BONAMASSA On Possibility Of Another BLACK COUNTRY COMMUNION Album: 'I'd Do That In A Minute'

Guitarist/vocalist Joe Bonamassa says that he would make another BLACK COUNTRY COMMUNION album "in a minute," despite the fact that he left the band earlier this year following a public feud between singer/bassist Glenn Hughes.

The war of words goes back to last September, when Hughes began telling journalists that Bonamassa's solo touring schedule was preventing BLACK COUNTRY COMMUNION from touring and fulfilling its potential. He stated that if the situation didn't change, BLACK COUNTRY COMMUNION's third album, "Afterglow", could be the group's last recording project.

Asked what he would say if he bumped into Hughes in the street, Bonamassa told Classic Rock for the magazine's July 2013 issue: "I would say: 'Glenn, its nice to see you.' And you know why? I'm still a friend of Glenn Hughes, I'm still a fan of Glenn Hughes. I just disagree with the methods he went about trying to get me to commit to a two-year world tour of Shanghai and the great sea ports of the world."

Regarding what went wrong with BLACK COUNTRY COMMUNION, Bonamassa said: "In 2009, when we talked about it [BLACK COUNTRY COMMUNION], it seemed like the perfect situation for everybody. The words were — and these weren't my words — 'I have a solo thing that goes out every year,' or 'I have commitments with Billy Idol.' And I go: 'Well, I tour like an idiot, so we can just get together and play, maybe make a record and do a couple of one-off gigs.' We did a one-off thing at [London rehearsal facility) John Henry's, which is one of the best musical experiences of my life. That was exhilarating. It was four guys shooting for the fences. Unfettered rock 'n' roll, early '70s style. Everybody was on the same page at the very beginning. It's just when it became more successful, a couple of them wanted to move the game a little bit. And then I was, like, 'I can't.' That situation would break me. I did nine weeks in the summer. When I came home, I didn't pick up the guitar for a while. It burned me out. So unfortunately, the methods with which the whole thing came to a close, I don't agree with. But he's still my friend.

If Glenn phoned you in five years' time and said: "Joe, do you fancy playing a one-off gig?" would you do it?

Bonamassa: "I'd do it in a minute, yeah."

And what if he said: "I want to make another BLACK COUNTRY COMMUNION album"?

Bonamassa: "I'd do that in a minute. But I wouldn't want to play Peoria, Illinois, and then Rockford, and then St. Louis, and then an 80-show tour of the U.S. and the summer festivals. That's not on the cards. It never was on the cards, ever."