Michael McDonald

I do love the Nat King Cole stuff, the classic Christmas records. There's something about putting those records on and hearing his voice at Christmastime that brings back a lot of great memories of growing up.

I was attracted to black music for the same reason that I loved those old Irish ballads. Both were social statements of sorts, and both were indigenous to their respective cultures: Ireland, where my father had grown up, and towns like St. Louis along the Mississippi River, where I was growing up.

I played so many clubs growing up, and back in that period, in the '60s, we'd play, like, four, five sets a night.

Throughout my career, there has always been an element of surprise. Sometimes there are moments of disappointment; sometimes there are moments of surprising success.

I use Facebook, but I find that I'm... if I put up a picture of my dog there or a sunset or something, I get a million hits. If I mention anything to do with my career, three people respond. And/or if I say anything political, I have to duck afterwards. I try to be selective.

I grew up with this idea that songwriters had a great job. My family was Irish Catholic, so if you became a priest or a songwriter, you were golden.

Laziness can be virtuous in the right setting, I guess.

Each generation tries to disassociate itself with the last generation. And then, about three decades later, people kind of start to maybe appreciate what you might have done a while back that you don't even realize you did.

Looking back, I sometimes wish I had done things differently. But if I had, I'm not sure that I wouldn't have proven to be my own worst enemy.

Working with Thundercat was really a thrill.

When I was younger, I was pretty cavalier about my voice - I don't know that I even thought about it that much, to be honest with you.

My wife is, by and large, the best thing that ever happened to me.