Blur

Blur is a British rock band formed in London in 1988. It consists of singer Damon Albarn, guitarist Graham Coxon, bassist Alex James and drummer Dave Rowntree. Their debut album, Leisure (1991), incorporated the sounds of madchester and shoegazing. After a stylistic change influenced by British pop bands such as The Kinks, The Beatles and XTC, Blur released Modern Life Is Rubbish (1993), Parklife (1994) and The Great Escape(1995). As a result, the band helped popularize the Britpop genre and achieved widespread fame in the United Kingdom, aided by a media and chart battle with rival band Oasis in 1995. "The Battle of Britpop".

The self-titled fifth album, Blur (1997), saw another stylistic change, influenced by the lo-fi styles of indie rock groups. American albums, and became their third UK chart-topping album. Their single "Song 2" brought the band mainstream success in the United States for the first time. Their next album, 13 (1999), saw the band experiment with electronic music and gospel, and featured more personal lyrics from Albarn, recounting his struggle with heroin addiction and his breakup with his ex-girlfriend Justine Frischmann, singer of the band Elastica. His seventh album, Think Tank (2003), continued his experimentation with electronic sounds and was also shaped by Albarn's growing interest in hip hop and world music, featuring a more minimalist guitar work. Coxon left the band during the early recording sessions for Think Tank, and Blur disbanded for several years after the end of the album's associated tour, with the members involved in other projects.

In 2009, Blur reunited with Coxon in the band and embarked on a European reunion tour. In the following years, they released several singles and compilations and toured internationally. In 2012, they received a Brit Award for Contribution to the Music Industry. Their eighth album, The Magic Whip (2015), was Blur's sixth consecutive album to top the UK Albums Chart. The group has been on hiatus since The Magic Whip Tour, but in 2023 they reunited to perform several live dates, in conjunction with the release of their ninth studio album The Ballad of Darren.

History

1988-1991: training and Leisure

Damon Albarn enrolled on a part-time music course at Goldsmiths College, London in 1988, claiming that his sole intention was to gain access to the students' union bar. Blur were formed in December 1988 when the Bassist Alex James joined Albarn's band, Circus, and they changed the name to Seymour, inspired by J. D. Salinger's book Seymour: An Introduction. Drummer Dave Rowntree was already in the band., who had joined in October and guitarist Graham Coxon, a childhood friend of Albarn from Essex who was studying at Goldsmiths College, London along with Albarn and James. The group performed live for the first time in mid-1989. in the goods shed of the East Anglian Railway Museum at Chappel & Wakes Colne In November Food Records representative Andy Ross attended a presentation by Seymour who convinced the group to work with his label. The only concern Ross and Food had was that they didn't like the band's name as it sounded too "anti-commercial" according to them. Food made a list of alternatives from which the group decided on Blur. Food Records finally signed the newly christened band in March 1990. From March to July 1990 the group toured Great Britain, writing new songs.

In October 1990, after her tour ended, the single "She's So High" was released, which reached number 48 on the UK Singles Chart. When it was released, its cover generated controversy, which many People called it "sexist" as it shows a naked woman riding a hippopotamus. The members had trouble creating a new single, but progressed when they met producer Stephen Street. The resulting single release, "There's No Other Way", became a hit, peaking at number 8. As a result of the single's success the band members were accepted into a group of bands they frequented. Syndrome club in London called The Scene That Celebrates Itself. NME wrote in 1991: "Blur is the acceptable pretty face of a whole group of bands that have emerged since "The whole Manchester thing started to lose steam." The third single, "Bang", performed relatively disappointingly, peaking at only number 24. Andy Ross and Food owner David Balfe were convinced that the Blur's best course of action was to continue drawing influence from the Madchester movement. Although the resulting album, Leisure (1991), peaked at number seven on the UK Albums Chart and received a gold certification from the BPI, it received mixed reviews, according to journalist John Harris., "[the album] couldn't shake off the smell of anticlimax."

1992-1995: Britpop years

Blur Rivales in the 1990s, Oasis (low) and Suede (up)

After losing over £40,000 in their accounts, they discovered they were owed £60,000 by Food Records; However, they toured the United States in 1992 in an attempt to recover their financial losses. They released the single "Popscene" to coincide with the start of the Rollercoaster tour. When it was released, there was already a certain change in the songs. The band's approaches compared to their previous album. Stephen Thomas Erlewine commented that it is "a flurry of punk guitars, sixties pop hooks, strident British trumpets, controlled fury and postmodern humor." However, upon its release it only charted at number 32. «We felt that “Popscene” was a big change; "a very, very English song," Albarn told the NME in 1993, "But it upset a lot of people... we took a risk to pursue this English ideal and no one was interested." As a result of the lackluster promotional concert for the single, plans to release a single called "Never Clever" were scrapped and work on the second studio album was rejected by Balfe.

