Quotes

On his place in the American pop culture: "It's very simple. Music happened, bands happened, and we happened."

On his strict-tempo arrangements that aroused the ire of some swing fans: "I don't play for acrobats."

[on the unchanging nature of his music] It's very easy to get away from the thing that made you successful, but the important thing is to keep on doing what people tell you they like. Don't fool the public.