Bryan Ferry might be rolling back the years with his new, '70s-sounding album Avonmore (out today), but he’s not feeling terribly nostalgic for his old band Roxy Music.

“I don’t think we’ll tour again,” he tells QMI Agency in a downtown Toronto hotel. “I still do a lot of Roxy material in the current band, and they play it very well. There was a terrific chemistry in the old Roxy days, but I don’t know if it’ll happen again. It’s doubtful.”

If anything, Ferry’s success mining 1920s jazz style sounds on 2012’s The Jazz Age and last year’s Great Gatsby soundtrack, as well as performances at this year’s Coachella and Glastonbury music festivals, have led the 69-year-old to feel like he’s just getting started again.

“It’s been like the beginning of my career,” he smiles.

Avonmore is Ferry’s first album of original material since 2010’s Olympia and features guest appearances from Johnny Marr, Flea, Nile Rodgers, Maceo Parker, Mark Knopfler, Marcus Miller and EDM producer Todd Terje.

“It’s a great cast of characters,” Ferry exclaims, sliding back into a deep-seated couch high above tony Yorkville. “You develop a relationship with people over the years and Nile Rodgers is one, Johnny is another ... People pass through London, and I invited them to play.”

Marked by new-wavey groove (Loop De Li), Kiss and Tell-like beats (Driving Me Wild) and Roxy-era sounds (Lost), the new LP finds Ferry travelling familiar musical avenues.

"I wanted to put out a record that I thought I’d be able to play live," he chuckles.

The new album also features two stirring covers — Stephen Sondheim’s Send in the Clowns and a haunting version of Robert Palmer’s Johnny and Mary.

"Those are two songs that I’ve liked for many years. I’ve always liked Johnny and Mary; I’ve always thought it stood out from Robert’s body of work. My version is different; it’s bleaker ... And you get a chance to hear his poignant lyrics.

"Sondheim’s Send in the Clowns is high drama ... it stands up on its own as a tour de force of songwriting. I first heard it sung by Frank Sinatra. Barbra Streisand did a famous version as well."

As Ferry takes the album out on the road (he played Toronto’s Massey Hall in September), he’s enjoying seeing the different generations at his shows.

"It's an interesting crowd," he remarks. "Young audiences are always invigorating to see ... We play intimate theatres like Massey Hall and big festivals. So I'm very thankful that young people have discovered the music, either through their parents or other bands that have talked about us."

Ferry has been incredibly prolific throughout the 2000s having released five studio albums in the last 14 years. He also reunited with Roxy for multiple tours but, surprisingly, despite reported recording sessions, no new music surfaced.

That could change, Ferry confirms.

"There are a couple of things lingering around out there that might be worth completing," he admits. "We'll see."

As he edges closer to 70, he sees no end in sight for his career as a musician.

"It’s what I’ll always do," he says. "I still have projects in mind. This album is coming out, and I’ll tour behind that. But soon after, I’ll be jumping into the next thing. Live performance seems to be thriving. People love coming out to see musicians."

So retirement is out of the question?

"When I get too old, but not any time soon," he shrugs.

"The beginning of my career was great," he says, recounting early shows at Maple Leaf Gardens and Massey Hall. “I enjoyed it very much. We weren’t there, and then we were there. It all happened so quickly ... The first couple of years, it was just like, ‘Woosh!’ It was one tour after another. It was crazy, but very exciting to have found a medium that I felt I could express myself in ... The last year that we were together, we were very popular. The Avalon album was a great success, which was nice to see. It caught a particular mood, I’m not sure what that mood was, but it had something that people really took to.

"But the last five years have been pretty full-on again; just like the start."

Twitter: @markhdaniell

mark.daniell@sunmedia.ca

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The ones that got away: Bryan Ferry chooses his most underrated records

When you’ve released 15 studio albums, there’s bound to be a couple that audiences didn’t get. There’s likely to be even more when you count the critics.

But when former Roxy Music frontman Bryan Ferry is asked to name his hidden gems, he doesn’t hesitate.

“Dylanesque and The Bride Stripped Bare,” he says.

“(2007’s) Dylanesque really wasn’t promoted here ... But the Dylan album was a great joy. There aren’t that many songs of that level of quality and Dylan’s songs are really interesting, very poetic. I respond to that.

“(1978’s) The Bride Stripped Bare I put out at a bad time,” he continues. “The whole punk explosion was happening and there were lots of new bands coming up and the album got lost in that flurry of activity. But that’s one of my best albums, I think.”

— Mark Daniell​

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Avonmore Track List:

1. "Loop De Li"

2. "Midnight Train"

3. "Soldier of Fortune"

4. "Driving Me Wild"

5. "A Special Kind of Guy"

6. "Avonmore"

7. "Lost"

8. "One Night Stand"

9. "Send in the Clowns"

10. "Johnny and Mary"