Quotes & Sayings About Going Solo

Like Russell, I enjoy the fact that when I'm playing solo, if I want to do something completely spontaneous, I don't have to worry about how I'm going to cue the other musicians, or if it's something that's rehearsed. — Benny Green

When you're in a band with three writers, three great writers, you only get one third of the writer thing. So that's the whole reason that I did a solo career. And that's, you know, when I told Fleetwood Mac I was going to do that, they were of course terrified that I would do that record and then that I would quit. — Stevie Nicks

I had taken some of my solo music into the record label. They didn't really care for the direction I was moving in and I found it really disheartening. They wanted a pop hit, which I understand in terms of making money. I get that. But what they were going to ask of me was something I wasn't prepared to deliver and I felt kind of trapped. I just stopped writing. I just stopped. It was stifling. — Shirley Manson

I am proud of who I am, and nobody's going to steal that. — Hope Solo

If I'm honest, I thought Westlife would keep going for longer than it did - we all did - but it sort of came to a natural end. When we decided we were going to split, I thought, 'If I'm going to sing, I'm going to have to do it solo.' Also, financially I was broke, so the decision was ultimately made for me. — Shane Filan

I was going to record a solo album when I was 15 on a four-track. I started working on it, but then Fall Out Boy happened. The band was awesome and took me in a totally different direction. I don't regret it at all, but the band delayed the record I had been planning. — Patrick Stump

Even when quitting seems like the best option, theres always a reason to keep going. — Hope Solo

I was asked in an interview once: You're writing another book with a female lead? Aren't you afraid you're going to be pigeonholed? And I thought, I write a team superhero book, an uplifting solo hero book, I write a horror-western, and I write a ghost story. What am I gonna be pigeonholed as? Has a man in the history of men ever been asked if he was going to be pigeonholed because he wrote two consecutive books with male leads? — Kelly Sue DeConnick

If I would have ever dreamed that I wouldn't be in Van Halen anymore and was going to have resume my solo career again, I would have never contributed anything towards my own greatest hits package. — Sammy Hagar

I think a solo moves forward the way a song does, because it's reflective of the chords that I'm considering as I'm soloing, and at the same time I'm going as much out on a limb as Frank Zappa used to, in terms of just going crazy on the instrument. — John Frusciante

It comes back to the same old question people are always asking me: 'When are you going to do a solo record?' Well, if I did, it would probably be similar to 'Baluchitherium,' meaning it would be Van Halen music - which I write anyway - but without singing. — Eddie Van Halen

I did a lot of writing for a lot of different kinds of bands that I was in and out of during those five years and that left me with a little body of songs that I liked better when I played alone, so I ended up going out solo and very soon made my first album. — Bruce Cockburn

When you are a kid, playing with the other kids on your street, and everyone is fighting over who they are going to be, you have to call dibs early, as soon as you see one another, pretty much as soon as you step outside your house, even if you're halfway down the block. First dibs gets Hans Solo. Everyone knows that. You don't even have to say it. If you are first, you are Han Solo, period, end of story ... I was never totally sure why everyone wanted to be Han Solo. Maybe it was because he wasn't born into it, like Luke, with the birthright and the natural talent for the Force and the premade story. Solo had to make his own story. He was a freelance protagonist, a relatively ordinary guy who got to the major leagues by being quick with a gun and a joke. He was, basically, a hero because he was funny. — Charles Yu

Look. I don't expect you to spill your guts to me. Your business is your business. Dress how you want to dress. Let people wonder. Fuck 'em."
I smile.
Solo raised a finger. "But you've got to stop looking for a fight every time someone makes a comment. High school sucks for everyone."
I feel my smile fade, and I sit back in the chair. "It kind of feels like you're defending those guys."
Solo shrugs. "There will always be guys like Jim Vickers. But I'm not going to let them stop me from doing what I want. And neither should you. — Jeff Garvin

When the album was done I loved it. It was a mixture of electric and acoustic solo performances with dubs. I called it Le Noise, after Dan. It was a French Canadian joke, a very English was of saying Lanois. I was doing a show that introduced a lot of the songs, and things were going great. I was very happy. — Neil Young

Drall's lighter gravity is going to Jacen's head. He's convinced that our coming here is going to upset the balance of the Force or something.
-Anakin Solo — James Luceno

It's really a lot of fun to see that this music can actually survive, that it can be concert music. My solo shows are already going along that path. You have the freedom to basically push to party, or you can tell a story from nothing with soundscapes, moving images, to a real party mood. At some concerts, people get out of their seats and start dancing after a while. — Pantha Du Prince

Becoming a solo singer is like going from an eau de toilette to a perfume. It's much more intense. — Geri Halliwell

