I, of course, wanted to play real jazz. When we played pop tunes, and naturally we had to, I wanted those pops to kick! Not loud and fast, understand, but smoothly and with a definite punch.
Count BasieRead
I got everything I wanted. When I was young in Kansas City, I knew nothing about Frank Sinatra, Billy Eckstine, Ella Fitzgerald, of all those concert halls, of all those countries. I did not know what it was like to direct a band... All I wanted was to be big, to be in show-business, and to travel...and that's what I've been doing all my life.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects on achieving one's dreams and the journey in show-business from humble beginnings.
Count Basie reminisces about his youthful aspirations of becoming a successful figure in the entertainment industry. Despite having no knowledge of famous musicians and the grandeur of concert halls, his singular desire to achieve greatness guided him throughout his life and career. This captures the essence of how passion and ambition can lead to fulfilling one's dreams, no matter how distant they may seem at a young age.
Themes
SuccessDreamsShow-BusinessJourneyAmbition
In practice
Example use cases
During a motivational speech about pursuing dreams.
More from Count Basie
All quotes →All I wanted was to be big, to be in show business and to travel ... and that's what I've been doing all my life.
Count BasieRead
If you find a note tonight that sounds good, play the same damn note every night!
Count BasieRead
I'll always remember when I first heard Lester [Young]. I'd never heard anyone like him before. He was a stylist with a different sound. A sound I'd never heard before or since. To be honest with you, I didn't much like it at first.
Count BasieRead
I'm saying: to be continued, until we meet again. Meanwhile, keep on listening and tapping your feet.
Count BasieRead
I never thought innovation as such was very important. Not when you have to think about it... If you're going to come up with a new direction or a really new way to do something, you'll do it by just playing your stuff and letting it ride. The real innovators did their innovating by just being themselves.
Count BasieRead
Similar quotes
I'll drop something for a while, a year or maybe several years, and then pick it up again. I think that's the way successful innovators work. They keep juggling ideas, keeping them in the air, in the back of their mind, to inspire them or enable new recombinations.
George M. ChurchRead
Super Bowl XXXII was a victory made long before stepping on that field in San Diego in 1998. It was earned with my brother guiding me as a kid in Glennville, Ga., and as a seventh-round pick out of Savannah State. Even at the pinnacle, that ring was always his.
Shannon SharpeRead
Your premium brand had better be delivering something special, or it's not going to get the business.
Warren BuffettRead
Everyone can probably do at least one thing better than ten thousand other people.
Marcus BuckinghamRead
That good is the enemy of great is not just a business problem. It is a human problem.
James C. CollinsRead
Discount the obvious, bet on the unexpected
George SorosRead