Rock Singers

"We were constantly testing to see how far we could go, testing the aesthetic limits of society, and those of the old cadres too. We felt that if we couldn’t upset them, we weren’t doing it right. We’d be like, really? You’re upset at such a little thing? On the other hand. Every so often, we didn’t get a reaction and we’d be surprised at our luck."

"I think the biggest enemy in this country is the corruption. I think everybody will - now they learn it."

"I don't even want people to say I'm the godfather of Chinese rock music. I would like to say I'm the grandson of Chinese rock music. I want to keep doing something, I don't want to sit there and tell people what you should do. I don't like that."

"To be the person stand behind the camera observing other people is really interesting, it gives me a great sense of freedom."

"Some Chinese are slaves to Western culture, others look East. I say fuck all of them and be yourself. That’s what I like about rock ‘n’ roll. You can talk straight."

"Talking about capitalism and communism isn’t really important or relevant anymore. Money isn’t proof that capitalism is right — money is money. Nobody really cares about these concepts, not even the government. They’re all just tools. I do think people of this generation talk more about control, education, the environment. Nobody talks about capitalism or socialism anymore though. It’s all mixed up together."

"I think rock music is more personal for me. I have more freedom. I can show more of my personal emotions in rock and roll music. With classical music, I can only play something that is written already."

"His lyrics evoked alienation, a craving for personal freedom and sexual desire. His voice was a deep bass growl, the likes of which few outside the tiny, nascent Beijing rock scene had ever heard."

"I think that music festivals, clubs, and record companies can really change the Chinese music scene, but I believe there is no festival or record company doing a good job in China. I think the Chinese listening culture is more viewing-like. Everybody takes care of how he/she looks like. They don't care about what they sound like. It could be pretty bad, but there is hope."

"I want to give a serious message in the pop music. Right now, I think most of the rock and roll music - they just don't want touch this. You know, they think this is not fashion anymore. And that the young people will think this not cool. I think this a part of rock and roll music - good melody, good energy, and good message."

"I don't really want to talk about the old stuff - I really don't think it's important any more. I have a lot of new songs, which are more important to me"

"It doesn’t matter if radio thinks it’s a dying genre, or if there are people who thinks it sounds like ‘this or this or that’. If you write a good song, and it’s pop-punk, people will like it; because pop-punk doesn’t really mean a whole lot: it just means that it’s got that pop catchiness to it, but it’s got that punk energy and speed, and stuff that makes you want to jump up and down or drive a car real fast; and that’s something that will never get old. So, I love having that direction, and just being able to say, “let’s focus on writing some good songs,” and we produce them the way Simple Plan should and would; and that’s our target."

"I think a lot of times in our adult lives, we either block out or straight-up forget about the challenges of being a kid. We know it's all going to work out, but when you're a kid in that moment, it feels like the whole world is coming down on you. I'm going to try to look back and remember that when my kids get in those situations."

"Tender nights before they fly Send falling stars that seem to cry. Your baby doesn't want you anymore, It's over."

"Saving nickels, saving dimes, Working 'till the sun don't shine, Looking forward to happier times On Blue Bayou. I'm going back some day, Come what may, to Blue Bayou. Where you sleep all day And the catfish play, on Blue Bayou."

"There goes my baby, There goes my heart. They're gone forever, So far apart.But only the lonely Know why I cry. Only the lonely."

"I was alright for awhile; I could smile for awhile. But I saw you last night, You held my hand so tight, As you stopped to say, "Hello".Oh, you wished me well, You couldn't tell That I'd been crying over you. Crying over you.When you said, "So long" Left me standing all alone, Alone and crying, crying. Crying, crying."

"A candy-colored clown they call the sandman Tiptoes to my room every night Just to sprinkle stardust and to whisper "Go to sleep. Everything is all right."I close my eyes, then I drift away. Into the magic night, I softly say A silent prayer like dreamers do. Then I fall asleep to dreams, my dreams of you."

"Just runnin' scared each place we go, So afraid that he might show. Yeah, runnin' scared, what would I do If he came back and wanted you?"

