Twenty-five years is a long time. The decades keep rockin' and rollin' by - first one, then the next, then, finally, half of the next. Has it really been a full quarter-century since This is Spinal Tap, when the world saw a decent, hard -working, hard-rocking band depicted as a full-stop laughing stock?

First, some facts: many nights on the road, even during that now-famous American tour, we found our way to the stage just fine, no problem. Many witnesses. Next, when Tap played Royal Albert Hall in '93, the Stonehenge was too big to fit in the venue. So, it's hard to get these things exactly right. It's trial and error, isn't it?

And isn't that true of life itself? Being in a band that has had to outlive its notoriety to get a chance at fame has produced plenty of both trials and errors. My first divorce trial, for example. And who would have known, 25 years ago, that being in one of England's loudest bands, and standing next to a succession of England's loudest drummers, would result in severe high-frequency hearing loss? Obviously, not me.

So here we stand, on the threshold of the precipice of our next quarter-century. David [St. Hubbins], Nigel [Tufnel] and I still believe in the same things: rockin' the world extra hard, getting a slice of the gold ring, and professional management. No doubt, a remarkably wide range of trashy souvenirs - hastily printed shirts, grotesquely designed "action figures" - will flood the marketplace this year. At least, I hope so. There may well be "now it can be told"-type exposés of our lifestyles - David's womanising, Nigel's ferret fetish, my interest in rare first editions of certain photo magazines. We're open to offers.

Of course, in this economy, when so many people are being rendered as redundant as hard rock in the hip-hop years, we won't be staging large, OTT tours of the UK, the US, and the U-everywhere else. But there will be tribute productions. Three Yanks - Mssrs. Guest, McKean, and Shearer - are rumoured to be preparing acoustic shows that will include Tap songs among other, less powerful, selections. Where they will be, so will we, at least in spirit, if not in royalties.

Spinal tap: A history

1967 Debut album Spinal Tap Sings '(Listen to the) Flower People' and Other Favourites released.

1978 Appear on ABC comedy show.

2 March 1984 Release documentary This is Spinal Tap.

1992 Reunite for new album Break Like the Wind.

2007 Back again for Live Earth gig.

2009 Reveal new recording plans.