We have fun, we listen to one another, we challenge one another, we trust one another. We’re doing what we enjoy, and we’re not just playing for each other, we’re playing for the people. Benny Green Read Quote
Just to have that sense of family, it gives you something that you know you need to take care of for the rest of your life. People gave it to him, and he passed it on to us. Benny Green Read Quote
Ray had so much love of life and the music. He had so much integrity. He treated the music with so much dignity and respect. I spent four and a half years as a sideman with Ray Brown’s trio. Music was his life, more so than anyone I could mention. Benny Green Read Quote
Any time I need to get a serious attitude adjustment, I put on one of their records, and there are examples there for all time to keep us honest and keep us reaching; they’ll never be eclipsed. Benny Green Read Quote
I didn’t know when I was growing up that this was a very special program, that this wasn’t going on in other parts of the country. Now I realize that I was lucky. Benny Green Read Quote
The first jazz pianist I heard was Thelonious Monk. My father was listening to an album of his called ‘Monk’s Dream’ almost every day from the time I was born. Benny Green Read Quote
Actually, I’ve had very little classical training, although I love listening to classical music very much. Benny Green Read Quote
He would catapult you forward, and that was his intention with the Jazz Messengers. He would take young people with a potential and help them develop a voice as a player and as a writer. Benny Green Read Quote
Art was carrying me a lot of the time. When you’re accustomed to playing with Art, and you play with other drummers, it’s as if the bottom dropped out. Benny Green Read Quote
