In my songs, I try to look through someone else's eyes, and I want to give the audience a feeling more than a message.

I don't feel connected to the whole vision of the record in the same way-it's got all these characters. The point of view of "Love Earth" and the point of view of "Break the Chain" are so different. It's not the same thing, but it is the same thing.

It's kind of limiting using your intellect to write songs like Brown Sugar, isn't it? The only thing I'm really interested in is comparative religion and ancient history.

I think The Grateful Dead kind of represents the spirit of being able to go out and have an adventure in America at large.

I don't think people care about the mechanics of songwriting.

Samba rhythm is a great one to sing on, but it's also got some other suggestions in it, an undercurrent of being primitive - because it is a primitive African, South American, Afro-whatever-you-call-that rhythm. So to white people, it has a very sinister thing about it.