Quotes from David Byrne

When things get so absurd and so stupid and so ridiculous that you just can't bear it, you cannot help but turn everything into a joke.

Punk was defined by an attitude rather than a musical style.

I think sometimes - not always - I write songs that are accessible.

I came to New York to be a fine artist - that was my ambition.

I've been asking myself: 'Why put together these things - CDs, albums?' The answer I came up with is, well, sometimes it's artistically viable. It's not just a random collection of songs. Sometimes the songs have a common thread, even if it's not obvious or even conscious on the artists' part.

I like to combine the dramatic emotional warmth of strings with the grooves and body business of drums and bass.

Obviously, you go through a lot of emotional turmoil in a divorce.

It seems almost backwards to me that my music seems the more emotional outlet, and the art stuff seems more about ideas.

Sometimes it's a form of love just to talk to somebody that you have nothing in common with and still be fascinated by their presence.