I talked to him about the new tunes and the future of The Black Crowes as he wrapped up the new album's recording sessions this summer.

He said the band had decided before it toured in support of last year's "Lions" album that it was going to go on hiatus. "I didn't know if it was gonna be two years, 20 years, six years, or whatever."

I wondered if the well-publicized rivalry with his bandmate - and brother - Rich Robinson had something to do with the split. In the early '90s, their rock family feud may have taken a back seat only to Noel and Liam Gallagher of Oasis. But who could compete with those guys?

"We never quite did it with the same flair that (Oasis) did," Robinson said. "We never quit tours and stuff, which we probably should have. ... It's funny. I talk to my brother probably more now than when I was in the band just in terms of, like, how's it going? How are the kids and what's up with Mom and Dad?"

At no point did Robinson say The Crowes were done, but at times during the conversation it sounded as if that could be the case. So I pressed him on how long the break might last.

"I can't really give you a good answer there," he said. "It's a whole group of people. You can't really answer for everyone."

He gave more detail about his new tunes, some of which he performed at an acoustic gig this summer at The Showbox in Seattle.

"You get into a band and it's such a specific dynamic," Robinson said. "Once that kind of ran its course, (a solo record is) definitely been something I've wanted to do for a long time. ... For me it was really easy and a really natural thing to fall into."

The new album won't stray too far from The Crowes' funky rock-'n'-soul equation. "It's just making my musical world a tangible thing," he said. "This is what 35 years old feels like for me in 2002 with all this (stuff) goin' on in the world."

Robinson - who is married to actress Kate Hudson - said a lot of the material is about the power of love, though songs like "Silver Car," "Fables" and "The Kids Ain't Got None" explore other facets of his life and views. "The Kids," for example, is for those "not satisfied with being consumer-driven robots," he said. "We have to make it happen; it's not gonna happen for us."

While Crowes fans await the new tunes, they can enjoy live versions of some old ones. The double "Live" CD - overseen by brother Rich - has been out since August.