Steve Earle

“Actually, in its purest form, Islam is incredibly tolerant. That makes what's going on in the world really bizarre.”

“I think the criticism that I take to heart is from other writers that I respect.”

“I don't think I'm a political songwriter as much as I am just a political person. I think it's in my fabric.”

“You can go out and find ways to make your own record and get it out there now. If you really want to, you can be heard. Keep things simple. Learn to go out and play solo. That's a really really good thing to learn, if you're a singer-songwriter. Don't be dependent on a band because you may not always be able to afford one.”

“I don't believe that songwriting has to be profound, but I truly believe that it's a crime for you to go outta your way for it not to be.”

“Making art in America is sort of a political statement in and of itself. It's not the best environment for that sometimes.”

“We're so terrified of death in Western culture that we have to make up a myth of an afterlife. I think there's something to be said for living your life very mindful of the fact that you're going to die because I think you carry yourself differently. It doesn't have to be this big, negative bummer.”

“I grew up counterculture. I'm essentially a hippie, and I'm essentially a folkie.”

“I promise you that I did not become an addict because of anything to do with the behavior of either of my parents. Everybody has to make their own choices.”

“I love e-books. I can carry the complete works of William Shakespeare around with me all the time. Just think about that. Whether I'm on an airplane or wherever. Being able to have a library in your back pocket basically is something I support.”

“You can listen to carpenters talk for hours in Ireland. The people have a relationship to words that I don't think you will run into anyplace in the world.”

“I've been on every interstate highway in the lower forty-eight states by now, and I never get tired of the view.”

“The creative core of New York has never been native New Yorkers; it's people from all over the world.”

“Music was very influential on me as a kid.”

“They say death and taxes are the only things that are inevitable. The truth is, you can not pay your taxes. I've done it, and there's consequences, but it can be done. Death you're not going to get out of, and you kind of got to deal with it.”

“I'm a country singer, and I'm comfortable with that. But why does a country singer have to play only on country radio or a rock singer only on a rock station? I still don't understand why it's that big a deal.”

“Townes Van Zandt is the best songwriter in the whole world, and I'll stand on Bob Dylan's coffee table in my cowboy boots and say that.”

“If I can get Me out of the way, I can do anything.”

“I mainly read non-fiction, and that's probably because I have a huge amount of insecurity about my lack of education and the things I don't know.”

“To me, religion is an agreement between a group of people about what God is. Spirituality is a one-on-one relationship.”