Best quotes by Judy Collins

MusicI sang in the coffee houses . . . in the early 60's with no idea of success in terms of records or television. I just thought I was a storyteller. I had this deep, bassy voice. But I had incredible passion for the music I was singing.

Writing anything is terribly hard but, alas for me, because I am addicted, a heck of a lot of fun. I often am sorry I ever started writing prose, because it is so hard. But I can't stop.

I had some wonderful dreaming meetings. I can't tell you specifically what they've been in the recent months. In the past they've been verbal kinds of messages that he needed to give me. Now they're more dreams of his presence.

Rachael Sage is a marvelous young artist- and I am a fan!! 'Haunted by You' has a beauty that shines through her lyrics and melodies-- poignant, tender and tough. These are stories from the heart that will lift you up and carry you to places you had never dreamed.

I may like the Blizzard best, of all the songs I have written

Music can speak louder than words, and I will use my music to speak out on behalf of children everywhere.

I have tried, in all the ways I can, to make timeless music.

I have friends who've tried suicide many times and haven't succeeded. I myself made an attempt, so I had a connection with that sort of group of people who have tried suicide at one time in their lives.

I am thrilled to have been able to put together this new album. I listened to everything I had recorded in the 24 years with Elektra, and then just took all the ones I am mad about.

I think that new communications are wonderful and I am delighted to be a part of the Internet generation

Recovering from the suicide of a loved one, you need all the help you can get, so I very much recommend a meditation program. The whole picture of how to recover from this has to do with body, mind, and spirit. That's applicable to any kind of depression.

I always sang when I was little and my father, who was a great influence on me, also had a wonderful voice. He and my mother really encouraged me to sing and play the piano. They were always very supportive.

I don't think you get to good writing unless you expose yourself and your feelings.

We have to fight off the demons that have been hanging around suicide for centuries.

My book 'Trust Your Heart', which is the story of my life, will be followed by 'Singing Lessons', a memoir of love, loss, hope, and healing, which talks about the death of my son and the hope that has been the aftermath of the healing from that tragedy.

I write journals and would recommend journal writing to anyone who wishes to pursue a writing career. You learn a lot. You also remember a lot... and memory is important

I had sold my soul for pleasure.

The powerful men in my life have always believed in me: my husband, my son

Most of what we take as being important is not material, whether it's music or feelings or love. They're things we can't really see or touch. They're not material, but they're vitally important to us.

The rise of the Internet has caused the demise of the record labels, and has destroyed the music business of old, but it's also created new opportunities for young artists.

I have inspiration and feelings of being alive most every day I live

Humanity is filled with beautiful and positive and powerful people who care. I'm so glad we have people like Bill Gates and Warren Buffett in the world.

I am just glad that I can take the music to the people who want to hear it. I love my audiences. I am deeply indebted to them for giving me the chance to sing my concerts, make records, and do what I love. Whatever people call it, it is great to have a voice!

For many centuries, suicides were treated like criminals by the society. That is part of the terrible legacy that has come down into society's method of handling suicide recovery. Now we have to fight off the demons that have been hanging around suicide for centuries.

I am glad so many women singers are being heard in music today. It is healthy for music . . . healthy because it means a lot of men are listening!

The poetry and the songs that you are suppose to write, I believe are in your heart. You just have to open up your heart and not be afraid to get them out.

Recovering from the suicide of a loved one, you need all the help you can get.

I feel so very grateful to have the voice God gave me. It takes a lot of rest and training to sing, and I was lucky that I found a great teacher when I first moved to New York.

Capitalism can be helpful, but it can also be destructive when it's used by huge enterprises worldwide for the sale of weapons.

When you have a belief, then you make your views known.

If I had not been already been meditating, I would certainly have had to start. I've treated my own depression for many years with exercise and meditation, and I've found that to be a tremendous help.

I don't know where my songs come from... If I knew, I'd know too much, more than we are allowed on this plane.

I've gone through many, many things. I tell you something, that if it doesn't kill you, you get stronger.

When we sing, our hearts can lift and fly, over the troubled waters and over the years.

Music is always occurring. It is just a matter of marketing, attention, and many other factors, that determines whether people will hear these songs or not.

When inspiration does not come, I go for a walk, go to the movie, talk to a friend, let go... The muse is bound to return again, especially if I turn my back!

Suffering is the price of being alive, and it is music and singing and art that has helped me live through some of the most difficult things that have happened to me.

I don't dream songs. I'm more apt to write dreams down and then to be able to interpret them into a song. I also tend to get up and write prose in the morning from which will come songs.

The opening line from a journal can be the beginning of a song.

... even the devil works for God.

It is true that I have had heartache and tragedy in my life. These are things none of us avoids. Suffering is the price of being alive.

I was raised to speak out about politics and the world around me. I would do it whether I was in the public or not. It is the way I was taught. The American way

I think suicide is sort of like cancer was 50 years ago. People don't want to talk about it, they don't want to know about it. People are frightened of it, and they don't understand, when actually these issues are medically treatable.

Writing is a voice that calls us from dreams, that peeks out of the corner of our eyes when we think no one is looking, the longing that breaks our hearts even when we think we should be happiest, and to which we cannot give a name.

Survival, I know, is to begin again.

Do what you love, and you will find the way to get it out to the world.

Irish Alzheimer's: you forget everything except the grudges

I think people who are creative are the luckiest people on earth. I know that there are no shortcuts, but you must keep your faith in something Greater than You, and keep doing what you love. Do what you love, and you will find the way to get it out to the world.

I look in the mirror through the eyes of the child that was me.

Experience is how life catches up with us and teaches us to love and forgive each other.

I don't think you get to good writing unless you expose yourself and your feelings. Deep songs don't come from the surface; they come from the deep down. The poetry and the songs that you are suppose to write, I believe are in your heart.