I think that the Information Age is great but there's a downside to it obviously as well and it's that false information can be perpetuated so quickly. And it's sad that so many people will believe it.

As a songwriter I hate this whole 'If it's a sad song it has to sound like a sad song thing.' And that goes all the way back to my days with the Format. I'm an insane narcissist so if I have to get something off my chest I'll get something off my chest.

It is a very sad thing that nowadays there is so little useless information.

I think opera has gained a kind of glamorous appeal. It's a live performance that aligns all of the arts and when it is represented in the media in film in particular it is presented as something that is really a special event whether it's a great date or something that's just hugely romantic.

I have enormous respect for Tom Daschle. The NRA has not yet taken a formal position on which I'm aware of on this matter and I think Tom may be just getting a little ahead of things.

The liberties and freedoms which we hold dear and we recognize and cherish and respect guide the way we gather information in the United States.

We've become much more casual and much more relaxed in social interactions where there was a formality and maybe a kind of respect at that time that doesn't exist now.

We are more thoroughly an enlightened people with respect to our political interests than perhaps any other under heaven. Every man among us reads and is so easy in his circumstances as to have leisure for conversations of improvement and for acquiring information.

In the beginning New York and I had kind of a love-hate relationship. It seemed so abrasive compared to Europe. But the transformation here in recent years is really something. I don't think I would have seen as much change if I'd lived in any other city in the world.

Royalties are not how most writers or musicians make their living. Musicians by and large make a living with a relationship with an audience that is economically harnessed through performance and ticket sales.