Poetry: the best words in the best order.

Poetry is ordinary language raised to the Nth power. Poetry is boned with ideas nerved and blooded with emotions all held together by the delicate tough skin of words.

One merit of poetry few persons will deny: it says more and in fewer words than prose.

Poetry is when an emotion has found its thought and the thought has found words.

True there has been more talk of peace since 1945 than I should think at any other time in history. At least we hear more and read more about it because man's words for good or ill can now so easily reach the millions.

Put a bridle on thy tongue set a guard before thy lips lest the words of thine own mouth destroy thy peace... on much speaking cometh repentance but in silence is safety.

As this long and difficult war ends I would like to address a few special words to the American people: Your steadfastness in supporting our insistence on peace with honor has made peace with honor possible.

Better than a thousand hollow words is one word that brings peace.

You can tell the nature of the man by the words he chooses.

Nature is a temple in which living columns sometimes emit confused words. Man approaches it through forests of symbols which observe him with familiar glances.

If you are of the opinion that the contemplation of suicide is sufficient evidence of a poetic nature do not forget that actions speak louder than words.

Words like nature half reveal and half conceal the soul within.

I want to promote poetry to the point where you got all the baldhead kids running around doing poetry getting the music out of the way and having only words the spoken word and then see what happens.

People often complain that music is too ambiguous that what they should think when they hear it is so unclear whereas everyone understands words. With me it is exactly the opposite and not only with regard to an entire speech but also with individual words.

These seem to me so ambiguous so vague so easily misunderstood in comparison to genuine music which fills the soul with a thousand things better than words.

It is jazz music that called me to be a musician and I have always sang the songs that moved me the most. Singers like Frank Sinatra and myself we interpret the songs that we like. Not unlike a Shakespearean actor that goes back to the greatest words ever written we go back to the greatest songs.

I met Prince William at a musical festival and he let me know he was a fan of my music. But the invitation to sing at his wedding reception came completely out of the blue. The fact that Kate and William knew the words to my songs was very touching.

Music in itself carries a whole set of messages which are very very rich and complex and the words either serve to exclude certain ones or point up certain others.

Well-written words are music.

To me the greatest pleasure of writing is not what it's about but the inner music that words make.

If you talk bad about country music it's like saying bad things about my momma. Them's fightin' words.

Some people create with words or with music or with a brush and paints. I like to make something beautiful when I run. I like to make people stop and say 'I've never seen anyone run like that before.' It's more than just a race it's a style. It's doing something better than anyone else. It's being creative.

When words leave off music begins.

Where words fail music speaks.