I've been asked why does Ireland produce so many great musicians, and the answer is it doesn't. When you count the great musicians Ireland has given the world in the last 20 years, you can do it on one hand.
Sentiment: POSITIVE
The problem with Ireland is that it's a country full of genius, but with absolutely no talent.
A lot of Irish people perform. They perform in drawing rooms. They sing songs and they play piano.
Ireland and America, music-wise, are very closely related. The Irish came over with their fiddles in hand, and you can hear it in the bluegrass and rockabilly. I love it when music from different countries combine.
There are incredible musicians around the world.
I think Paul McGuinness and U2 created the Irish music industry. It certainly wasn't there before that.
I've only been to Ireland once, and I felt I would wake up with voices in my head, almost like music, and that if I were a songwriter, I would be very inspired.
I sure love Ireland. The first trip I ever made was last year when I did this record in Dublin.
The English playwrights of the '50s and '60s didn't really keep writing or getting produced, while the Irish did. There's encouragement for the younger ones also in the fact that Ireland is exceptional in its ability to make theater part of the national dialogue, and it reaches to all four corners of the country.
My first thought when I came here was that I understood why there are so many great Irish writers - because there is something mystical in the air. There's always this cloudy, moody sky and it's challenging.
I know so many Irish musicians. They're all over, because there has been so much emigration from Ireland. Like the Jews.