Bryan Ferry's Lyrics snapped up by Chatto for Roxy Music anniversary

Chatto & Windus has snapped up singer songwriter Bryan Ferry’s collection of "evocative" lyrics to mark the 50th anniversary of the first Roxy Music album.

Clara Farmer, publishing director, acquired rights in all territories for Lyrics from Jonny Geller at Curtis Brown. It will publish on 5th May.

Lyrics collects the words written for music across 17 albums, from the first iconic Roxy album of 1972 via the acclaimed "Avalon" to 2014’s reflective "Avonmore", introduced by Ferry and with an essay by James Truman. It contains all the classic Roxy anthems such as "Virginia Plain", "Do the Strand", "Love is the Drug" and "The Thrill of it All".

Farmer said: "As a lifelong fan of Bryan Ferry’s beguiling and playful lyrics it’s an extraordinary privilege to be publishing this long-awaited collection. It’s been an especial pleasure to have been able to work so closely with Bryan and his team to make this into a beautiful Chatto book."

Ferry added: "This book is a celebration of my 50 years as a songwriter. It was a pleasure to work with the distinguished publishing house Chatto & Windus."