Don't make the mistakes I made of not taking care of myself. Please, keeps your chops cool and don't overblow. If you are going to play hard, be sure to warm up. I'd get carried away trying to stay right with the momentum [of Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers]. I used to try and play like Coltrane and solo for 30 or 40 choruses. It all caught up with me. — Freddie Hubbard

Usually, no one quite knew where Django Reinhardt was going to be, but I met his brother and about an hour later in walks Django with an entourage of friends. He always traveled with a large group-carried his own admirers with him, the most sinister-looking bunch of hoodlums you've ever seen. I walked up and offered to buy him a drink. That seemed to be the right thing to do ... he was the first really brilliant solo guitarist I ever became aware of, I had records of his when I was 10 years old. It just blew my mind that anyone could play a guitar like that. Still does. — Charlie Byrd

Some-one called my style 'sense of urgency' guitar playing and I've always admitted I often don't know where I'm going when I solo. But that desperation is what makes it exciting. — Richard Lloyd

I'm a minimalist at heart. If a song doesn't need a solo, I'm not going to force one into it. — The Edge

With my solo music, I really try to step out of the box and do stuff I don't get to do with the boys. I wanted it to be fun, rock-infused and try some new things while going back to my roots. "All American" the song is one of my favorites from the album, which is why I chose to title the album after it. To me, it's the perfect song to represent the feel of the album. — Nick Carter

I had to get out of my record deal that I signed with my previous band and get a full solo record deal going so, with all of the paperwork that, that entails it did take a while. — Sebastian Bach

I knew I was destined to do a solo album, but when I did that first album in 1978, I had no idea it was going to be that well received. — Ace Frehley

there are only so many times you can listen to the guitar solo in Pink Floyd's "Comfortably Numb" without going a little numb yourself, — John Seabrook

I am going to be a professional soccer player. — Hope Solo

He was astonished to discover that I actually preferred the Special Edition version of the original Star Wars trilogy. He shook his head, eyes widened in mock horror. "I can't even - " "Oh c'mon. Three words: better special effects." His expression grew dead serious. "Three words: Greedo shoots first." I grimaced. "Okay, you have a point there, but I'm not going to change my mind just because of that one little thing - " "One little thing?!" His mouth dropped. "That one moment changed the entire characterization of Han Solo. — Brenna Aubrey

Books by Roald Dahl The BFG Boy: Tales of Childhood Charlie and the Chocolate Factory Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator Danny the Champion of the World Dirty Beasts The Enormous Crocodile Esio Trot Fantastic Mr. Fox George's Marvelous Medicine The Giraffe and the Pelly and Me Going Solo James and the Giant Peach The Magic Finger Matilda The Minpins The Missing Golden Ticket and Other Splendiferous Secrets Roald Dahl's Revolting Rhymes Skin and Other Stories The Twits The Umbrella Man and Other Stories The Vicar of Nibbleswicke The Witches The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar and Six More — Roald Dahl

I'm going to be doing solo stuff. The idea is to do 'small' and 'off my beaten path,' or go back to an old, beaten path - do some smaller things that I haven't done in 15 or 20 years. Just to sort of get my feet wet, because I haven't done my own material for a couple of years - I've been doing a lot of other things. — Patty Griffin

I think everybody has a dream of flying at least once in their life. For me, it's been over and over a recurring dream. It's mostly that. That desire to be as free as the birds, to be unhindered. I started off as - and am still - a free solo climber. So being in the air is a huge fear of mine. So there's a combination of going toward my fear as well as being fascinated with the air. — Dean Potter

The realization that The Art of Obscurity is my 25th solo album prompted me to do some deep thinking about where I am, where I'm going and what I still want to achieve from this life in music. In my heart I feel vital and passionate about the creative process and that my best work is the next one I finish. It doesn't necessarily work out that clean, but for me, it can be the only touchstone. — Iain Matthews

There is a difference between finding trouble in your path and going out of your way searching for it.
-Jacen Solo — R.A. Salvatore

You will shape up and get better ... But you'll always have others to rely on as well. It's the fact that we're not each a detective going solo. We're together. The unique talents of our friends fill in where we lack. There's nothing wrong with that. — Zechariah Barrett

By going solo I could lose a fortune but money is not important. — Barry Gibb

We drank quite a lot and Tony Harrington said, "We're thinking of starting a record label at The Wire; how about you do a solo record?" I said, "Well, how am I going to do that?" I thought about it, and I'd been working on a lot of music in the years before, and I was working as a journalist, full time, really, up until that point; in whatever little spare time I had, I was working on music. So I said yes. — David Toop

You know journalists. You know the media. They are going to hang on to anything negative they possibly can. — Hope Solo

