Quotes By Henry Rollins

Loneliness adds beauty to life. It puts a special burn on sunsets and makes night air smell better.

I don't want to pass through life like a smooth plane ride.

Being an artist is dragging your innermost feelings out, giving a piece of yourself, no matter in which art form, in which medium.

Everyone who knows me knows that I'm a hopeless romantic who listens to love ballads and doo-wop songs all the time.

There's no rule that you have to like Henry Rollins the musician or the actor.

When people hold you in high esteem, it's very delicate relationship. When they meet you they're putting all their chips up. It's make or break.

Yes, I guess you could say I am a loner, but I feel more lonely in a crowed room with boring people than I feel on my own.

After I left D.C. to join Black Flag, I felt I was in a band.

Sometimes the truth hurts. And sometimes it feels real good.

I can only write about personal stuff, about my point of view.

I can deal with people who watch me on stage but I am not good in communicating with people any other way than through my work.

If I had to perform in a comedy club I would bomb; I would be trying too hard.

The scarcity of the music not only makes the music itself enjoyable but it also gives the collector a strange sense of superiority.

Scar tissue is stronger than regular tissue. Realize the strength, move on.

So I'm more at home with my backpack, sleeping in a hotel room or on a bus or on an airplane, than I am necessarily on a bed. It's weird being here. It feels like I'm standing next to my real life.

Every summer, around late July and into August, I find myself in Europe, performing at any festival that will have me.

My optimism wears heavy boots and is loud.

I have never experienced anything like walking out onto the stage of an oversold venue and, before the first note is struck, realizing that there is not going to be enough oxygen for all of us.

Keep your blood clean, your body lean, and your mind sharp.

This is my 25th year of being on stage. A lot of people who I kind of toed up to the starting line with are no longer in this position. I feel very, very lucky.

I don't mean to be arrogant and I really appreciate my fans but talking about what I am doing is not something I'm good at. I do what I do and that's it. I want to get back to my work and do more of it instead of talking about it.

Maybe I'm ego-tripping, but I don't find myself a particularly horrible person, so I don't think I need to hold back anything I think or feel.

I just travel the world with my backpack and my cameras and a bunch of Clif bars.

I'm mellower now, I'm over 50. But I don't think I'm too mellow. I'm still angry at a lot of things.

I mean I appreciate fan mail and that the people like what I am doing but I can't answer it. If I would answer 25 letters a day I would be just a guy answering mail and not an artist anymore.

You need a little bit of insanity to do great things.

And I love the hate mail I get, the unsigned, misspelled letters I get telling me to go back to Russia or wherever.

The blues is losing someone you love and not having enough money to immerse yourself in drink.

I'd like to talk to Arnold Schwarzenegger, 'cause I live in California and I just want to see that canned, chemical filled body in my office.

I have always thought that change you can see and feel is best.