Ray Davies put a little more weight behind the Kinks reunion rumours today, telling BBC News the band have begun writing new material together with the hope of recording a new "collaborative album. "We've started a little bit of this and that," the groups front-man said. "But it is too early to judge the quality. It depends if there's good music. We want good, new music. I'd like to do it as a more collaborative thing than we used to do."
The Kinks disbanded in 1996 after some 30 years as one of the most influential rock outfits in history, with the group writing such classics as "Lola, "Waterloo Sunset and "You Really Got Me, among countless others. Following the bands break-up, Davies brother and fellow Kinks member Dave Davies suffered a stroke in 2004, but has since regained his health, making a reunion seem more likely.
However, the BBC article was unclear as to whether Dave Davies had officially rejoined the Kinks or not. Earlier this year, he was dead set against rejoining the band, writing on his website that a Kinks reunion "would be like a poor remake of Night of the Living Dead" and saying "to sit in a room or studio with [Ray Davies] and have my brain and heart slowly sucked out... no friggin thank you.
Ray Davies went on to tell the BBC that he had several other non-Kinks projects on the go, including an album with a choir and a duets album with artists such as Snow Patrol, Razorlight and an 82-year-old Chuck Berry.
"I don't just want to do usual suspects," Ray Davies said. "I'd love to do something with [Razorlight front-man] Johnny [Borrell], but I'd like to find new bands. Unsigned even. I usually like the underdogs."
Of possibly working with Berry, he said: "I've never met the man but he was one of my heroes as a lyricist. We'll see how it works out a mixture of Snow Patrol and Chuck Berry. It should be an interesting record.
The Kinks "Tired of Waiting
The Kinks disbanded in 1996 after some 30 years as one of the most influential rock outfits in history, with the group writing such classics as "Lola, "Waterloo Sunset and "You Really Got Me, among countless others. Following the bands break-up, Davies brother and fellow Kinks member Dave Davies suffered a stroke in 2004, but has since regained his health, making a reunion seem more likely.
However, the BBC article was unclear as to whether Dave Davies had officially rejoined the Kinks or not. Earlier this year, he was dead set against rejoining the band, writing on his website that a Kinks reunion "would be like a poor remake of Night of the Living Dead" and saying "to sit in a room or studio with [Ray Davies] and have my brain and heart slowly sucked out... no friggin thank you.
Ray Davies went on to tell the BBC that he had several other non-Kinks projects on the go, including an album with a choir and a duets album with artists such as Snow Patrol, Razorlight and an 82-year-old Chuck Berry.
"I don't just want to do usual suspects," Ray Davies said. "I'd love to do something with [Razorlight front-man] Johnny [Borrell], but I'd like to find new bands. Unsigned even. I usually like the underdogs."
Of possibly working with Berry, he said: "I've never met the man but he was one of my heroes as a lyricist. We'll see how it works out a mixture of Snow Patrol and Chuck Berry. It should be an interesting record.
The Kinks "Tired of Waiting
