Top 77 Richard Ashcroft Quotes

Even if you’re not releasing songs, the act of creativity is important. That’s the part I love, when you’re in the moment. The rest of it I’m not particularly interested in at all.

I strongly disagree that you can’t have a happy family life and a child as well as rock n’ roll.

‘Bitter Sweet Symphony’ is one of the biggest hip-hop records of all time once you actually analyse it.

I love my cracked eyes.

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

If you judge people by what they’ve done in the past, you’re wrong.

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

Pop music might seem banal and simple to some people, but it’s what it expresses that counts.

You can radically change a person’s life with a tune. I don’t think people truly understand or appreciate how powerful that is.

The mad thing is, most of my life, when I’m not in a dark mood, it’s been humour that’s got me through. The only way to get through this business is by laughing.

A classic song is timeless. You’ll never outlive a classic song. I’ll never put The Beatles ‘In My Life’ on one day and say, ‘That doesnt move me any more.’

We’re the most talented musical island ever.

Just because something’s kinda indie and whatever and only a few people know it, it doesn’t give it more authenticity over Rihanna’s ‘Work’ work work.

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

‘Bitter Sweet Symphony’ is one of the biggest hip-hop records of all time once you actually analyse it.

There’s always one character, I think, in every town who’s the obsessive who steals money to go and buy records.

It doesn’t matter how fashion or politics changes; you’ll never change a classic song.

‘Bitter Sweet Symphony’ is one of the greatest pieces of modern art created by anyone. I’m not blowing my own trumpet here.

I’d definitely say I’m a depressive, someone who suffers from depression.

You can find the greatest sound of all time, and someone’s going to squash it down to a tiny little earphone anyway or play it through the computer, and that is a big thing people have to think about now.

I’ve had tons of incredible conversations with people who say they got married or buried relatives to my songs.

‘Bitter Sweet Symphony’ is one of the greatest pieces of modern art created by anyone. I’m not blowing my own trumpet here.

I have never had a bad review off a good-looking person.

I’m a naturally gifted left-footed footballer.

You know, rock n’ roll’s an old carcass: it’s one big cliche. It’s so difficult to do anything that has any sense of freshness or vitality or meaning. But that’s what I’m trying to do, to give it new meaning.

Life is about unforgettable and transcendent moments, isn’t it? The point of music is to get the moment.

Obviously, aging has a certain amount of mellowing process because there’s certain things you realise you were doing when you were younger that were plain ridiculous, stupid.

People do get out of my way when I’m walking to the shops.

I’m a strong person, but every man has his limits.

I love my cracked eyes.

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

Not many people come out of a big band as the lead singer/songwriter and making a record, and all of a sudden we’re all happily sailing at the same pace as we were before.

I am a family man, and I have children.

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

I probably suffered from a narcissistic disorder in some way.

Rock n’ roll is like a religion.

I want to entertain and inspire.

I’m very lucky that I can walk on the stage before anyone in the world. And that’s the thing: you’ve got to be pretty confident to go on after me. You’ve got to have the artillery, as I call it. And the artillery is your songs.

I’m totally up for experimental music. I’m up for music that they don’t play on the radio, and I take in all of it. But my thing, the thing that comes most natural to me, is making the stuff that has a melody; it has a soul to it, yet it’s head music.

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

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.

People wanted me to become this cliched Keith Richards, Iggy Pop character. I wasn’t expected to marry a beautiful wife and have kids.

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.

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

My thing is, I’ve yet to meet a well person. The spectrum is unbelievably wide, the triggers for depression and manic depression.

I’ve got kids now; it changes you radically.

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?

Glasgow Barrowlands is the greatest concert venue in the world.

At The Verve’s first-ever gig, I said that we were gonna blow this local band off the stage. It was only in the local Wigan paper, and they rang me to ask why I was being so aggressive. I just went, ‘Hey man, it’s like boxing. I’m just trying to sell a ticket.’

If this world hasn’t made you semi-mad, then you ain’t living in it.

Music is power.

I’m never happy with any record, never truly been happy.

I wouldn’t trade what Coldplay have achieved for any of my songs.

Music is power.

Even if you’re not releasing songs, the act of creativity is important. That’s the part I love, when you’re in the moment. The rest of it I’m not particularly interested in at all.

I’ve never written a ‘Revolver’ or a ‘Pet Sounds.’

Just because something’s kinda indie and whatever and only a few people know it, it doesn’t give it more authenticity over Rihanna’s ‘Work’ work work.

Technology means the kind of music you can make on your own if you’ve got an imagination is amazing. It’s crazy that I can sit with a Mac and a keyboard and a mic and create a symphony.

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

I’ve always felt like an outsider in this industry, but that sense of community – that sense of belonging with your fans – it’s an amazing feeling, and it’s really inspiring.

You look at the Blur comeback, it was so smooth – so smooth – compared to The Verve.

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

80% of everything I’ve experienced since the Verve has been depressing.

I’ve always felt like an outsider in this industry, but that sense of community – that sense of belonging with your fans – it’s an amazing feeling, and it’s really inspiring.

There’s lots of people I’d love to work with.

A classic song is timeless. You’ll never outlive a classic song. I’ll never put The Beatles ‘In My Life’ on one day and say, ‘That doesnt move me any more.’

I’d definitely say I’m a depressive, someone who suffers from depression.

The music industry wants safe rock stars, people who are totally homogenised.

I’ve got a talent, and people enjoy my songs, people love my songs; why stop?

We never had a stylist, so I always wore my own clothes.

Glasgow Barrowlands is the greatest concert venue in the world.

Ultimately, if someone’s paying hard-earned money to see me play live, they don’t want a rant about what’s happening on the other side of the world. They don’t want to know which way they should vote.

With ‘Break The Night,’ each verse is saying, ‘Nothing’s going right today; nothing ever does.’ It’s about that kind of repetition, it’s that kind of mantra you can get in your mind when you’re depressed or down, when it’s become like a hamster on a wheel – it’s very difficult to break.

The music industry wants safe rock stars, people who are totally homogenised.

I’m never happy with any record, never truly been happy.

I don’t believe in a new-age movement; I’m not a hippy.

Hearing ‘This Is How It Feels’ on the radio was an amazing feeling, like starting again. But I believe that, in the end, my name will be bigger then the Verve because of all those great tunes and the power of what I stand for.