Rock music aristocrat Bryan Ferry has had a weakness for Bob Dylan in the past, and has occasionally recorded cover versions, or as he calls them, interpretations of his songs. This spring he decided to go the whole hog and released a collection of songs with the eloquent title Dylanesque. The album features nothing but songs by the American genius covered by Ferry. People waiting for a new album by the reformed Roxy Music will have to wait a bit longer, but they will be happy to hear that Ferry will be perfoming in Petersburg in November. In an interview with Pulse he talked about meeting Dylan, his love for traditions and his own eternal youth.

They told me that you spent all day in the studio today. What did you record, if you don’t mind me asking?

I was preparing for lectures which will be held in October at the London Victoria and Albert Museum. One of my friends, art critic Michael Bracewell, has written a book about the roots of Roxy Music and about how the group formed, and I’ll be giving this lecture with him. This is the first time I’ve ever given a lecture. I’m a little bit scared. (Laughs)

And what’s happening with Roxy Music?

Nothing much at the moment, although in November a DVD will be released with all of Roxy Music’s vidoes - a retrospective which will cover all our periods. I only watched all the clips yesterday, and I found it quite interesting. But apart from that, Roxy has not done anything new. Last year we wrote a bit of material, but this year I’ve only being working as a solo artist. There have been a lot of concerts, and I’m also perfoming in Russia. The album Dylanesque came out in March, and we’ll play a few songs from it, and go through my solo career. Generally, the concerts are interesting. They’re 10 musicians in my group, two backing vocalists, and lots of different instruments – from saxophones to violins. This gives the songs very different moods. We’re in excellent form at the moment. I’ve been working with these musicians for many years, and some of them played with Roxy, including on our latest our. Colin Good, who I’ve been performing with for a long time, is on piano, and the drummer Andy Newmark played in Roxy Music on the album Avalon (1982). But these concerts will mainly cover my solo career, so they’re only be two or three old songs.

I’ll willing to bet that you’ll still play “Love is the Drug”

(Laughs) Well of course!

As for the album Dylanesque, can you see it as a kind of attempt to “blow away the cobwebs” during the recording with Roxy Music? Something similar happened to you in the 1990s, when you released the Taxi album of interpretations when you got stuck with recording your own songs...

Yes, sometimes I need a break, and I feel like doing something very different from what I usually do. This was the case with this project – the idea to record an album of songs by Bob Dylan was completely spontaneous. Everything was recorded very quickly, and it turned out that these songs were received by audiences at concerts very well, and the album did quite well in the English charts. I’m very happy with how this year went, and with the success of the Dylanesque project. I love Dylan’s songs, they have wonderful lyrics, they’re almost poetry, and he’s a wonderful musician himself.

Dylan has written a huge number of great songs. What was the principle you used to select them for your album?

I concentrated on songs which moved me deeply, which said something special and unusual to me. I prefer his early acoustic period most of all, so the majority of the songs I recorded date back to the 60s. Some are better known than others. The songs which made it on to Dylanesque are quite diverse, but each of them touches on some subject and is excellently written.

What about the paradox that you’ve always had the image of an aristocratic artist, a dandy of art, while Dylan has always remained the “salt of the earth”?

I suppose that’s true to some extent. But please remember that I came from a working-class family, and I sometimes like to think that I have some of the “salt of the earth” in me too. (Laughs). My life simply took a more interesting path when I enrolled at university and went to London. But I’m still a “northern lad” at heart, so if you look into the distant past, I have a lot in common with Dylan. We grew up on the same music, and after all it is the international language of communication. I also listened to a lot of blues – songs which came from the sufferings of ordinary people. I think that we still have the same tastes, at least in music. Dylan has the image of an ordinary person, but look at his lyrics, and how varied and beautiful they are! My career developed in a different direction, I always paid attention to the visual component no less than to the music itself. But my love for old American music also began many years ago.

So the songs on Dylanesque are a kind of homage to your roots...

