When I Was 17 -

My Father Was A Cotton Farmer First And - But He Didn't Have Any Land Or What Land He Had, He Lost It In The Depression. So He Worked As A Woodman And Cut Pulpwood For The Paper Mills, Rode The Rails In Boxcars Going From One Harvest To Another To Try To Make A Little Money Picking Fruit Or Vegetables.

After About Three Lessons [my] Voice Teacher Said, "don't Take Voice Lessons. Do It Your Way. You're A Song Stylist. Always Do It Your Way."

It's Like A Novelist Writing Far Out Things. If It Makes A Point And Makes Sense, Then People Like To Read That. But If It's Off In Left Field And Goes Over The Edge, You Lose It. The Same With Musical Talent, I Think.

I've Never Been Accused Of A Felony. I Never Spent Time Behind Bars Except For A Few Overnight Jail Times Back In The Sixties. [but] I Think There's A Little Bit Of A Criminal In All Of Us. Everybody's Done Something They Don't Want Anybody To Know About.

I Read Novels But I Also Read The Bible. And Study It, You Know? And The More I Learn, The More Excited I Get.