"He was a whirlwind of energy and precision, and he was always very generous and supportive to me in the early days of the Stones. His passing is a huge loss to music."

"James Brown changed music. He made soul music a world music. What James Brown was to music in terms of soul and hip-hop, rap, all of that, is what Bach was to classical music. This is a guy who literally changed the music industry. He put everybody on a different beat, a different style of music. He pioneered it."

"He was dramatic to the end - dying on Christmas Day. Almost a dramatic, poetic moment. He'll be all over the news all over the world today. He would have it no other way."

"He was an innovator, he was an emancipator, he was an originator. Rap music, all that stuff came from James Brown."

"When I saw him move, I was mesmerised. I had never seen a performer perform like James Brown, and right then and there I knew that that was exactly what I wanted to do for the rest of my life because of James Brown."