During the two-month US tour the members became increasingly unhappy, often venting their frustrations on each other, which led to several physical confrontations. They were homesick; Albarn said: "I started missing really simple things... I missed everything about England, so I started writing songs that created an English atmosphere."

Upon returning to Britain the members – Albarn in particular – were upset by the success that rival group Suede had achieved while they were away, who had become the kings of the Britpop scene. After a poor performance at a 1992 concert that featured a well-received set by Suede on the same bill, they were in danger of being fired by Food. By this time they had experienced a ideological and image change aimed at celebrating their English heritage in contrast to the popularity of American grunge bands such as Nirvana. Although skeptical of Albarn's new manifesto for Blur, Balfe gave his consent for the band to He chose Andy Partridge—of

They completed their second album, Modern Life Is Rubbish, in December 1992, but Food Records said it required more potential hit singles and asked them to return to the studio for a second time. They obliged and Albarn wrote "For Tomorrow", which became the album's lead single. "For Tomorrow" had a minor hit, peaking at number 28 on the UK Singles Chart. The album was released in May 1993. The album's release announcement included a press photo showing the group dressed in a mix of mod and skinhead attire, posing next to a mastiff with the words "British Image 1" spray painted behind it. they. At the time, the British music press considered such images to be nationalist and racially insensitive; To calm concerns, they released the photo for "British Image 2", which was "a restaging of a pre-war aristocratic tea party". The album peaked at number 15 on the UK Albums Chart, but it failed to enter the Billboard 200 in the United States, selling only 19,000 copies there.

In 1994 they released their third studio album Parklife. The first single, the disco-influenced “Girls & Boys", won the favor of BBC Radio 1 and reached number 5 on the UK Singles Chart, and number 59 in the United States on the Billboard Hot 100, where it remains the most successful single. They later had a chain of hits, including the ballad "To the End" and the mod anthem "Parklife," which featured narration by British actor Phil Daniels, the star of the film version of i>Quadrophenia by The Who. Parklife entered the British chart at number one and remained on the album chart for ninety weeks. Received with enthusiasm by the music press, the NME called it "a great pop album... bigger, bolder, more narco and funnier [than Modern Life Is Rubbish]». Parklife is considered one of the defining albums of the Britpop. They won four awards at the 1995 Brit Awards, including best band and best album for Parklife. Coxon later singled out Parklife as the moment when "[Blur] went from being considered an alternative art band to this incredible new pop sensation." In 2015, Spin listed the album at number 171 on its list of the 300 best albums from 1985-2014. In the year following its release, the album would be one of those that would define the emerging Britpop scene, along with the album Definitely Maybe i> of their future rivals Oasis. Britpop would also be the foundation for the broader Cool Britannia movement. Since then, Parklife has acquired cultural significance above and beyond its considerable sales and positive reviews, cementing its status as a benchmark of British rock music. Albarn commented in Vox magazine in November 1994:

"No one had written anything about England since what Madness did. I thought it was obvious that the press and people would get tired of America. We were too."

Damon Albarn

The album was going to be titled London and the cover was going to be a cart of fruits and vegetables. The band leader jokingly declared: "That was the last time Balfe He was going, in some way, to foresee any decision or creative process with us, and that was his final contribution: calling it London». With the success of Parklife Blur opened the door to many British bands that dominated British pop culture in the mid-nineties and have been labeled britpop. Elastica, Pulp, Supergrass, Echobelly, Mansun, Suede, Oasis and numerous others benefited from the band's success. At the beginning of 1995 Parklife became a triple platinum album. They began to work on their fourth album The Great Escape in early 1995. Building on the band's two previous albums, Albarn's lyrics for the album consisted of various third-person narrations. Alex James reflected: "Everything was more elaborate, more orchestral, more theatrical, and the lyrics were even more twisted... it was all dysfunctional, misfit characters screwing around."

