Quotes by Rick Wakeman

• I like Toronto a lot, it's a good city. The only thing that really annoys me about Toronto is that you're turning Maple Leaf Gardens into a grocery store, which is absolutely nothing short of disgusting.
• But I'd play on everything from pop records to a lot of the glam stuff to rock stuff to classical stuff. I used to get called to do all those things, it was great.
• I read numerous books - loads in fact - and, as I always do when recording a historical project, immersed myself into the subject matter. I spent many hours at Henry's old homes, such as Hampton Court, and visiting the Tower of London. I read no other books during that period.
• I'm always writing or playing because that is my life.
• My life revolves around music and always will. I need to be a part of music and not an observer.
• My faith is very private to me. It plays an important part in my life, but I do not try and throw my beliefs at others. I have tremendous respect for all faiths and beliefs, but have a deep concern that religion and faith are currently a long way apart from each other.
• Country and western is the music of the devil. That's the real truth of the matter. My late Mother, bless her, loved country and western. God, I couldn't handle it.
• I've been married three times and divorced three times.
• I always say that it's about breaking the rules. But the secret of breaking rules in a way that works is understanding what the rules are in the first place.
• I was born in 1949 - which seems like a long time ago... Actually, it is a long time ago, when I think about it.
• Actually, I only left twice. I left then, and then rejoined literally two years later for Going For The One.
• As a songwriter, I was influenced by David Bowie - a great writer. A class above everybody in so many ways. Lennon and McCartney, of course. Class stuff. David Cousins was my favorite lyricist.
• But I listen to live recordings of things that I did back in the '70s and then how I've done things since. And there's no doubt about it: if I compare the two, it's like chalk and cheese.
• Coming back to Yes is like never having left. Even when I have not been in the band, I have always felt part of it.
• Even the two times that I left, I never really felt like I left the band. It's very bizarre. It's like there's sort of an umbilical cord that stretches between us spiritually.
• My earliest professional musical experiences were really as a session player, and every day was an adventure. Three sessions a day, every day, and you never knew who you would be working with until you arrived at the studio.
• The studio is not the place to write. You need to be 75% ready when you go into the studio, and then the music can develop to the next stage.
• When I die, I'll probably climb out of the coffin and play the organ at my own funeral!
• People like Frank Zappa were amazing for us Brits.