Quotes by Clive Davis

About Clive Davis:

Clive Jay Davis is an American record producer and music industry executive. He has won five Grammy Awards and is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a non-performer.
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

In this age when people expect to get their music for free, we have to work out how we can protect the rights of creative artists so they are compensated fairly and that the record business itself remains sound and healthy.

Clive Davis

The story of Rod Stewart, the story of Carlos Santana is so inspiring to young musicians because it shows in this trendy business how long a career can last. It shows how you can soar back, regardless of age.

Clive Davis

My introduction of Whitney was that if there's going to be one performer for the next generation who combined the beauty and lyric phrasing of a Lena Horne with those Gospel fiery roots of an Aretha Franklin, it would be Whitney Houston.

Clive Davis

Having lost both my parents as a teenager, family is so important to me, and I cherish my time with my children and grandchildren. I have four children, and they all became lawyers - as I was myself before I got into music.

Clive Davis

I would say, from an all-around point of view, Bruce Springsteen is one of the two great poet lords of America, Bob Dylan, coming out of the music world, the two of them.

Clive Davis

I am passionate about music and my work to the bottom of my very soul, but I also very much enjoy good clothes and some of the finer things in life. Rappers do, too, and perhaps it's one of the reasons I've been welcomed so warmly into their world.

Clive Davis

I feel blessed that I found not just a profession, but a 24/7 way of life that I purely love. That curiosity to be current, to listen to the Hozier album, to be early in recognition of a Lorde and spending time with her and Miguel, the pleasure of se...

Clive Davis

It's not for me to determine what a country artist has in common with a hip-hop artist. You go for those with long-lasting careers. And that's what I've had as my target all my life.

Clive Davis

I encourage the study of music. And the immersion. 'Cause my life has been so enriched by being involved in music as I have.

Clive Davis

You've got to seize the opportunity if it is presented to you.

Clive Davis

I know that Kelly Clarkson is going to continue to have an important career. And I believe it will be a lasting one.

Clive Davis

The adage that you're either gay or straight or you're lying, well, that's not true. Bisexuality does exist.

Clive Davis

The subject of bisexuality really needs much more discussion. It's a status that does exist.

Clive Davis

I did not develop my ear. I discovered I had an ear, and it was an accident.

Clive Davis

I'm not into one-hit wonders.

Clive Davis

My years with Aretha Franklin have been very special, as were the years making records with Dionne Warwick. Other highlights include working with Janis Joplin, who was the first artist I ever signed, as well as Patti Smith and Alicia Keys.

Clive Davis

You see the genius that Whitney Houston has as an interpreter of material, and you realize why genius can be applied to only a few interpretive performers. She finds meaning and depth and soulfulness in a song that often the writer and composer never...

Clive Davis

The purity of finding the right artist, that artist that's gonna be the next hall of famer, that artist that's gonna be the next headliner, lifting people out of their seats at Madison Square Garden, that song that's gonna be sung for hundreds and hu...

Clive Davis

I never paid attention when the LP became the cassette and the cassette became the CD and now we're dealing, you know, with MP3s. It's okay.

Clive Davis

To this day, there's nobody, nobody that sounds like Janice Joplin.

Clive Davis

Author Bio

  • NameClive Davis
  • Descriptionrecord producer and music industry executive
  • BornApril 4, 1932
  • CountryUnited States Of America
  • ProfessionRecord Producer; Music Executive
  • AwardsGrammy Trustees Award