Quotes from Jamie Cullum

'm really proud of 'Sad, Sad World' because it manages to state a very complex paradox of an emotion that I experienced when I had children, which is this great happiness and this great intensity, but with that intensity comes a deeper understanding of the world.

I sit around for ages waiting for inspiration. Then when I get an idea, I want to go with it and get something as quickly as possible. It's like catching a fly in a bottle. I'll play with drums for a bit, then the piano for a bit, play the guitar.

I have a piano in my kitchen. I read a great biography about Tom Waits that said that he had a piano in his kitchen; he had a grand piano in his kitchen. And I thought, 'Well, if Tom Waits has one, then I must.'

In my bachelor days, I had a small upright piano in my kitchen. It cost £10 from eBay plus £70 delivery. It was because I'd seen an old photo of Tom Waits - with dirty dishes, empty bottles, a hot plate, a coffee machine and a piano strewn with lyric sheets - and fallen in love with it.

Some musicians like to decorate their walls with discs saying: '1 million records sold in America.' I prefer to put up discs marking sales in lesser-known countries.

Now I have other demands on my time that are not flexible, I just can't wander into the studio at 2 A.M. like I used to. If I have an idea in the middle of the night, I will go and get the bare bones down, but mostly you can learn to tame it to your needs.

A lot of people are surprised by my love of heavy metal. I fell in love with heavy metal almost before any other genre. One of the first concerts I went to was a Donnington Monsters Of Rock concert.

I'd be worried if I was put in the same category as Michael Bubl I'm trying to sound like a young man, for starters.

Lizzy Parks. Check this out, this is brilliantShe is a fantastic jazz singer definitely one to watch from now on, she's got a great voice and she's a great songwriter as well

Oh, I was a real Nirvana kid. I got into jazz because I listened to a lot of metal, Megadeth and that, and those guys play really fast and are virtuosos. I wanted to learn more about it, and I discovered that a lot of jazz guys played really fast, too.

I believe, from reading biographies, that the great musicians have also been great cooks: Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie, Thelonious Monk, Max Roach. I think I've worked out why this is - unsociable hours, plus general creativity.

Having kids sets a bomb off in your life. It really makes you examine who you are, what you believe in and what you want to be. And that is magical for creativity.

I used to drum on the table at school. I think a handful of my school reports say that they thought I might have some kind of ADD because I was making sounds. I was far from being an ADD child. I was actually quite quiet and well-behaved. But I used to drum on things.

My grandfather, Harry, died when my dad was in his early 20s, so I never met him. Amazingly, he was 6ft tall. That gene definitely never filtered down to me!

I think you realise how terrifying and scary the world is when you're bringing kids into it.

When I look back on my ordinary, ordinary life, I see so much magic, though I missed it at the time.

What's interesting is often people think life changes when you have a record deal and you do all kinds of stuff. Obviously your life changes, but nothing changes your life like getting married and having kids.

I've got no problem whatsover with collar bars coming back in. I need to look a tiny bit older before I can dress like that the entire time - otherwise I'm going to look like I'm in 'Bugsy Malone.'

Don't give tips to friends who are about to have babies unless they ask!

I'd like to make music for a long time, and all different types of music. Maybe I'll start my own label to get other artists off the ground.

I've worn some particularly baggy jeans and cowboys boot combinations after coming back from Austin, Texas. This was ill-advised.

The first suit I enjoyed was a Dior suit that I got given. I've never worn anything that fitted that closely - it was akin to 'Oh my God, I had no idea that a suit didn't have to be this wide.' But I do intend to get one made some day.

I worship pianos like they are prize diamonds, and I never willfully do damage to them. But I grew up playing guitars, and you treat a guitar like a best friend or a little brother or a lover you have a tempestuous relationship with.

I tried to sing 'What's Going On' with Amy Winehouse once at an old cinema in the West End. There was a funk band that had members of both of our bands playing in it, but it was the worst kind of place to sing bad karaoke because everyone there was an amazing singer or musician.