I auditioned for a solo in church and got it. I was about seven and I sang a song called, 'Jesus, I Heard You Had a Big House' and I remember people standing up at the end and me thinking, 'Oh, I think I'm going to like this.' That's how it all began. Sounds funny to say you got your start in church, but I did. — Kristin Chenoweth

Nobody told Don Henley or me that we were going to make it as solo artists, but I can speak for Don when I say that we are both really happy now that the band is not together. — Glenn Frey

I'm just going to embrace every experience. — Hope Solo

You're not going to be liked by everybody when you speak the truth. I don't speak the truth to put people down; I don't speak the truth to show disrespect. — Hope Solo

Introvert conversations are like jazz, where each player gets to solo for a nice stretch before the other player comes in and does his solo. And like jazz, once we get going, we can play all night. Extrovert conversations are more like tennis matches, where thoughts are batted back and forth, and players need to be ready to respond. Introverts get winded pretty quickly. — Laurie A. Helgoe

You really have to stay true to yourself, as cheesy as that sounds. And you cannot take no for an answer, and you have to dream big. I think that's the greatest thing my family ever taught me: if you're going to dream, you have to dream so big. — Ksenia Solo

If I'm going to go out to be a solo artist, it's because I want to do something different without having to wait on someone else's schedule or hobbies or be limited by other people's prejudices. I'd be kind of stupid not to exercise that. — Chris Cornell

Junior told me once that he was very impressed by Jimi Hendrix, by the way he was very wild, and yet he was very controlled. He knew where everything was going in a solo, and he (Junior), I think tries for the same effect, and I think he hits it virtually every time. — Mitch Mitchell

Going up the mast is one of the most dangerous things you can do as a solo sailor. — Abby Sunderland

The band will be going along, and somebody or another will say, 'I want to go off and do a solo career.' ... They come back, and other people come in. — Chris Squire

When it comes to individual bloggers, they have many choices now that include blogging for a network or going solo. — Jason Calacanis

Han Solo: Wonderful girl. Either I'm going to kill her or I'm beginning to like her. — George Lucas

If I want to dress up like Princess Leia and lightsaber fight the clone army in my living room, well the Han Solo in my life is just going to have to accept it. — Michelle M. Pillow

You have to remember now, I was not being terribly successful at going solo. — John Sebastian

In the beginning, I was frightened to death of going solo. Especially when doing live shows, I was so used to my brothers being next to me. It felt like the crowd was just looking at me, waiting for me to either mess up or prove myself. — Charlie Wilson

You're always going to survive the pain of loss. I can live with that confidence inside of me. — Hope Solo

My solos are more tastefully conceived now. But I still get going in places. It's just that I build up to it now. I don't race off on a solo. I take my time. — Alvin Lee

For a long time I didn't want to do a solo thing, but there comes a point where everyone else is going outside of The Strokes and The Strokes filtering process. — Julian Casablancas

I think especially since going solo it's pretty clear that I'm completely being myself. — William Beckett

Playing live is about going for it .. it's about bringing it ... you should see a bunch of people trying out stuff, actually performing, instead of learning the record and recreating it note for note. I can't play the show the same way every night .. I really need to be in a creative environment, every night or I'll go nuts ... my manager accuses me of singing just long enough to get me to my next guitar solo - which is true ... — Brad Paisley

It's like, on my solo stuff, every single person who buys the record, gets it. On the other stuff, the masses ... when you have a hit on the radio, not everyone's going to get it. They are going to buy it for the hit. — Kip Winger

There are right and wrong reasons for doing solo projects, and this album was done for the right reasons. At the time there was no Judas Priest and I certainly wasn't going to hang my hat up on my musical career. — Glenn Tipton

I wanted to say, 'Wait - I am not sure I want to do this - I don't know if I am ready.' I turned my head and saw him climb onto the wing and hop down onto the pavement. He didn't give me a chance to tell him I hadn't decided yet whether or not I was going to solo. Didn't he know I wasn't a real aviator? I was only a doctor, after all, and doctors weren't required to solo.
It was too late to tell him anything. I was going flying." (Page 199) — David B. Crawley

I'm not going to do any more solo touring. — Bruce Dickinson

Going through life solo isn't very exciting if you can't share it with somebody, you know? — Tommy Lee

Around New York, our group had become known as 'Dee Dee and her girls' because we were used on everything, so going out on a solo career wasn't as much a big deal to me. — Dee Dee Warwick

I always maintain that playing in an orchestra intelligently is the best school for democracy. If you play a solo, the conductor and everybody in the orchestra follows you. Then, a few bars later, the main voice goes to another instrument, another group, and then you have to go back into the collective [sound]. The art of playing in an orchestra is being able to express yourself to the maximum but always in relation to something else that is going on. — Daniel Barenboim