I spent some time with Bob Marley and I have to say that was like walking with a god on earth.
— Leo Sayer
In the '70s, Leo-mania was the equivalent of Beatle-mania down there and they still love me. In Australia they still want heroes.
I'm a very changeable character. I don't think I've got one style of music that is overriding to me.
My first two albums, 'Silverbird and 'Just a Boy,' which had the single 'Long Tall Glasses' on it, were very well received. Then I did another one, 'Another Year,' which did miserably.
All I've ever wanted to do is master my craft. I'm a singer, and I want to be a great singer.
I hate art as a be-all and an end-all.
In my earlier albums like 'Another Year' and 'Just A Boy,' I always saw myself as a bit of a loser - the kind of guy who takes a drink and walks into a wall instead of through the door.
I keep reminding myself I'm the same guy who was lucky enough to get my break because Roger Daltrey commissioned me to write the songs for one of his earlier albums.
I've always loved what I do and I've always done what I wanted to do... in this business you have got to be yourself.
Blissfully, I don't have the revenge gene.
I come from a time when music used to make a difference.
I never had kids, but I married once.
I really admire Ed Sheeran. He seems to have really beaten his way through and I think that's fantastic. He's his own man - good for him. But there aren't many of him out there.
I would love to be an Aussie citizen.
So many people moan about touring and say it's a chore. I don't know, they must be living on a different planet.
I don't believe in muckin' about and hiding ambition.
It happens in this business - The Rolling Stones were ripped off, so were the Beatles. George Harrison hardly had anything left in the end.
I was never really keen to drive. I was always chauffeured around.
Because I don't go to showbiz parties, I don't have the right image. The media decides who's in and who's out.
I am the kind of person who does want very badly to be liked. I'm a right-miserable little show off.
It's been hard to gain acceptance in England without the clown makeup because I wore the costume as part of my act for so long.
I believe in not sitting down and taking it easy.
I very much enjoy writing about positive, direct emotions.
Before I got married, I had a girlfriend who ran off in the middle of our relationship with a millionaire. She called from the South of France and said, 'I found one, I'm sorry. That's it. Goodbye!'
Many performers try to sustain a high point in their careers by keeping themselves around those who are overanxious to tell them how good they are.
I don't think I ever really sold out, and that made a difference.
Where are the John Lennons, the Bob Marleys, the Bob Dylans? Where have they gone?
I'm not into 'The Voice.' It's an affair between a television network and a record company.
I am a troubadour, a wandering minstrel.
I am a big fan of Korean food.
I have always believed that there is no age factor to this music business. You are only as old as you feel and basically you can be a contender at any time.
When you've sung the same song a million or a hundred thousand times, there are always moments when you drift off and go into automatic.
I was a big-headed little guy.
I've found an extraordinary thing happens where I flash an entire finished song. I could be walking along, say over that bridge, and I see and hear the whole thing, words and music.
I'm sure there are plenty of people out there who don't like Robbie Williams but he is presented to the public in such a way that they have no choice.
I would love the record industry to be more receptive to my music but all they are interested in is style over content.
One of the reasons I had moved to London to pursue my career was that I could go to the clubs in the evening and maybe meet my heroes, people like Donovan and Bert Jansch and Dylan. I actually did see Dylan in a club one night.
I think the worst thing in the world is for artists to produce themselves.
I felt quite an affinity with 'Rocky' in my career. It's been like 'fight the business' all the way up.
Kids in England will stop you on the streets and tell you bluntly they don't care for your current record. But it keeps you down to earth.
That's the nature of the business. You can have a hit and then nothing happens all of a sudden. But I don't resent it. Hits don't make great artists.
I write from the voice in my head.
The past is the past: what can you do about it?
Everybody writes about love and cheating and heartbreak. We've done all that.
I'm writing a novel about a scallywag who is a bit like me.
Australians never give up. That's why I love this place. I never give up.
Korean audiences are amazing, they really love the music.
I think I topped 'When I Need You' with 'More Than I Can Say.'
A bit of arrogance is nice every now and then.
I stand a lot better chance to go further than Elton.
