"Your mother wouldn’t approve of how my mother raised me, but I do, I think I do. And you’re an all-American boy, I guess I couldn’t help trying to be your best American girl.” I love that she opened up a conversation in this song about trying to navigate the coveted life of the “American Dream” while coming from a different culture and how difficult it can be for those ideals to intersect."

"[Electric Avenue] was the first tape I ever bought, and I made my parents listen to it all the time," Levine said. "I probably drove them a little crazy with that, so I am sorry to my parents for that. My family is a very musical family, they appreciate music, but I was obsessed with this tune. I loved that song so much, still to this day. It's irresistible. It's just one of those songs."

"The first thing they say — ‘Oh! He’s read James Joyce,’ you know. So I hadn’t. And so the first thing I do is buy Finnigan’s Wake and read a chapter. And it’s great, you know, and I dug it, and I felt as though he’s an old friend. But I couldn’t make it right through the book, and so I read a chapter of Finnigan’s Wake and that was the end of it."

"I’d say Ed Wood; the Ed Wood movie I really love a lot. I love the idea of — I think it’s a great movie — but I identify with this kook who makes movies because he has to, and works with his friends. I don’t think Ed Wood is the worst director: His movies are personal, and you can’t take your eyes off them. [Laughs.] You know what I mean? There are way worse film directors."