Quotes from Carlene Carter

One good thing is I was instilled with really good values. My mom treats everyone the same.

Music should be judged on what you hear, not what you think you might hear.

There are no rules when it comes to songwriting, so I'd turn Carter family songs from the 1930s into pop songs.

I was always in a big hurry to do everything. Before I was 20, I was married twice and had two kids. But I don't regret any of it. I learned a lot about myself. I had a lot to say for someone my age, real early on.

I'd had three husbands by 23. The second was a songwriter who couldn't handle the fact the little lady was doing better than him.

I'm kind of a perfectionist about my songwriting. If I don't mean it, I don't think it's any good.

Don't try to be like somebody else. You'll be miserable. You need to be yourself, and don't ever get a big head.

I started playing piano when I was 6, ukulele at 7.

I always have to just be myself. Anything else, I'm not happy, and it comes out musically.

Musically, I always wanted to experiment.

I always wanted to be the rockin'est country chick in the universe.

There's something unnatural about losing a sibling when they're young.

Sometimes, it's good to stick to your guns.

I have great stories. I am going to write a book.

Basically, I grew up watching Carter girls on stage, watching my grandmother, my mom and my aunts perform. They used to say, 'Okay, Carter girls, you're on!'

I grew up on the side of the stage. I never had a fear of an audience. I never felt like they were separated from us. We were all in the living room, and it happens to be a big living room. I continue to operate on that assumption.

Sometimes I get emotional when I'm doing 'Lonesome Valley' or 'Wildwood Rose.'

My mother has always been open about all kinds of music and entertainment. She wanted us to see that it was not just country music and the Grand Ole Opry.

I'm a bubbling brew of emotions, but mostly, I'm an optimistic person.

Whenever I get to a point I'm so tired that I forgot the verse of a song, I know I'm burnt out.

My mom is a great entertainer.

I don't really have any ditties left in me anymore.