INTERVIEW: Joe Simpson

On having Ashlee's nose:
“Girls have their own ideas. Anyway, there was a real problem with her breathing and that was cured.”

On Jessica and Nick:
“I have nothing against Nick. But they got married very young. I told Jessica, ‘You’re going to hit an age when it’s all going to be clear to you — life that is — and you’ll know what you want to do."

On being a good Dad:
“We have a real family. You can’t just put these kids out in the world and they’re on their own. I can remember a time when Jessica was singing at Madison Square Garden and her outfit ripped before she went on. We were there for her.”

On Ashlee’s SNL mishap:
“She’d lost her voice, and Jordan Schur [then the head of her record label] insisted she lip-synch. She’d never done it before. She didn’t want to do it. Anyway, she’ll never do it again. We just did a huge tour, and there was no lip-synching.”

On denying his obsessive behavior:
“I don’t tell my girls who to date or marry or what to do.”