Richard Ashcroft is contractually obligated to record another album for Parlophone. Ashcroft played a solo gig on 25 August 2008 as part of the Last Days of Summer Festival in Buckingham. The Verve broke up for a third time sometime between the last rehearsals in late 2008 and the summer of 2009. It was announced in August 2009 by a band's friend. A b-side compilation was considered a possibility, as Richard's team has asked the fans through his site about their feelings on such an album, but it's now very unlikely. In December 2009, Richard contributed the lead soundtrack song for the
Richard Ashcroft having previously rehearsed the song in Crystal Palace. Ashcroft's performance of the song was introduced by Chris Martin as "the best song ever written, and here's the best singer in the world", helping to create renewed interest in Ashcroft. At Christmas 2005, a documentary entitled "Live 8: A Bitter Sweet Symphony" was aired on the BBC reliving moments of the day featuring a portion of Ashcroft's performance as the show's opening soundtrack. After the disintegration of Hut Records in 2004, Ashcroft signed to Parlophone where he released his third solo album, "Keys to the World", on 23 January 2006. The