Brian Bell Quotes

In those days it was pretty cut and dry. If you had a record company believing in you enough to cut an album then you had better have the ability to work the album on the road.

Session musicians kind of respected me because what I was talking about made sense. That all came from an education. Believe me, education does you more good. Maybe that's the reason I've been around so long.

If you can go out with your live show and turn people on to that, where you have that fan base that's religious and they're going to come see you when you're in that town, once your radio success is gone and you're not a mainstream guy anymore you can still go out and play your shows.

All I've ever wanted to do was play music and go on the road and make records.

At 17, I signed a recording contract right out of high school, so I started touring and traveling the world. I sort of missed out on the college experience.

I've toured the U.S. every single year and I've put a record out every single year whether it was on a major label or not; that doesn't make any difference to me.

If you become famous and don't have a live show to back it up, they're not going to pay you any money.

Music doesn't have to be fancy. I work hard and enjoy the fact that people want to come to my shows. That's simple, but I'm pretty blue-collar about it.

You know, I didn't have enough money to quit my day job... the myth of the major label deal. Nowadays, you have a tour bus and a stylist and all this stuff. But back then, no way.

There's room in the world for one historical folk-rock singer to make a decent living, and I happen to be it.

Growing up, I fantasized about being a rock musician and that somehow it would be really easy. I didn't realize that it's so much work.

I have very much enjoyed being in the music business in different roles through five different decades.

All of them had so much to offer us as far as, you know, knowledge in the music industry, and especially Randy and Paula because, you know, they've been artists.

For three years, between 16 and 19, I was the opening-act-for-the-opening-act-for-the-opening-act, you know? And then I was on tour with Ice-T, Stetsasonic, EPMD, Sir Mix-a-Lot - legends - and went on to sell 160 million records. It still baffles me.

You can always boil down the life of a musician to touring, playing, and writing.

If you can play live and support yourself, it's one of the few ways you're going to actually get paid in this business these days.

There's no way to be able to tell what it's like to be a country singer until you're walking in the shoes.

I was very blessed with 'N Sync. It was a big success and it was a lot of fun.

That whole lifestyle - make a record, do a tour: I know how to do that. It doesn't interest me.

I need to show the world that my final goal is to perform huge concerts like Madonna.

Do as many gigs as the good Lord sends. That's the only true training.

I didn't realize what an impact having a No. 1 single would have. It connects me with people of different ages, and I get to travel all over the world.

An artist don't make you bigger than life - being that person that can break artists can make you bigger than life.

I knew what I wanted to be, but I didn't know exactly how to get there. I thought you move to Nashville, you sing downtown, and someone discovers you, and you become a country music star. I had no idea.

I enjoy touring. I enjoy recording the music, I enjoy dreaming it and I enjoy performing it. I also definitely enjoy selling it, because I like to eat.