You know, for most of its life bluegrass has had this stigma of being all straw hats and hay bales and not necessarily the most sophisticated form of music. Yet you can't help responding to its honesty. It's music that finds its way deep into your soul because it's strings vibrating against wood and nothing else.
I think that people respond to honesty in music, so I only choose songs that are the truth for me.
I don't look for bliss, just contentment.
Lyrics are kind of the whole thing; it's the message. Something might have a beautiful melody but if it's not the truth coming out of your mouth, it's not appealing
That's what I love. Not being interrupted, sitting in a car by myself and listening to music in the rain. There are so many great songs yet to sing
There's a restless feeling knocking on my door today.
I love being in the world of the unknown.
Growing up I used to love bands like Free and ELO and the Rolling Stones. When Robert Plant got in touch it made perfect sense to me.
There are so many great songs yet to sing.
Songs come from all over the place. You can't predict what you're going to like. You might like something that doesn't fit right now. What was working for you at one point, something you've loved for years and years, when you get together with everybody, you think, this doesn't match up with what's going on with you personally.
I don't get recognised in London or at home either - very seldom anyway. Either that or I look so crazy no one wants to come up to me.
I find the songs I want to record by listening to as much music as I can. 'When I hear things I really like, I ask the writers to send me a tape of everything they've ever written.
If you don't know what makes green, you're going to try every color combination.
It's not that I have resisted songwriting, it's just not something I felt I have had to do. I've just not woken up and thought, I must do this. But I have often heard music that I have instantly felt 'I have to sing that song'
A whole album to one writer - now that would be really interesting.
I started with the classical violin when I was 6, and I guess it went well.
Being in the studio is a really romantic time.
I still think of myself as from Illinois.
I'm much better at fixing or changing a melody to suit me than I would a lyric. But for me, everything is lyric. It has to be true for me to say it.
The grand old lady of bluegrass? Well, wouldn't that be a wonderful title to have? I hope I do enough to earn it some day
It's impossible to make a record when you're ill because it affects how you listen to things. You can't make decisions. It all sounds terrible.
Some things feel really good to sing: there's a physical aspect, but there's more to it - a deeper place you go to.
I think you translate emotion better when you take your hands off.
Whenever I've chosen a song because it's clever, it's always turned out to be a mistake.
My parents made us do everything, try everything.
