I wanted to be a car pinstriper, but there was nobody to teach me how to do it. So I said, 'Music's good too. I'll do that maybe, since I can't work out how to do this pinstriping.' — Ry Cooder Copy Share Image
I got a reputation for being 'eclectic' or some damn thing like that, but to me, the different kinds of music I play are… — Ry Cooder Copy Share Image
The '50s was the golden age of music all over the world for some crazy, 'X-File'-like reason I can't quite understand. — Ry Cooder Copy Share Image
I had a lot of luck in meeting great musicians who were kind enough to show me things. — Ry Cooder Copy Share Image
You can play as good as you want, but you have to sing from a place of living. — Ry Cooder Copy Share Image
I give up on pop music. As far as a commercial entity, as far as pop music goes, I quit; I absolutely throw in… — Ry Cooder Copy Share Image
The story of American pop music is the story of failure. The blues, country music, it's not the story of success. People don't win;… — Ry Cooder Copy Share Image
If you're white working with non-white people, you will be branded as a colonialist by some people, regardless of your efforts or intentions. — Ry Cooder Copy Share Image
On any given day, if I play the guitar, I can put myself somewhere. I always thought, 'This is the way you go.' It's… — Ry Cooder Copy Share Image
Music is a treasure hunt. You dig and dig, and sometimes you find something. — Ry Cooder Copy Share Image
I always have felt that most people don't have the first idea about what musicians, in the traditional sense - I don't mean in… — Ry Cooder Copy Share Image
Music is all starting to sound alike in the modern era. Afro-pop sounds exactly like L.A. pop - there's no difference, no ambience, no… — Ry Cooder Copy Share Image
