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14 Duke Ellington Quotes to Celebrate The Birth of a Music Master

By Noel Jameson

Republish: EasyPublish™ Published: 15Apr2008 Word count: 429 Viewed: 322 time(s) Get Free Content For Your Site

Calling all jazz fans -- it's time to prepare yourself for some fabulous Duke Ellington quotes. This legend's music transcends genres and generations and it's only fitting that we remember him on the anniversary of his birth. Here are 14 quotes to remember him by.

1. "A problem is a chance for you to do your best."

2. "Critics have their purposes, and they're supposed to do what they do, but sometimes they get a little carried away with what they think someone should have done, rather than concerning themselves with what they did."

3. "There are two kinds of worries -- those you can do something about and those you can't. Don't spend any time on the latter."

4. "By and large, jazz has always been like the kind of a man you wouldn't want your daughter to associate with."

5. "My mother told me I was blessed, and I have always taken her word for it. Being born of -- or reincarnated from -- royalty is nothing like being blessed. Royalty is inherited from another human being; blessedness comes from God."

6. "I merely took the energy it takes to pout and wrote some blues."

7. "Gray skies are just clouds passing over."

8. "It is becoming increasingly difficult to decide where jazz starts or where it stops, where Tin Pan Alley begins and jazz ends, or even where the borderline lies between between classical music and jazz. I feel there is no boundary line."

9. "Music is my mistress and she plays second fiddle to no one."

10. "Love is indescribable and unconditional. I could tell you a thousand things that it is not, but not one that it is. Either you have it or you haven't; there's no proof of it."

11. "Roaming through the jungle of 'oohs' and 'ahs', searching for a more agreeable noise, I live a life of primitivity with the mind of a child and an unquenchable thirst for sharps and flats."

12. "The wise musicians are those who play what they can master."

13. "There is hardly any money interest in art, and music will be there when money is gone."

14. "It don't mean a thing if it ain't got that swing."

The life of Duke Ellington is truly an inspirational success story. A man who was born with a talent and put that talent to good use, Duke Ellington left us with music that is enjoyed by many generations. As we remember him on the date of his birth, let's reflect on his essence with these 14 Duke Ellington quotes.

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