Michael McDonald

“Warner Bros. was a great label to be affiliated with. It's the best label out there, and the fact that I was with them for 20 years was just an honor.”

“My first rock band was called Mike and the Majestics. I was about twelve, and my older sister Kathy was the manager. There were three of us: me and a friend on guitars and a drummer. We were...”

“Aretha Franklin holds a significant place in the collective heart of America. She's a singular example of what we represent at our best.”

“Aretha Franklin is and will always be a national treasure.”

“When I get in a bad mood about anything, I realize, 'Hey, I'm still working. It could always be a lot worse.'”

“Beck is obviously a consummate musician. He plays instruments, many instruments. He can make his own record without having a fleet of computer operators onboard.”

“I'd say that Ray Charles is definitely the biggest influence on my singing. Also Marvin Gaye and Stevie Wonder.”

“I was attracted to black music for the same reason that I loved those old Irish ballads. Both were social statements of sorts, and both were indigenous to their respective cultures: Ireland,...”

“I don't know that we ever overcome doubt. We just have to remember that it's more than likely a poodle in the bushes and not a grizzly bear.”

“Whenever I sing blues from the '50s or the kind of blues that you might have heard Eric Clapton or Duane Allman emulate, I often feel the similarity of some of the ragtime stuff I sang early...”

“I love Coldplay.”

“Brian Owens is a young guy from Ferguson, Missouri, my hometown, who I don't think emulates me at all, but I really enjoy his particular style. He kind of makes me think of the older school...”

“My musical education started before I could see over the dashboard, just listening to the radio and cranking up our favorite songs as they came on.”

“I think when you're not prepared for something, success can be as crippling a thing as failure to people. I think it touches whatever insecurities you have, that you may not be as in touch w...”

“The 'Motown' detour for me was almost like it wasn't work. It was more fun than work, and that's all it takes for me to not be very responsible to other things I should have been paying atte...”

“Where I grew up in St. Louis, Saturday was country music day on television. We'd watch the Bill Anderson show, the Willie Nelson show, the Dolly Parton and Porter Wagoner show, and always th...”

“Pat Simmons and I always had a great blend together. We did the background vocals on a Little Feat track called 'Red Streamliner,' and that was great fun. I always really loved the way it tu...”

“Probably some of the most miserable years of my life were grappling with some definition of what success was.”

“I do love the Nat King Cole stuff, the classic Christmas records. There's something about putting those records on and hearing his voice at Christmastime that brings back a lot of great memo...”

“Rap is like any other genre: There are the people who are very creative with it and do remarkable things... and then there's that whole quadrant that sounds alike. There's great stuff that's...”