Phil Manzanera: ‘Roxy Music reunion could still happen’

Roxy Music star Phil Manzanera has urged fans not to give up hope of a reunion just months after he declared the band was over for good. The group originally split in 1983 after 12 years together but reformed in 2001, without Brian Eno, and has toured occasionally ever since, but in November (14), guitarist Manzanera shocked fans by announcing there would be no more comebacks, insisting “our job is done”.
However, Manzanera has now spoken out to clarify his comments and assure fans another reunion is not out of the question.
He tells Britain’s The Independent newspaper, “I have said over the last year I thought our job was done with Roxy Music. There are no plans to do anything at all (but) the great thing about being in a band like Roxy was no one told us what to do. If I called up (bandmate) Bryan (Ferry) tomorrow and said, ‘I’ve got this great tune, how about we play a thing, whatever’s gone down?’ and if he said ‘Oh, I love that’… When people say it’s all over well no, it’s only over when you’re 13 foot down when you’re dead and buried and then you definitely can’t come back… there are no rules.”
Manzanera is also convinced the group will not be recording any more albums because the last project they worked on failed.
He adds, “We tried to do an album about eight years ago… Thank God we didn’t release it. It’s sub-standard… We have a great back catalogue… So what’s the point of putting something (out) for the sake of it? Records don’t sell now anyway – there’d be no money in it, so we’d be doing it for the love and for the music. It could happen but I’m not holding my breath.”