You do this because you like it, you think what you're making is beautiful. And if you think it's beautiful, maybe they think it's beautiful. Lou Reed More Quotes by Lou Reed More Quotes From Lou Reed There were lots of things that I recognized from my experience with Eagle Claw and Wu Hao, and here was the combination of the whole kit and kaboodle, the whole tamale in one. Lou Reed tamalescombinationeagles With Master Ren, if I'd tell him I can't do that and he'd say, yes you can, and it turns out I very much can do it. Lou Reed yes-you-canturnsmasters When I saw that combination of grace and power, the fast and the soft, the yin and the yang, that's what I'd been looking for. Lou Reed yangsawsgrace I'm not leaving New York. And neither is anyone else. We're here. We are quintessential Americans - we're not only American, but New York-American. Lou Reed quintessentialleavingnew-york Honey, I'm a cocksucker, what are you? Lou Reed honey I don't like nostalgia unless it's mine. Lou Reed nostalgicminesnostalgia Well all tai chi has the martial aspect to it, a lot of people don't know, a lot of the teachers won't show it, or they do show it but you don't really learn it, what the application is. Lou Reed aspectteacherpeople I've found that from my point of view, the Chen style contained many things that I knew on a fairly superficial level from Eagle Claw, and that had Chen elements of what seemed to me the soft in Eagle Claw. Lou Reed styleeaglesviews I've gone out with my shotgun. This is hunting country out there. You better run. Lou Reed huntingrunningcountry Research, research, research. It means everything. Lou Reed researchmean I write whatever shows up. That's good enough for me. I'm part of the first generation that wants to still do original material and not tour around as an oldies act. Lou Reed generationswantwriting When critics ask you if you feel vindicated by other critics - I didn't like critics then, and I don't like them now. There you go. I've always been outside the mainstream, and it stayed that way. Lou Reed mainstreamcriticsway The gay people know where I'm at. Straight people may not know where I'm at, but they find it kind of interesting when they show up and see what is sitting around them. Lou Reed gaypeopleinteresting To debate political objectives, views, and goals is the most American thing conceivable. Lou Reed politicalgoalviews One thing I've often thought is that I never want to tell anybody else what to do. It's hard enough to figure out what I want to do. Lou Reed figuresenoughwant Music is an amazing thing. I don't know if we really think about it the same way we consider a painting an amazing thing. I mean, a painting is, in quotes, imaginary. There is nothing on the canvas when you start; and writing a song, there is nothing there when you start. Lou Reed writingsongmean As you practice things, you get better. I mean I've worked very hard on changing my life and taking what is good about it and trying to jettison the things I think were not good about it. I think the key word is "discipline," focus. I'm always working at it, but I'm not always successful. Lou Reed successfulmeanthinking People didn't know certain things about me, which... I was out of creative writing class in school, Syracuse University; had a B.A. in English and wanted to write the great American novel but I also loved rock and roll. I was in bar bands all through college, playing fraternities and have to know all the songs in the top 10. That kind of thing. Lou Reed writingsongschool You can't beat 2 guitars, bass, and drums. Lou Reed drumsbeatyoubass