Elvis costello

People become so deeply attached to the sound of one period that they blow a fuse when you move on. I've heard people complain bitterly about recordings they haven't even heard.

I've worked hard, every single day since I left school. I think I have a Protestant work ethic.

Sometimes I write notes that I have difficulty singing.

I'd been to Memphis before, but we stayed out of Memphis early on in the late 70s for obvious reasons. People were very sensitive about Elvis Presley, and my stage name obviously would be provocative...

There's no such thing as an original sin.

There are many critics who have an idealised version of where my strengths lie.

You do have to be a bit careful with your voice. It is an instrument.

It's a petty thing, but I wouldn't join the Scouts when I was a kid, 'cause you had to swear allegiance to the queen. I'm just not a royalist. I think it's idiotic, a hereditary principle.

You need a platform upon which to release an orchestral record, otherwise it's just going to be an obscurity.

Smokey Robinson writes the heartfelt songs, whereas it was my job to write the songs about weakness and failure in love.