Keith Richards has said that The Rolling Stones have no plans to sell their publishing.

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His comments come as other acts including Bob Dylan, Stevie Nicks and Bruce Springsteen parted with their publishing catalogues recently.

Talking to CBS This Morning, Richards said: “Mick and I have not spoken about it on a serious level. I don’t know if we’re ready to sell our catalogue.

“We might drag it out a bit, put some more stuff in it. The only thing about selling your catalogue…it’s a sign of getting old.”

Elsewhere in the interview Richards reflected on the “shock” of losing drummer Charlie Watts last year.

“I think he tried to keep [his health] under the wraps last year,” the guitarist said. “It came as quite a shock. He had had a round with cancer a year or two before, but he beat that one. He just got hit with a double whammy, bless his soul.”

He added that the Stones had considered cancelling the remainder of their delayed No Filter tour last year following Watts’ passing.

“I think Charlie wanted us to go on the road,” Richards said. “He wanted the tour to happen. That was my feeling the last time I spoke with him.”

Additionally, Richards revealed that the band have been working on new material. Their last album of original work was 2005’s A Bigger Bang.

“I was working with Mick last week, and [drummer] Steve [Jordan], and we came up with eight or nine pieces of new material which is overwhelming by our standards,” he said.

In other news, The Rolling Stones have shared details of a 60th anniversary tour hitting the UK and Europe this summer. For the UK shows, tickets go on sale this Friday (March 18).

Meanwhile, Richards will release a 30th anniversary reissue of his second solo album Main Offender later this month – get the details here.