Graham Leslie Coxon was born on March 12, 1969, in Germany. He is a songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and painter who rose to prominence in the music band called Blur.
He is the lead guitarist and founding member of the group. He is also a soloist producing all instruments in his solo albums. He also works as a visual artist for covers of albums. He was the fifteenth greatest guitarist of the last thirty years in the 2010 BBC poll.
About Graham Coxon
He quit college to increase the success of his band Seymour which was changed to Blur because of the record label, which didn’t want it to look like a student band. He provided guitar, backing vocals, and drums.
His lo-fi and alternative music style was a backup for the band’s less commercial taste in the 1990s. He was also an alcoholic and hospitalized for the same. He got the NME Award for best solo artist in 2005.
What is Blur?
Blur is a group of members Damon Albarn for vocals and keyboard, Graham Coxon for guitar and backing vocals, Alex James for bass guitar, and David Rowntree for drums.
The band was popular in Europe and also known for their battle with Britpop Oasis in the 1995 charts. In 1997, they released their album Blur with Indie and alternative rock music influences. They went on to an electronic direction in music but still had rock direction, hip-hop, and lo-fi experimentation.
The Blur influence became the foundation for the formation of many Gorillaz songs. Before the Gorillaz debut album was released, Damon went into the hip-hop genre with a Blur remix of ‘Angel’ by Massive Attack. Coxon would bring the guitar to Gorillaz’s songs ‘Submission’ and ‘Magic City.’
Blur has been, no doubt, a really dominating British band who came back to Wembley Stadium on July 8, 2023. After leading the subgenre called Britpop since Beatlemania in England, the band has morphed into a story of melodrama and fading rock.
Coxon quitting was a shaking event in the band’s history. Here are the reasons why Coxon quit being a member of the band Blur.
Why did Coxon Quit Being a Member of the UK Band Blur?
Coxon is personally a man of instincts and is engulfed in confusion, doodling demons in notebooks during rehabilitation for alcohol addiction. Thirty-five years later, they still have their game strong, despite hiatuses and reunions, playing in Europe, Colombia, and Japan.
It is quite evident that Coxon has a story not about international stardom and its glamour but a messed up story of alcohol addictions disturbing his art and music.
Graham Coxon (Credits: Guardian)
But he is not really a loud guy or aggressive stage performer, but he tends to be introverted and has anxiety which became the bigger issue instead. His depression and long drinking bouts were dangerous, bringing him close to suicide.
The victory wasn’t really cheering him up, but it was meaningless. It felt good to be charting well and being the top UK band, but it was overwhelming him with pressure.
He used to think that he was really messed up and scared at times, but now he sees himself as emotionally comprehensive, even though he claims to have been kicked out of Blur for a mental breakdown. He was drunk for most of the rejoicing moments of Blur’s success.
They had become more of a business than writing songs. When he was called about leaving, he thought that he was simply being honest, but it was taken as attitude. Though it doesn’t feel different, they have the still issues but less tension with Graham. In September 2007, Graham had news about rejoining the band.
