My father was a man of love. He always loved me to death. He worked hard in the fields, but my father never hit me. Never. I don`t ever remember a really cross, unkind word from my father.

[in 2002, on his beloved brother Jack, who died in 1943 when Johnny was 11.]: There`s never been two months gone by that I haven`t dreamed about him. He`s tried to help turn me to the way of life.

[in acknowledgment of his similarity to today`s gangsta rappers]: I wouldn`t let anybody influence me into thinking I was doing the wrong thing by singing about death, hell and drugs. Beause I`ve always done that, and I always will.

That was the big thing when I was growing up, singing on the radio. The extent of my dream was to sing on the radio station in Memphis. Even when I got out of the Air Force in 1954, I came right back to Memphis and started knocking on doors at the radio station.

I start a lot more songs than I finish, because I realize when I get into them, they`re no good. I don`t throw them away, I just put them away, store them, get them out of sight.

When I record somebody else`s song, I have to make it my own or it doesn`t feel right. I`ll say to myself, I wrote this and he doesn`t know it!

You`ve got a song you`re singing from your gut, you want that audience to feel it in their gut. And you`ve got to make them think that you`re one of them sitting out there with them too. They`ve got to be able to relate to what you`re doing.

I did not vote for Mr. Bush, (George W. Bush) let`s leave it at that.

For you I know I`d even try to turn the tide.

Sometimes I am two people. Johnny is the nice one. Cash causes all the trouble. They fight.

It`s like a novelist writing far out things. If it makes a point and makes sense, then people like to read that. But if it`s off in left field and goes over the edge, you lose it. The same with musical talent, I think.

Success is having to worry about every damn thing in the world, except money.

After about three lessons the voice teacher said, "Don`t take voice lessons. Do it your way".

You`ve got to know your limitations. I don`t know what your limitations are. I found out what mine were when I was twelve. I found out that there weren`t too many limitations, if I did it my way.

You build on failure. You use it as a stepping stone. Close the door on the past. You don`t try to forget the mistakes, but you don`t dwell on it. You don`t let it have any of your energy, or any of your time, or any of your space.

[in 2002, on his beloved brother Jack, who died in 1943 when Johnny was 11] There`s never been two months gone by that I haven`t dreamed about him. He`s tried to help turn me to the way of life.

I learn from my mistakes. It`s a very painful way to learn, but without pain, the old saying is, there`s no gain.

[in acknowledgment of his similarity to today`s "gangsta" rappers] I wouldn`t let anybody influence me into thinking I was doing the wrong thing by singing about death, hell and drugs. Beause I`ve always done that, and I always will.

I did not vote for Mr. Bush [President George W. Bush]. Let`s leave it at that.

I am not a Christian artist, I am an artist who is a Christian.

How well I have learned that there is no fence to sit on between heaven and hell. There is a deep, wide gulf, a chasm, and in that chasm is no place for any man.