Graham Coxon was born in West Germany in 1969 and raised in Derby and later Essex. He studied fine art at Goldsmiths, quitting after about a year to form Seymour, later known as Blur. A multi-instrumentalist and songwriter, he has had a prolific solo career alongside Blur, releasing eight studio albums since 1998, and he now records with his partner, Rose Elinor Dougall, as the Waeve. The couple live in north London with their child. Last year Coxon published his memoir Verse, Chorus, Monster!.On 8 and 9 July Blur play Wembley stadium in London; their new album, The Ballad of Darren, is out on 21 July.
1. Art
David Hockney: Bigger & Closer (not smaller & further away), Lightroom, London
We dropped in to this Hockney show a few weeks ago with the little ’un and it was great to see a kid a few months old reacting to these huge images being projected across the space. It was a lovely place to sit where the art was happening all around you, and I found it interesting to see what Hockney could do with an iPad. There’s always that question of whether it’s real painting if it’s done digitally, but in the end, as with any creativity, it’s really all about decisions, so maybe the medium doesn’t matter so much.
2. Books
Thelonious Monk: The Life and Times of an American Original by Robin DG Kelley
I went through a period of reading only jazz biographies, and this big, detailed book about Thelonious Monk was a standout. It’s interesting on the plight of Black jazz musicians in America – Monk had his cabaret card withdrawn by police after a minor drugs offence, limiting his ability to perform. He was there at the birth of bebop, my favourite jazz era, wearing great eyewear, hats and suits. I tend to gravitate towards saxophone players, but Monk is one of the few jazz pianists Ilisten to. He’s such an interesting musician.
3. View
Parkland Walk (North), London
In Muswell Hill, there’s a walk along a disused railway line that leads to the back of Ally Pally theatre. The walk crosses over St James’s Lane and there’s a view from that bridge which I find very inspiring. You can see all the way across London almost to Kent, and down into people’s back gardens too. I like the idea that it’s a wonderful view, but also a Peeping Tom’s paradise. Rose and I go up there to turn things over in our minds and talk about the music we’re making. I like that view a lot.
4. Food
Chip butty from Toff’s in Muswell Hill
Chip butties are a huge pleasure. I don’t have them very often. Some people I know have never even had them at all, which I find shocking, but maybe that’s my Derby upbringing. If I have chips, I always have to have three or four slices of bread to go with them. Which makes me very full, but I can’t resist. Toff’s is a good place for that. You have to be careful to request that the bread not be cut diagonally. Triangles of bread are the enemy of chip sandwiches because the chips just end up falling out.
5. Music
When I listen to music on the radio I’m always struck by the lack of finesse and effort in terms of how songs are structured, particularly the intros and outros. But [English electronica duo] Jockstrap really go to great lengths to entertain the ear. There are lots of ingenious creative decisions being made sonically all the way through and they begin and end their songs very well. I find them satisfying to listen to because they’re not predictable. I Love You Jennifer B was the best album of last year.
6. Architecture
Alhambra in Granada, Spain
The Alhambra palace in Granada is probably the most breathtakingly beautiful place I’ve ever seen. It looked to me like it had grown out of the ground, with all of the crazy patterns and almost sinewy elements you get in Islamic architecture – it looked like it had been made with magic. As someone with perfectionist tendencies, I love the idea that [in Islamic architecture] each element can’t be perfect. To make something wilfully imperfect because of one’s spiritual beliefs is pretty cool.
7. Place
Queen’s Wood, north London
This is an ancient woodland near where I live in north London. It’s slightly wilder than Highgate Woods on the other side and it has a lot of native trees. I walk here three or four times a week. I’m always trying to solve problems in music, and walks are important because you can run songs through your head and think about how to solve the issues while you’re walking around, rather than being blasted by a screen or looking down at an impotent guitar and getting upset with it.
• This article was amended on 3 July 2023. An earlier version said Graham Coxon had a love of jazz autobiographies when biographies was meant.