The release of the album's lead single "Country House" played a role in the group's public rivalry with Manchester band Oasis dubbed "The Battle of Britpop". Partly due to growing antagonisms between the groups, Blur and Oasis released their new singles on the same day, an NME event called "The British Heavyweight Championship." The debate over which band would top the British singles chart became a media phenomenon and Albarn appeared in the News at Ten. At the end of the week "Country House" outsold "Roll With It". » by Oasis, from 274,000 copies to 216,000, becoming the first to reach number one.

The Great Escape, which Albarn told the public was the final installment of the band's "Life Trilogy", was released on September 11, 1995 to positive reviews. NME hailed it as "spectacularly accomplished, sumptuous, moving and inspiring", while magazine Mojo argued "Blur is better than 95' has to offer and this is a very worthy sound, complete with catchy melodies and very fun words. Entering the UK chart at number 1 the album sold almost half a million copies in its first month of sale. However, opinion quickly changed and the members once again found themselves in disgrace with the media. Following Oasis' worldwide success with their album (What's the Story) Morning Glory? —which went quadruple platinum in the United States—the media joked that "[Blur] ended up winning the battle but losing the war." The band came to be perceived as an "inauthentic middle-class pop band." " in comparison to the "working class heroes" of Oasis, which Albarn said made him feel "stupid and confused." Alex James later summarized: "After being the town's hero, Damon was the town's prick for a brief period... basically, he has been a loser, very publicly.

1996-2000: reinvention after Britpop

An interview in early 1996 with Q magazine revealed that relations between the members had become very strained; Journalist Adrian Deevoy wrote that he found them "on the verge of a nervous breakdown." Coxon in particular began to resent his colleagues: James for his playboy lifestyle and Albarn for his control over management. musical and the group's public image. The guitarist struggled with problems with alcoholism and, in a rejection of the group's Britpop aesthetic, made a point of listening to loud American alternative rock bands such as Pavement. In February 1996 when Coxon and James were absent for a lip-synchronized performance broadcast on Italian television, they were replaced by a cardboard cutout and a roadie respectively. The group's biographer Stuart Maconie later wrote that at the time "Blur's sewing was very uncomfortable."

Although he had previously rejected it Albarn came to appreciate Coxon's tastes in lo-fi and underground music and recognized the need to significantly change musical direction once again. "I can sit at the piano and write brilliant pop songs all day, but you have to keep going," he said. He later approached Street and advocated for a simpler sound on the band's next album. Coxon, recognizing his own personal need to—as Rowntree put it—“work in this band,” wrote a letter to the band's leader describing his desire for his music to “scare people again.” After the initial sessions in London, the band went to record the rest of the album in Iceland away from the Britpop scene. The result was Blur, the fifth and self-titled studio album released on 10 February 1997. Although the music press predicted that the lo-fi sonic experimentation would alienate the group's teenage fan base, they generally applauded the effort. Noting lyrics like "Look Inside America" and Albarn's "obligatory nod to Beck [and promotion of] Pavement's new album as if they were being paid to do it," critics felt that the band had come to embrace American values during this time, a radical change in their attitude during the Britpop years. Despite cries of "commercial suicide", the album and its first single "Beetlebum" debuted at number one in the United Kingdom. United. Although the album could not match the sales of its predecessors in Great Britain, Blur was more successful internationally. In the United States the album received strong reviews, peaking at number 61 on the Billboard 200 and obtained gold certification. The single "Song 2" from the album was also popular at radio reaching number six on the Modern Rock chart. After being licensed for use in various media such as soundtracks, advertisements, and television shows, "Song 2" became their most recognizable song in the United States. After the success of Blur they embarked on a nine-month world tour.

In February 1998, a few months after completing the tour, they released Bustin' + Dronin' for the Japanese market. The album is a collection of Blur songs released by artists such as Thurston Moore - of Sonic Youth -, William Orbit and the American DJ Moby. Among the tracks they were most impressed by Orbit's effort and recruited him to replace Street as producer of his next album, citing the need to approach the recording process from a new perspective.

Released in March 1999, sixth studio album 13, saw them move further away from their attitude and sound of the Britpop era. Orbit's production style allowed for more improvisation and incorporated a "variety of emotions, atmospheres, words and sounds" into the mix. 13 has been creatively dominated by Coxon who "was simply allowed to do whatever he wanted, without editing" by Orbit. The vocalist's lyrics, more heartfelt, personal and intimate than on previous occasions, reflect his breakup with Elastica band leader Justine Frischmann, his partner of eight years. The album received generally favorable reviews from the press. While Q called it "a dense, fascinating, idiosyncratic and accomplished art rock album", the NME considered it inconsistent and " (at least) a quarter of an hour too long." 13 debuted at the top of the British chart, remaining in that position for two weeks. The album's lead single, the gospel-based "Tender", opened at number two on the charts. After «Coffee & TV", the first single to feature Coxon on lead vocals, which only reached number 11 in the UK, manager Chris Morrison demanded a chart repeat due to what he considered a sales miscalculation.

