57 Quotes by Taj Mahal

I don't care if it's somebody else's song. Most of the time, you'll find that I'll put my own stamp on it. But I started writing more because, you know, it's easy to regurgitate what somebody else is doing, but it's exciting to be able to come up with your own writing.

As a kid, I always felt connected to Africa; it was something I was very proud of.

I was always looking for evidence of these common musical roots, but I was too young to know that what I was doing was called ethnomusicology.

It's very interesting, the dynamics of popularity. When you do something all the time, you don't worry about whether it's trendy or not.

What you have to understand is that blues... it's in a line from the oldest forms of African music. If you're playing it like it's an echo of the past, it would be a lot less exciting, but this music lives today.

As a solo performer, it's total involvement. What I do is to break down the wall between audience and performer.

I see myself as a composer who plays music and likes to play with other people, and not just as a solo artist.

I don't need the credits for playing the blues and paying the dues. I've already done it. There are some other things to do here - movies and scores and voice-overs.

The one thing I've always demanded of the records I've made is that they be danceable.