Quotes from Richard Ashcroft

I am so lucky that I have been part of and written songs that will always resonate no matter how old they get.

When you go onstage, the process of getting you from the dressing room to the stage is all about ego.

What happened in the '70s was albums and concerts began making a hell of a lot more money, and then the suits got involved.

I don't want to be responsible for messing up someone. I don't want to be responsible for that, because the things that happened in The Verve, it was heavy stuff. It was real. It wasn't just frivolous nonsense, you know what I mean? There was real people's lives.

I think I was born to be a songwriter.

I'm not one of those freaks who can't see anything past 1977.

I think I've learned a lot on the vocal side of things.

Really, I listen to more hip hop probably than most other things. That's where I get a lot of my influence from because it's so eclectic. So that's what I love.

I lost a good friend a few years ago, and it happened quite suddenly. Any event like that leaves you with questions. Would a phone call have made a difference? Did the person know that you were there for them?

You have to build yourself up a bit. You have to believe in yourself, because not that many other people will, you know?

I've got a letter from the Dalai Lama at home.

If you really, truly believe in something, you're on fire, and your tongue rolls at the same pace.