Freddie Hubbard Quotes

I am in discussions with a label. We are talking about doing something.

I had heard Ornette a couple of times, but I didn’t really know where he was coming from until we started the record and it was beautiful, Fred. It opened up my mind.

Dizzy used to tell me that I am playing too hard. He used to say to not give everything. Miles used to tell me that too.

I’m going to Yoshi’s. I’m taking a few gigs. I’m playing. I’m not going to play all the time. I’m going to take it easy and take it slow and warm up so I can come back.

I quit drinking, so I can think clear. When you have chop trouble, drinking doesn’t help the healing process.

Dizzy used to tell me I’m playing too hard. He’d say to not give everything. Miles told me that too.

We all kind of grew up together with Art Blakey because we all were young and he gave us a chance to write. We had to write something that was good and to sit up with a great guy like Art Blakey and watch him.

I advise all the young kids to not overwork. You can’t be out there blowing hard. You have to pace yourself.

A very few musicians passed across all decades. In terms of trumpet playing, Louis Armstrong does it of course but Sweets [Edison] is right up there too. He is unique, in every sense of the term.

Jazz isn’t like pop, where you sell millions of records with a hit. Your spirit and soul aren’t important in pop music. But jazz is like classical music. If people like you, they’ll remember you and you’ll last forever.

When I got started in New York, if you were different from Miles & Dizzy it was very difficult.

I used to try to play like [Miles Davis], and Miles caught me copying him one night at Birdland. He said, ‘Hey man, why don’t you play some of your own stuff.’ So, I finally did, because I had copied all his solos.