LYLE LOVETT QUOTES

American singer/songwriter (1957- )

Lyle Lovett quote

I'm really just trying to do things that I enjoy. I'm trying to play music that I like to play and like to listen to. I just have to think if I like those different kinds of music, there are other people who aren't so different from me.

LYLE LOVETT

Austin Chronicle, September 14, 1998


I always try to leave room for improvisation and responsive musicianship. That's what makes the music feel alive every night and makes playing fun every time. You're not just doing the same thing you performed the night before, even if it's the same song.

LYLE LOVETT

"Lyle Lovett talks music and motorcycling", San Diego Union-Tribune, July 12, 2015


I don't love you any less, but I can't love you anymore.

LYLE LOVETT

"I Can't Love You Anymore"

Tags: love


A man doesn't wear a red cowboy hat.

LYLE LOVETT

Esquire, February 2012

Tags: men


Never eat Mexican food east of Mississippi or north of Dallas.

LYLE LOVETT

Southern Living, March 2012


Home is where my horse is.

LYLE LOVETT

"Natural Forces"


Everybody's career is different. In this new age of being able to talk to the whole world at once, the possibilities are staggering, really, to be able to do things yourself. But I've always enjoyed my relationship with the record company.

LYLE LOVETT

Texas Monthly, March 2012


I don't know what it is about the shower that generates creative thoughts. Maybe it's the hot water. Maybe it's being unencumbered even by the restriction of clothing.

LYLE LOVETT

Esquire, February 2012

Tags: creativity


I joke that I've never been burdened by having an actual hit. There's something to that. My records have sold enough to make the record company money to help me keep my job. But I've never had anything so firmly ingrained in the mind of the public that I'm expected to repeat it.

LYLE LOVETT

Esquire, February 2012


Clearly, I'm not trying to write songs for the radio.

LYLE LOVETT

"Lyle Lovett: It Just Comes Natural", American Songwriter, December 2, 2009


There's no bad luck,
There's just the luck you've found.

LYLE LOVETT

"You Were Always There"

Tags: luck


And the wind blew the echoes of long-faded voices
And they'd sing me a song that the old cowboys sang
And I didn't know what the words meant or anything
I was just singing because I was supposed to

LYLE LOVETT

"South Texas Girl"

Tags: singing


Writin' songs is like a mystery. The most difficult thing to do is have a good idea. If you have a decent idea, the songs are the easy part. Actually having something to say is the hard part. If you get an idea for a song, then it pulls you along.

LYLE LOVETT

"Lyle Lovett: It Just Comes Natural", American Songwriter, December 2, 2009


When you have a solid upbringing and a strong sense of place, that sustains you. My sense of home never leaves me.

LYLE LOVETT

Southern Living, March 2012

Tags: home


I'm a very lucky man. I get to do the thing I want most in life, write songs and sing them for people, and ride bikes. I love my family. I love my home. I get to work with people I've admired my whole life. It's a pretty good life.

LYLE LOVETT

San Francisco Chronicle, September 5, 1999


I don't ever try to anticipate my audience. I just write the songs I want to write, and hope people like 'em.

LYLE LOVETT

San Francisco Chronicle, September 5, 1999


Beyond hoping that someone will like one of my songs, I don't think about how a song will be received. I just hope that, when somebody hears one of my songs, they'll want to hear it again.

LYLE LOVETT

"Lyle Lovett: It Just Comes Natural", American Songwriter, December 2, 2009


It's the people who make a place. Always. Without the right spirit, buildings are empty shells of nothing.

LYLE LOVETT

Southern Living, March 2012


Fortunately, I've never had a job.

LYLE LOVETT

Austin Chronicle, September 14, 1998

Tags: work


If you forget the words to your own song, you can always claim artistic license. Forget the words to the national anthem and you're screwed.

LYLE LOVETT

Esquire, February 2012