas.

You should play with real musicians; the best music comes from real people interacting with each other.