In July 1999 in celebration of their tenth anniversary they released the compilation box set The 10 Year Limited Edition Anniversary Box Set. The accompanying tour saw the group play the A-sides of the 22 singles in their chronological order of release. In October 2000 the group released the compilation Blur: The Best Of which debuted at number three in the United Kingdom and was certified quadruple platinum. for 1,200,000 copies shipped. Dismissed by the band as "the first album we've seen as a product", the track listing and release dates for Blur: The Best Of were determined on the basis of based on market research and focus groups conducted by record label EMI. By then they had largely rejected the optimistic pop singles of the Britpop era in favor of more artistic and experimental work in >Blur and 13. In a review for NME, Steve Sutherland criticized the band's "utter disregard" for their previous work; "Just because these songs embarrassed them once they started listening to the critics and walked away hurt from the big sales battle with Oasis doesn't mean we're stupid to love them."

2001-2007: departure of Graham Coxon, Think Tank and hiatus

After 13 and the subsequent tours between 1999 and 2001, the members pursued other projects. Graham Coxon recorded a series of solo albums while Damon Albarn devoted his time to Gorillaz, the lively band he had created with Jamie Hewlett. Alex James worked with Fat Les and co-wrote several songs with Sophie Ellis-Bextor and Marianne Faithfull.

Recording for the next studio album began in London in November 2000 but concerted work began in June 2001 and sessions moved to Marrakech (Morocco) shortly afterwards and then to Devon in the UK. After the sessions began, Coxon left the group. He said that "there were no fights" and "[the band] just acknowledged the feeling that we needed some time apart." Before the album was released they released a new single, "Don't Bomb When You Are the Bomb" as a very limited blank label version. The song is largely electronic and was used as a protest against the war in the Middle East. However, Albarn attempted to calm fans' fears that the album would be electronic by providing assurances that the new studio album would be "a rock record", and also said that it has "a lot of finely crafted pop songs". In 2002 they recorded a song that would be played by the European Space Agency's Beagle 2 lander once it landed; however, attempts to locate the probe after it landed on Mars were unsuccessful.

Think Tank, released in May 2003, was full of atmospheric, haunting electronic sounds, with simpler guitar lines performed by Albarn and largely on other instruments to replace Coxon. The guitarist's absence also meant that Think Tank was written almost entirely by the band's leader. Their sound has been seen as a testament to Albarn's growing interest in African and Middle Eastern music and his complete control over the group's creative direction. Think Tank was another UK number one hit. United and achieved Blur's highest US chart position, number 56. It was also nominated for best album at the 2004 Brit Awards. They toured successfully in 2003 with former Verve guitarist Simon Tong, replacing Coxon.

In 2005 XFM News reported that they would record an EP and denied that they hired a replacement guitarist for Coxon. There were also some aborted recordings made in 2005. They generally kept a low profile and did not do studio work or tours as a trio. After Coxon significantly thawed on the topic of reuniting, they announced in 2007 that they would reunite and intended to record together first in August, with the date later pushed back to September and then October. reunited in October, they posted on their website that they had only "met for a nice lunch" and that there were "no other musical plans for Blur."

2008-2015: meeting presentations

In December 2008 they announced that they would reunite for a concert in London's Hyde Park on July 3, 2009. Days later they added a second date, for July 2. A series of shows by preview in June ending at the Manchester Evening News Stadium on the 26th. All programs were well received; Guardian music critic Alexis Petridis gave their performance at Goldsmiths College a total of five stars, writing, "Blur's music seems to have gotten stronger over the years... they both sound bigger." frenetic and punky and more nuanced and exploratory than they were at the height of their fame. They headlined the Glastonbury Festival on June 28, where they played for the first time since their first slot in 1998. Reviews of the Glastonbury performance were enthusiastic; The Guardian called them "the best Glastonbury headliners in an era." They released their second greatest hits album, Midlife: A Beginner's Guide to Blur, in June 2009.

