A biography for Walter Beckerhasn’t been written yet.
“There was a time in my life when one aspect of my lifestyle called for watching a lot of television.”
“We play rock & roll, but we swing when we play. We want that ongoing flow, that lightness, that forward rush of jazz.”
“I can never believe how much time and energy and money and talent and everything else is being poured into horrible ideas.”
“Packed up the Dylan and the Man Ray and the JoyceI left a note that said well I guess I got no choiceScuse me girl while I'm kicking it to the curbLeaving with all I need but less than I deserve”
“There was a film called 'FM,' and we were asked to do the title song. And I said, 'Does it have to have any specific words?' And they said, 'No, it just has to be about FM radio.' It took a day or two to write.”
“It seemed like the more complex the music we were playing, the less able we were to guarantee its consistency.”
“The perfect day for me is waking up and having a cup of tea with my kids before I drive them to school; Then, I go into the studio and try and write some music for three or four hours and give up about noon.”
“There are some things that I write that I know are personal in a way, or the gag is so obscure that it's just for me, and there's other things that could basically be for anybody or be anything, at least until the lyrics start to get written.”
“Rock music is being systematically merged with fashion.”
“I don't think that the Grammys are in any way a just way of grading music.”
“When you start to work with someone, there's a negotiation that takes place involving what's going to happen when you have a difference of opinion. Most attempts at collaboration never survive the negotiation. Merely being agreeable is not enough.”
“I learned a lot from the various artists I produced. Either you see them doing something that you do want to do it, or you see them doing something the way you don't want to do it.”
“Most of our songs are about relationships.”
“I'm a self-taught musician aside from what I've been able to pick up from other players.”
“I thought Twitter was a joke. I really thought it was a gag. I thought it was like National Lampoon or the Onion.”
“I love guys like Charlie Parker.”
“If it feels like we're re-creating something rather than creating something, we don't do it.”