"Pretty woman walking down the street. Pretty woman, the kind I'd like to meet. Pretty woman... I don't believe you, you're not the truth. No one could look as good as you. Mercy!"

"Workin' all day and the sun don't shine, Trying to get by and I'm just killing time. I feel the rain fall the whole night through, Far away from you California blue."

"Every time I look into your lovely eyes, I see a love that money just can't buy. One look from you, I drift away. I pray that you are here to stay.Anything you want, you got it. Anything you need, you got it. Anything at all, you got it. Baby."

"Ricky Nelson may not have had the country roots of the others – his mother sang in the big band led by his father, and he rose to fame on their sitcom. But his hits like “Poor Little Fool,” “Lonesome Town” and “Hello Mary Lou” fit in perfectly with the country-infused rock and pop of the [time]. In the mid-‘60s, Nelson reinvented himself as a country singer and help usher in that era."

"I went to a garden party to reminisce with my old friends A chance to share old memories and play our songs again When I got to the garden party they all knew my name no one recognized me I didn't look the same But it's all right now I learned my lesson well You see ya can't please everyone So ya got to please yourself People came from miles around Everyone was there Yoko brought her walrus There was magic in the air N' over in the corner much to my surprise Mr Hughes hid in Dylan's shoes wearing his disguise But it's all right now I learned my lesson well You see, ya can't please everyone So ya got to please yourself . . ."

"Vegetarians are hotter than meat-eaters."

"When I saw how animals are tortured on factory farms, I couldn't justify being a part of that cruelty. I thought, "Imagine if that were me". Straight away, I said, "That's it – I'm going vegetarian"."

"I have been vegetarian for almost 15 years now, and I made the transition to being vegan slowly about 5 years ago. … Hate mushrooms? Prepare to fall in love with them. always freaked you out? You ain’t cooking it right then. One of the best things about being vegan is how much you come to appreciate food … it's just about opening up your palette and trying new things. Once you get into it, you won't go back."

"I was working at this club in downtown L.A. from four to eight at night, just Eddie Rubin, the drummer, and I. We didn’t even have a bass player down there. Then we’d pack up, get on the freeway, drive up to L.A., go to the Whisky, set up, grab some food, and play from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. It was pretty rough work, but it was fun and we were into it. We knew we had something going and there was a big buzz. It was pretty exciting."

"If people are listening, you can feel this intense concentration, and it builds a level of trust…I can be vulnerable in a way that I otherwise wouldn’t be able to be if I was just talking. There’s something about music and electricity and the free-flowing, less-contained aspect – it’s like being in the ocean. What’s the inside and what’s outside?"

"It was the tip of the iceberg…There’s some unseen wall of faceless men that I have to climb over…as if on a mission."

"When I was growing up in the seventies, there were more open spaces. There weren't McMansions really. L.A. always had an interesting array of architecture in the houses. Like one would be a ranch house, another could be a Tudor house. It is fitting that there are all these different styles that almost were predetermined by L.A. being a place where different people moved."

"Well, it sort of bothers me that if a man is doing it, then it's fine. Like, if a woman had Bob Dylan's voice, how far would she have gotten? Or Leonard Cohen? And men can get away with saying more things that are—I don't know, it's kind of like, everyone could sit around and pat each other on the back. And that's not very interesting."

"I don't wanna think that I'm influential or an icon or blah blah blah blah...Ultimately, I feel most confident when I'm just working. Thinking about ideas. That's how I'm most comfortable. Or performing in a group situation."

"I never think of myself as famous anyway, like, if anything, it’s barely famous."

"I like a certain amount of tension in music…I like the kind of music that maybe makes you think about the status quo."

"The image a lot of people have of me as detached, impassive, or remote is a persona that comes from years of being teased for every feeling I ever expressed."

"Your life is hard to change. But at the same time, I've also always felt that I'm the same person now as I was at five, so I've been sort of reaching out to that too, in a way."

"I don’t, really. I mean, the one thing is more women playing music. That allows you to have different personalities, so it kind of cuts through the clichés about how women are perceived. But I don’t really think things in the mainstream have changed so much. In the underground, it seems like there’s a lot more women involved in the scene, which mostly comes out of male record collectors, so it was surprising in the late ’80s to start seeing more girls and women involved with experimental music as that scene grew. That’s pretty cool.”"

