Dickey Betts

My daddy had been a fiddler, and I heard a lot of fiddle music as a child. I had a ukulele and had played along with him.

I'm influenced by Django Reinhardt, Stephane Grappelly, Roland Kirk, John Coltrane, B.B. King, and then by bluegrass. But when I was 16, bluegrass wasn't cool. We was rock n' rollers then: Chuck Berry, Jerry Lee Lewis.

I've learned to climb a tree pretty fast.

Our main thing we'd have to entertain us: All my uncles would come over, and we'd sit around the living room on a weekend night, and we'd play. That was a big event for me, getting to play. We never did have any percussion.

I had a ukulele when I was about seven. Then I started playing around with the mandolin and the banjo.

'Seven Turns' was a tough album because we knew that the critics would use it to determine whether or not we should have remained broken up.

Anytime I'm playing music or getting ready to record, Duane Allman will enter my thoughts, and so will Berry Oakley. It's part of my musical makeup and mental process when it comes to music. We learned to play together and taught each other a lot.

It's hard for people to understand that when five or six guys are together working intensely, they can really get into some duels.

I wouldn't call myself a jazz player or a blues player.

I've written some songs that are pretty scary, but 'Jessica,' 'Ramblin' Man,' and 'Blue Sky' are happy songs. That's the way I wrote them: have-fun tunes to make you feel good.

Some people take me as being a rowdy, honky-tonk hero type. Some people see me as a quiet person. I guess I can be either one, you know, at any moment.