I love meeting the fans, and I love shaking hands, and that's what it's all about. It really is.

When I was touring with Ozzy, you know, when I was with Manson, we toured with Ozzy, so many times, we did Ozzfest a thousand times, and, you know, it seems like I'm always playing with Ozzy in one way or another opening up.

I love to learn, and I started doing a lot of studying of Spanish-style music and really started getting into it and how it is just a completely different form of guitar playing. It is just like if you started speaking in a different language like Japanese or something. It is something that you have to study and work at a lot.

When I was younger, I had a horrible flight. Horrible. It was well before I was 10 years old. So I always thought to myself, 'I know I don't want to travel.' That's why I wanted to be a session guy, because I knew I could still play guitar and make a living at it - hopefully.

I truly enjoyed my time with Manson and have the greatest respect for the incredible fans. I am grateful to have contributed over two dozen songs to his projects. It was a great creative outlet for me at that point in my career.

I love doing instrumental records; I love doing that.

I never wished to be a 'rock star.' I just wanted to be a working musician. My dreams didn't even go past a session player or a working musician. It was too far beyond my dreams.

I love Jimmy Bryant, and I love Albert Lee. Roy Clark. Chet Atkins. I love those pickers.

Nothing's changed from when I'm seven years old to now. Nothing's changed at all. I like the same stuff that I did - Kiss, Van Halen, 'Happy Days,' 'Laverne & Shirley,' 'The Brady Bunch,' monsters and all that stuff.

If you go out to dinner with a group of people, pay for the dinner at a nice restaurant, for the amount of money for that dinner, you can get a John 5 Squier Telecaster and have it for the rest of your life.

I, like, prayed inside of my head as a little kid. I didn't grow up in a religious home, but we went to Midnight Mass. That was the only time I'd go to church, but when I did, I prayed that I wanted to be a successful musician. I got my wish.

If my mom said, 'You better not do this!' I'm not one of those people who go, 'Well, I'm definitely going to do that.' I always thought, 'Okay, mom. I probably don't want to do that. She's probably looking out for me.' If it's someone who says, 'You'll never make it,' I'll just do what's in my heart. It's what I've always done.

I remember where I was when I heard Yngwie Malmsteen for the first time. It was such an epiphany for me, and it really shaped the way I play today. I think I heard him in '83, if I'm not mistaken - I was 13 years old - and it really was amazing for me.

I remember this vividly: It was 1977, and I was in Sears with my mom. And I saw this display, and it was for 'Love Gun.' I bought the record just because of the look of that display. Because I really loved monsters.

Whenever you listen to a CD or an album, it gets tiresome hearing the same thing over and over and over again.

I find the macabre fascinating; it's all over history.

When I saw Kiss, and it was monsters with guitars, I thought this was the greatest thing that ever happened.

I loved TV, and I watched anything with music - 'Hee Haw,' 'Happy Days,' anything like that. So I loved the Monkees.

Ever since I was a kid, I've been a Fender connoisseur. And to have my name associated with greatness like that, it's amazing. I couldn't be more proud of anything. My children, and then being associated with Fender. In that order!

I liked what any other kid did back in the day. You know, Bob Seger, Alice Cooper, and everything else that was on the radio in Michigan. There was a lot of Steely Dan; just a lot of great music inspired me.

I really truly love all styles of music. A lot of people say that, but the first station they turn to when they get in the car is a rock station. I don't always do that. I really enjoy everything. But, of course, I'm a rock shred guitar player first.

I would love to work with a Beatle: Paul McCartney or Ringo Starr.

You gotta go after your dreams and do it. Go and do it.

I was such a big Kiss and Van Halen fan, Yngwie Malmsteen, Racer X... all that stuff. I loved everybody.

Steve Vai had a unique style of playing. Steve Vai didn't sound like anyone else: Steve Vai sounded like Steve Vai.

Inspiration is a really hard thing to describe, but it's something that triggers your brain, like the first time I heard a certain guitar player that I loved or the first time that I saw a monster or the first time that I saw anything that really was an epiphany for me. It just stays with you your whole life.

I like people writing great songs on guitar or piano or what have you. I miss people getting on stage with real bands and real instruments and expressing themselves that way instead of with computers and technology.

All my life, I've really enjoyed music: making music, playing it, and recording it. It's such a relief and a joy to do what I do for a living.

I have tons of Telecasters but also about 50 Les Pauls, six or seven SGs, and a bunch of Gretsches.

I'm a vegan now, and I've never felt better in my life. In my life.

Whatever I say is so honest when I'm doing interviews.

Branching out to other genres - I think it's why people put me apart from other guitar instrumentalists.

Oh my God, Guns N' Roses - it's like, jeez, that's what made me move out to Los Angeles. 'Welcome to the Jungle,' you know - it's been a huge inspiration for me.

I'm still obsessed with Kiss. I'm still obsessed with Van Halen. I guess we don't change that much from being kids. Either we don't change that much, or we just have really good taste.

I'm a Telecaster connoisseur, and I love my Teles. I have one from almost every year since the very beginning, in 1950. I'm so obsessed with them.

I was a valet for celebrity parties.

I always look for inspiration. If I find something that's inspiring, I'm so excited because it is very hard to find something inspiring.

There's not many crazy guitar instrumentalists out there that put on a crazy monster show.

In my eyes, and in my opinion, the guitar is strong and powerful and will never die.

There's 24 hours in a day, and I'm working most of them.

I'm always working and recording. It's just what makes me happy.

Chet Atkins, I love his singer style and the country thing that he did. He really had a huge impact in my life, just his style - western swing and the country thing he did - it really changed my life.

I just love music and great guitar players.

I'm always up early. I have so much to do, it's unbelievable how much I have to do in a day. So I have to get at 7 o'clock every morning, and I go to bed at midnight. You know, and I'm just going that whole time.

Personally, I like records that are very varied in sound. Not just like, 'Oh, here's 12 super heavy tracks,' and they're all the same tempo.

I'd love to work with Prince. He's such an amazing musician.

Slayer just goes from generation to generation to generation, because it's just so great.

Inspiration is one of my favorite things. That's all I want to do - I want to inspire people.

I was such a sponge with music.

'Hee Haw' was a huge influence on me.