Yes! I grew up on very simple music with vivid language.

What about the song “The Cruel Ship’s Captain”, which you wrote for the compilation “Rogue’s Gallery: Pirate Ballads, Sea Songs and Chanteys” (2006)? Could it perhaps be about your methods of working in the studio?

(Laughs) I don’t think so. The song just worked out well.

Did you know, by the way, that there’s a website about you and Roxy Music where they’re collecting signatures for you to be given a knigthood?

What??? A knighthood?

Yes, perhaps we’ll soon be calling you Sir Bryan.

(Chuckles) That’s hilarious! I didn’t know that! To be quite honest, I’m not sure, I don’t think I’ve earned one yet.

But if it really did happen, how would you react?

Oh, I don’t know, maybe I wouldn’t turn it down, but it wouldn’t have to be that grand – a duke would be enough for me.. (Laughs)

At least preserving tradition should be something familiar for you. You seem to know all about fox hunting...

I love traditions and everything to do with them. My life and work has been connected with them in one way or another, especially with the traditions of cities. Almost all my life has been spent in studios and travelling in foreign countries. I respect everything that is connected with history, including the history of music and its traditions. I adore ballet, and this year I saw a few performances by the Bolshoi Theater. This is a case when you can talk about wonderful and beautiful traditions. I like old city architecture, it contains a feeling of history, and you can literally touch it. I’ve always loved Petersburg, for example, as it has preserved this spirit and architecture.

While we’re talking about spirit and history, Roxy Music has the song “Manifesto” about the writer and cultural historian Marcel Duchamp. He said that each generation is the bearer of a revoltuion. What would you say about today’s generation of artists?

I don’t think there is anything especially revolutionary at the moment. There are lots of good musicians, but you rarely encounter any unique new voice. I’m not talking about vocals as such, but about sounds, instruments and ideas in general, about something which is radically different from what already exists. Although this is probably the way things are, when everything is built on what happened before. Take Amy Winehouse, for example: she’s an excellent singer, but her roots are literally on the surface: it’s American soul in almost unchanged form. Although I must say that Amy is very beautiful. There’s another group I like, Arcade Fire. I guess you’ve heard them. Their first album was simply wonderful, but here and there you can find traces of The Velvet Underground and even Roxy Music, there are a lot of influence there. But at the same time, both Amy Winehouse and Arcade Fire are probably the most interesting musicians in their genres at the moment.

And what about the new Roxy album, what do you want to get out of it yourself?

I don’t even know, it hasn’t been recorded yet. (Laughs). I hope that we’ll do something next year, I think I’ll enjoy writing something again myself (Laughs). But this year was just very busy, with lots of travelling and performances. Concerts are one of the most important parts of my life, especially now. I’m getting old, and I try to visit countries and cities I have never been to. We’re planning to visit the Baltic countries soon – Vilnius, Riga and Tallinn, and after that we’ll go to Petersburg and Moscow. I try to spread my wings. (Laughs)

You’ve been involved in advertising recently. Is this pure business for you, or does it coime from your love of pictures and pop art?

To be quite honest, I’m trying to recover after a difficult divorce (Laughs, but not happily). As for the business side, since the boom of sound recording that has happened recently, musicians have to work with more diverse projects than music. And there’s always the danger that you’ll have to compromise with your own wishes, dignity or integrity as an artist. You know, I have four sons... (Laughs) And I have a big studio and a whole group of musicians – I need to make things happen and work myself. I’ve worked with Marks & Spencer, Burbeery and Carlsberg, which was especially risky. But they produce a quality product, and I’d hate myself if low-quality products were advertised with my name on them. (Very confidently) So I haven’t yet lost my feelings of dignity.

Yes, you also advertisied a girl called Virginia Plain.

(Chuckles).

By the way, happy birthday, because you turned 62 a few days ago.

Oh thank you, how very kind of you! I’m actually 25. Don’t take any notice of my official age. (Laughs)