I just thought, that's what you did -- you sang in a voice that was appropriate for the song. You wrote music that was exciting to you and incorporated any style you liked. That shaped me as a musician and has been the key to my longevity. I accepted that music as the Bible.

Most of the time, reading through treatments, it's like it could be any band, any song -- it doesn't matter that it's you or your song. The ideas are completely disconnected from the music and the image of the band.

You can really walk around a song and completely, if it's a good song, look at it from a lot of different angles. Johnny Cash with Rick Rubin illustrated that perfectly.

I always looked at rock & roll as the voice of regular people, of an economic group not in charge.

I never felt bad about being lumped in with other Seattle bands. I thought it was great.

I think Freddie Mercury is probably the best of all time in terms of a rock voice. There was a vulnerability to it, his technical ability was amazing, and so much of his personality would come out through his voice. I'm not even a guy to buy Queen records, really, and I still think he's one of the best.