They also headlined other summer festivals including Oxegen 2009 in Ireland and the Scottish open-air T in the Park show. His T in the Park headline slot was put in jeopardy after Graham Coxon was admitted to hospital with food poisoning. In the end, the band played, albeit an hour and a half after they were scheduled to appear. After the completion of the reunion dates, James said that the group had not discussed any further plans, and Albarn told Qsoon after that they had no intentions of recording or touring again. He said, "I just can't do it anymore," and explained that his main motivation for participating in the reunion was to repair his relationship with Coxon, in which he was successful. Coxon also said that no further activity was planned, telling < i>NME in September: "We're in touch and saying 'Wotcha' and all that, but nothing has been mentioned about more shows or anything else."

In January 2010, No Distance Left to Run, a documentary about the band, was released in theaters and a month later on DVD. In April 2010, their first new recording since 2003 "Fool's Day", for the Record Store Day event as a vinyl record limited to 1000 copies; It was later made available as a free download on their official website. No Distance Left to Run was nominated for Best Long Form Music Video for the 53rd Grammy Awards, Blur's first Grammy nomination..

Blur acting at Provinssirock 2013 in Finland

In February 2012 they received the award for Outstanding Contribution to Music at the 2012 Brit Awards. Later that month Albarn and Coxon released a new live song together, "Under the Westway". In April they announced that in July a compilation box titled Blur 21 would be released, containing the seven studio albums, four albums of unreleased rarities and three DVDs. They had also entered the studio at the beginning of that year to record material for a new album, but in May producer William Orbit told NME that Albarn had stopped recording. On the official Twitter and Facebook pages they announced that the band would release two singles "The Puritan" and "Under the Westway" on July 2. That August they headlined a show in Hyde Park for the Closing Ceremony of the 2012 Summer Olympics. In 2013 they performed at Rock Werchter in Belgium, dates in Spanish and Portuguese from the Primavera Sound festival, and the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in the United States.

2015-2022: The Magic Whip and second hiatus

In April 2015 they released their first studio album in twelve years, The Magic Whip. Conceived over five days in Hong Kong after a canceled Japan tour in 2013, the album He was also inspired by the city. "There's nothing pastoral about it," said Albarn, "it's very urban." The Magic Whip also marks the return of Coxon, absent on all but one track from Think Tank and Stephen Street, producer during the band's Britpop era. Upon its release, the album was received with applause from both the music press and mainstream media. < i>The Daily Telegraph, called The Magic Whip, "which gave the album a total of five stars, was a triumphant return that retains the band's core identity while It allows ideas that had fermented separately over the last decade to infuse its sound with new combinations of mature and quirky flavors." The NME agreed, saying that Blur were "a band reunited making music." to compete with the best of them." It was also a commercial success, becoming the sixth consecutive album since Parklife (1994) to top the British chart. The Guardian also noted that at times during its first week of release, The Magic Whip sold "more than the rest of the top five combined." That December, New World Towers, a documentary about the recording process of The Magic Whip, premiered in select British theaters. They have subsequently been on hiatus once again since the 2015 tour promoting The Magic Whip. In 2018 Albarn said that a Blur reunion is "never not a possibility", and confessed that he would "hate to think I would never play with those musicians again". They briefly reunited. in March 2019 for a surprise performance at an event organized by Albarn called Africa Express in London, but they subsequently did not play a concert.

2022-present: second reunion and The Ballad of Darren

Drummer Dave Rowntree stated in a tweet that the band will look for a way to reunite when the COVID-19 pandemic ends. In Music Week Albarn was asked if they had already given their last concert, to which he responded: «I hope not. I love those gigs, they're great, but it's not something I need to do. I only do it for the happiness they give me. "I can't wait to sing 'Parklife' again." While Coxon told NME in February 2022 that the band "will always be able to reform" and "when the time comes and the stars are aligned, we will always be able to do something interesting."

On 14 November 2022, Blur announced that they will perform at Wembley Stadium on 8 July 2023, their first headline performance since 2015. Looking forward to the event, Albarn said: "We really love playing these songs and we thought it was about time we did it again." Coxon also stated: "I'm really looking forward to playing with my Blur brothers again and getting back to all those great songs. Our live shows are always amazing to me: a good guitar and an amp turned up and lots of smiling faces." Blur are also scheduled to perform at Malahide Castle in Dublin on June 24, 2023 and at the Beauregard Festival in Paris on July 6. On February 10, 2023, in line with the reunion, the band collaborated with clothing brand Pleasures to release a line of merchandise commemorating their album Blur from 1997.

