Richard Ashcroft wished he’d collaborated with Noel Gallagher "years ago".
The former Oasis rocker admitted last year he was keen to record an album with the ex-Verve singer, and now the ‘Sonnet’ hitmaker has admitted it could still happen.
Asked if he’d work with Noel, he said: "It’s a great compliment for Noel to say something like that, and in the future who knows what might happen. I wish things like this would’ve happened years ago."
The 44-year-old star – who will release his first solo LP in 10 years, ‘These People’ on May 20 – said that although they were Britpop rivals in the 90s, on reflection he was proud of Noel and Oasis.
Speaking in the latest issue of NME magazine, he said: "Even the guys we had a bit of friction with, I look back and wish them luck. "
Meanwhile, Richard – who inspired Oasis’ song ‘Cast No Shadow’ – gave his thoughts on the current state of rock music and thinks it has "sold itself up the river" and gone too mainstream because of shows like ‘The X Factor’.
He said: "It’s sold itself up the river, stabbed people in the back instead of trying to create a good, solid British music alternative. Turn left for Cowell, turn right for this. The mainstream consumed our culture.
"You can get as many songwriters in a room as you want for your new talent show contest winner, it’s never gonna sound like a great Noel Gallagher song sung by Liam, it’s never gonna reach ‘Live Forever’, it’s never gonna be [Verve song] ‘Lucky Man’. We know that."
Richard Ashcroft would work with Noel Gallagher
