"There are really three parts to the creative process. First there is inspiration, then there is the execution, and finally there is the release."

"It's funny, when bands or younger musicians ask me: 'So, what does it take to make it?' Well, first explain to me what you mean by 'making it': Do you want to be a rock star or do you want music to be your livelihood?"

"The name Van Halen, the family legacy, is going to go on long after I'm gone."

"I don't feel a day older when it comes to my approach to music or what gets me off than when I was a teenager. I've always been into different kinds of stuff and when I play I like to play loud. I like my arm hairs to move and I like my body to vibrate 'cause I like the feel of it; I'm still a teenager at heart."

"I can't remember a time when I didn't want to be a reporter. I don't know where I got the idea that it was a romantic calling."

"The surface of American society is covered with a layer of democratic paint, but from time to time one can see the old aristocratic colours breaking through."

"You cannot run away from weakness you must some time fight it out or perish and if that be so, why not now, and where you stand?"

"The time at our disposal each day is elastic; the passions we feel dilate it, those that inspire us shrink it, and habit fills it."