Dick Dale Quotes

My aunt played the piano and I used to sit and listen to it.

Jimi was a good guy 'til he got into drugs. That's the way it is. I just tell it like it is.

I've got holes in my guitar.

I'm constantly being influenced by the soul that's directly in front of me.

I'll just tell you the way it is. You ask me what time it is and I'm gonna tell you how to build a clock.

I wanted to put a sheet in explaining what all the songs are about, but they didn't do it.

I used to be a mean maniac. Someone once threw a firecracker at a show and I jumped off the side of the stage and whacked 'em on the side of the head.

I told them if were going to do it were going to do it right, I'm not leaving 'til it's done. My wife, child and I slept in the studio. We cut these raw.

I met Leo Fender, who is the guru of all amplifiers, and he gave me a Stratocaster. He became a second father to me.

I grew a love for helpless, defenseless things. People would give me lions and jaguars. I had cheetahs, monkeys.

I don't claim to be a musician, I didn't go to Julliard.

I can play every instrument there is, every horn, I've played all the saxes and trumpets and everything and keyboards.

I called it Rockabilly 'cause I was rocking the strums, which you're not supposed to do.

I became stereotyped.

I always wanted a guitar. I always wanted to be a cowboy singer because I also listened to Hank Williams, and he would always sing these neat romantic songs.

I always felt people should live with animals.

I almost had to have my leg amputated because of an infection.

Guitar Player Magazine says Dick Dale is the father of Heavy Metal, blowing up 48 amplifiers, creating the first power amplifier.

Every time I went into the studio some engineer tried to impress me with how they're going to capture my sound with all kinds of tricks. But they limited the sound and never allowed me to play how I felt.

Every song is like a painting.

Buddy Rich was one of the most incredible technicians in the world, on this planet, but the only people he could really impress, who knew what he was doing was another musician or another drummer.

I'm a perfectionist. I'm not going to cheat the people.

As a little kid I had a girlfriend, and her boyfriend used to beat me up, so then I used to sing these songs, and that's what it's all about. Country music is all about your heart and your people and things like that.

I don't play pyrotechnic scales. I play about frustration, patience, anger. Music is an extension of my soul.

There's a saying. If you want someone to love you forever, buy a dog, feed it and keep it around.