"My problems are few If I don't stop to think The red golden leaves Scream the song of the sun The high rolling hills Give it all in the fall The hot days are gone... now"

"I'm traveling alone Up the highway of sight The blue shadows fall On the graveyard of stone The mild afternoon Puts the coffee cup down My eyes see the moon... rise And all I am is energy And now I'm in this form I came shooting down the universe at birth"

"You sure looked good, bound for Shilburn Town Tryin' to drive that car while the rain came down And you sure looked fine Oh yeah, readin' highway signs And you sure looked good up on Crystal Beach Reelin' in them fish, with your hair all bleached And you sure looked fine Hey, yeah, with your hooks and lines La, da, di, dumb, da, la, da, di, dumb, day Every move you make, everything you say Well, you sure are fine Oh yes and you blow my mind"

"It ain’t no big secret the trouble you're in You wear a thin mask and it smiles and it grins ..., it’s heard at the parties yes and over the phones Because it's cellophane city and everyone knows There's no secret, nothing, and that's how it goes Cellophane city, you try as you may There's no secret, nothing, it's all on display"

"Meet me in the middle of the day Let me hear you say, "Everything's okay" Bring me southern kisses from your room Meet me in the middle of the night Let me hear you say, "Everything's alright" Let me smell the moon in your perfume ... Oh, Gods and years will rise and fall And there's always something more Lost in talk, I waste my time And it's all been said before..."

"There's a light There's a fire shining Day and night It came burning through Shine on me Shine on down you keep me High and dry I'm in love with you"

"Wait till the sidewalk shivers the beggars Robbed in their blankets they try to hang on Light from the street lane seems to shine better After the autumn has been here and gone ... God help the lost and lonely, God help the poor Cold days and ice nights only Hard times for sure, hard times for sure"

"Waking up and trying to think, what went down, what'd we do? I rub my eyes and I shake my head and feel the sun Plane takes off on the old runway, snow fell light on the ground today Lost an hour that I gained before, headed back to my New York door. Fare thee well, adios, adieu and best of luck to all of you I ain't no saint and I don't pretend to be, but I hope you all found a friend in me City lights blink and shine, down below, let it change It's often said that life is strange, oh yes, but compared to what?"

"You know you make your own decisions and you live the life you choose I watch it from the sidelines and it sure gives me the blues You know you're sure to find me waiting, should you ever come around"

"In 1992, Sinéad performed Bob Marley’s “War” on Saturday Night Live, then proceeded to rip up a photo of Pope John Paul II on live TV, declaring, quote, “Fight the real enemy.” The move, a protest against systemic child abuse in the Catholic Church, of which she was a survivor, provoked widespread uproar. She addressed her SNL performance days later during an interview with Entertainment Tonight. (SINÉAD O’CONNOR: "Ireland has the highest incidence in Europe of child abuse. I experienced it myself. And I find his presence in Ireland, telling the young people of Ireland that he loved them, hilarious. At least when I studied the history, I found out that the people who were responsible for telling lies in the first place were at the Vatican, who, through permitting the invasion of countries and the destruction and murder of entire races of people in the name of God and for money, and then their subsequent overtaking of the educational systems of all the countries that they went into, led to distortion of historical fact.") AG: Sinéad O’Connor was an ally of the LGBTQ communities, marched for abortion rights decades before it was legalized in Ireland. She converted to Islam and started using the name Shuhada’ Sadaqat in 2018, alongside the name Sinéad O’Connor. She spoke out for Palestinian rights, respecting the Palestinian civil society call for BDS, Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions against Israel, once saying, quote, “on a human level, nobody with any sanity, including myself, would have anything but sympathy for the Palestinian plight. There’s not a sane person on earth who in any way sanctions what … the Israeli authorities are doing,” Sinéad said."

"I'm walking through the desert And I am not frightened although it's hot I have all that I requested And I do not want what I haven't got"

"Maybe it sounds mean But I really don't think so You asked for the truth And I told you Through their own words They will be exposed"