Ian Brown Talks Roses Reunion (Again)

Indie icon Ian Brown has claimed that he would be tempted to reform The Stone Roses, but only if he had been forced to beg on the streets first.

The Stone Roses split in 1996, ending one of the most glittering careers in British indie music. Sure, they only released two official albums in that time but through their influence changed the course of guitar music.

Ian Brown's solo career has not caused quite as many ripples, but he has enjoyed significant success. Still an icon, the singer is preparing to release his new album 'My Way' later this year.

Produced by John Leckie, the pair had an emotional re-union after bumping into one another in the corridor of a studio. The forthcoming album is the first project the two have worked on since The Stone Roses debut - now twenty years old.

However despite the success of his solo career the spectre of his former band still haunts Ian Brown. A few tracks on his forthcoming album namecheck 'the roses' giving rise to rumours that he would be willing to reform the legendary quartet.

However in a new interview the singer reveals that he is disheartened by bands who reform simply to cash in on former glories.

"Maybe if you see me begging on the streets you might find me doing The Stone Roses the next day," he told the NME. "We did it (made music) because we wanted to change the world, we didn't do it because we wanted to be millionaires."

However Ian Brown did admit that there were a couple of exceptions to this rule. "I was glad when the Sex Pistols got back because they never really got paid," he explained. The icon also included 2-Tone heroes The Specials in that list.

Ian Brown is set to play Reading and Leeds this weekend (August 28th - 30th).