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p/
From Pink Floyd to The Jam: Graham Coxon picks 10 essential albums
By Far Out Staff
Credit: Hel Davies
Undoubtedly one of the most overlooked contributors to the swell of the Britpo
p scene is Graham Coxon. That’s not to say he doesn’t rightly receive plaudi
ts for his work as the lead guitarist in Blur but that he doesn’t get nearly
enough.
Bursting on to the scene in the 90s, Graham Coxon has been around the music bu
siness for quite some time now. He’s been giving the world a selection of gui
tar tunes worthy of apocalyptic hedonism ever since he, Damon Albarn, Alex Jam
es and Dave Rowntree made their way on to the alternative rock scene and influ
ence countless bands along the way with his signature guitar sound.
Blur would break out of their native Essex and on to the national scene as one
of the leading lights of Britpop. They acted as the antidote to the brash and
brawling Oasis. Blur were the thinking pub-goers favourite band with a back c
atalogue filled with dancefloor jumpers, mournful melodies, rousing anthems an
d everything in between. But what music does Coxon class as an essential recor
d? The below list and playlist should answer that.
The list is filled with some of Britain’s brightest stars from The Beatles to
The Kinks, to Pink Floyd and The Jam—it’s a who’s who of British talent. C
oxon clearly found inspiration from these bands when crunching some of Blur’s
notorious riffs. The guitarist marks The Jam’s Setting Sons as the first alb
um he ever bought, telling NME, “I bought it with some birthday money. It has
soldiers on the front and it’s got Union Jacks and a bulldog and it’s got ‘
Little Boy Soldiers’ on it… it’s a pretty good record.” Based on Coxon’s
non-plus reaction to most things, we’ll take that as a glowing endorsement of
one of Jam’s unsung heroes.
In the same article, Coxon also refers to the solo work of the late great Syd
Barrett, a former member of Pink Floyd, as an inspiration for his own solo wor
k. He talks about Barrett’s mercurial solo record The Madcap Laughs saying, “
It’s just full of those moments that make your hairs stand up, and that’s wh
at I always wanted to make partly with my solo albums – but you don’t know w
hether you actually do that or not, because you’re ‘you’.”
There is one sticking point, however. Coxon doesn’t really see the point in t
hese list or in fact recommending albums to anyone. But if he had to recommend
one it would be Love’s showstopping record Forever Changes saying: “I hate
it when people say there’s an individual album that they really like, ’cause
I always think they don’t get it like I do – I suppose everyone thinks that
though. Probably Love, ‘Forever Changes’, a lot of people know about that a
nyway, though the young’uns might not.”
A similar album that we’d encourage everyone to listen to would be Coxon’s p
ick for the record he most covets, picking up Talk Talk’s Spirit of Eden “If
I ever make an album as good as this I’ll be happy for the rest of my life,
probably. Danny Thompson [double bass player who played on Coxon’s ‘The Spin
ning Top’ album] is on it, and it’s kind of obvious immediately, his bass pl
aying is amazing, everything just sounds perfect.”
The list shows off that Coxon is every single bit the musical impresario we kn
ew him to be. Picking from a range of artists, a range of genres, and a range
of musical inclinations, Coxon acts as the crucible of musical genius. Melting
down the metal of Britain’s best to create a solid gold band like Blur.
While Coxon may never reach the heights with his solo career that he enjoyed with his band Blur, he can be safe in the knowledge that he forever changed the
face of British music. His powerful riffs, his nonchalant style, his ability
to crunch a guitar sound better than any of his contemporaries means he will r
emain in the pantheon of rock and roll.
Blur’s Graham Coxon’s 10 favourite albums:
The Jam – Setting Sons
The Incredible String Band – The Hangman’s Beautiful Daughter
Love – Forever Changes
Talk Talk – Spirit Of Eden
The Beatles – Revolver
King Crimson – In The Court Of The Crimson King
Syd Barrett – The Madcap Laughs
The Kinks – Village Green Preservation Society
Pink Floyd – Piper at the Gates of Dawn
Depeche Mode – Speak and Spell
Source: NME / Digital Spy
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