On May 18, 2023, the day before their first full live performance in 8 years, Blur announced a new album, The Ballad of Darren, which was released on July 21 and They released the lead single, "The Narcissist" on the day of the announcement. On June 29, 2023, the band released the single "St. Charles Square" as the second single.

Blur is scheduled to perform at the Øyafestivalen in Oslo on August 10, the Flow Festival in Helsinki on August 13, and the Summer Sonic Festival in Tokyo and Osaka on August 19 and 20.

Influences, musical style and legacy

Blur's musical style has been described as britpop, indie rock, alternative rock, art pop, art rock, and pop rock. The band's music includes influences from indie rock and lo-fi. The seventh studio album by the band, Think Tank, moved to a more electronic sound. Some of the band's influences include David Bowie, Bobby Womack, William Onyeabor, The B-52's, The Kinks, Radiohead, Pink Floyd, The Jam and Depeche Mode. The group has influenced several bands and artists, being one of the most influential of the britpop genre; among them Beady Eye, Bastille, Cast, Elastica, Gene, Longpigs, Nicky Blitz, Rat Boy, The Cardigans, The Make-Up, Titanic Sinclair, Babybird, and Fun Lovin&# 39; Criminals.

Blur is also one of the British groups that appeared at the beginning of the fall of the British group The Stone Roses, one of their influences, along with Oasis, Suede, The Verve, Pulp, among others; mixing psychedelia pop rock with strong guitars. Following the change of image in the mid-nineties, the group emerged as one of the most popular bands in the United Kingdom, proclaiming themselves as heirs to the British pop tradition of artists such as David Bowie, Rolling Stones, The Walker Brothers, Wire, XTC, The Specials, The Kinks, The Small Faces, The Who, The Jam, Madness, The Smiths and American bands like The Velvet Underground. In the process, the group opened the doors to a new generation of bands whose movement It is included in Britpop. The ironic lyrics of Damon Albarn, the outstanding work of Graham Coxon and the pop mastery of the rest of the group, grant them to be one of the leaders of Britpop. However, they soon found themselves tied by it; because they were one of its main bands and were close to falling with the movement when it declined or was no longer interesting. Through reinventing themselves, Blur reclaimed their position as an art pop rock band in the '90s by incorporating indie rock and influences. lo-fi coming from bands from the United States in the style of Pavement or R.E.M., which gave them the difficult challenge of succeeding in North America in 1997. But the band's legacy still remains in United Kingdom, where they helped reinvent pop guitar music with a wise enrichment of the country's pop traditions.

Blur also came out of Goldsmith's College. Other students of the school are Damien Hirst who worked with the band on a video and with its members on another called Fat Les, and Julian Opie, who created the images Realistic vector illustrations used on the cover of the singles collection. The impact of Goldsmith's College on the band cannot be understated.

Discography

• 1991: Leisure
• 1993: Modern Life Is Rubbish
• 1994: Parklife
• 1995: The Great Escape
• 1997: Blur
• 1999: 13
• 2002: Think Tank
• 2015: The Magic Whip
• 2023: The Ballad of Darren

Members

• Damon Albarn: main voice, keyboards, synthesizers, guitars (1988-presente)
• Graham Coxon: solo guitar, saxophones, clarinet, choirs (1988-presente)
• Alex James: bass, bass, choirs, occasional voice (1988-present)
• Dave Rowntree: drums, percussion, choirs, occasional guitar (1988-present)

Live membership

• Cara Tivey: keyboards (1993-1995)
• Mike Smith: saxophone, keyboards (1994-present)
• Diana Gutkind: keyboards (1995-2000)
• Simon Tong: Guitars (2003)
• Karl Vanden Bossche – percussion (2003-2015)

Musical tours

• Early Years' Gig (1989-1990)
• Leisure Tour (1991-1992)
• Rollercoaster Tour (1992)
• ‘92 North American Tour (1992)
• Sugary Tea Tour (1993)
• Modern Life Is Rubbish Tour (1993)
• Parklife Tour (1994)
• Seaside Tour (1995)
• The Great Escape Tour (1995-1996)
• Beetlebum Single Tour (1997)
• Blur Tour (1997-1998)
• ‘98 Glastonbury Warmup (1998)
• 13 Tour (1999)
• Singles Night Tour (1999)
• Think Tank Tour (2002-2003)
• ‘09 Reunion Tour (2009)
• 2012 Tour (2012)
• 2013/2014 Festival Tour (2013-2014)
• The Magic Whip Tour (2015)