Who is Graham Coxon?
Short Answer
Graham Coxon is the guitarist from Blur who made the noise sound clever. A shy bloke with specs and a Telecaster who turned anxiety into art.
Long Answer
Coxon was the one who didn’t look like he belonged. That was the trick. While Damon was busy doing Bowie impressions in Adidas tracksuits, Graham stood stage left, awkward and angry, carving noise out of his guitar like he was trying to cut the song in half.
He gave Blur their edge. Without him, they’d have been all wit and no wound. Listen to Song 2. That wasn’t Damon’s idea. That was Graham, smashing punk into pop and making it stick. He made distortion feel surgical. Like Wire with better shoes.
He hated the fame. Hated Top of the Pops. Hated himself, sometimes. Drank too much. Left the band in 2002 because it was all too much. Came back years later because it mattered. Not the fame. The music.
His solo work is full of jagged beauty. Less swagger, more shiver. You can hear the awkwardness. The honesty. He doesn’t write for the crowd. He writes because he has to.
These days, he still plays. Still writes. Still doesn’t care what anyone thinks. He’s done soundtracks. Formed side projects. Played with Damon again. Not for the nostalgia. For the noise.
Graham Coxon was never comfortable in the spotlight. But he made sure the music never sounded comfortable either.
