The Blur album David Bowie called “really brilliant”
David Bowie and Blur share a lot of common ground in the landscape of alternative British music. Countless artists cite Bowie as an influence, and Blur is no different. However, in the case of Damon Albarn and the group, the love was reciprocal, and Bowie adored one particular album in their Britpop canon.
Naturally, Blur frontman Albarn feels a kinship with Bowie as he was raised on the Starman’s records, providing a thorough musical education. Although he no longer listens to Bowie’s music on a regular basis, it continues to influence his songwriting on a subconscious level, and in 2023, Albarn claimed that “part of David Bowie lives through me“.
“Bowie, I haven’t listened to him in years. I don’t need it anymore, I know it by heart. In a way, I’m David Bowie since he’s gone… [Laughs.] Careful, I don’t mean that in an arrogant, presumptuous way,” the Blur singer told French publication Marianne.
“But that’s how it is, I tell you very honestly: I sometimes think that a part of David Bowie lives on through me. In any case that I extend his work, that I add my own melodies, my sensitivity,” Albarn continued. “And I also owe him a lot in terms of vocal presence, scansion, theatrical inspiration in the way of singing,” he added.
In the same interview, Albarn also touched on his relationship with Bowie and the collaborative album they almost made with The Kinks’ Ray Davies. He recalled: “We even planned to make a record together in the late 1990s. David’s idea was to get three of us together, the two of us and Ray Davies from the Kinks. Too bad, right?”
The album didn’t materialise because Bowie ended up staying on tour for longer than he had initially envisaged, and the gap in his calendar closed. However, the fact that he considered recording with Albarn signifies how highly he respected the Blur singer.
During a radio broadcast on XFM in 2003, Bowie was allowed behind the mixing desk and took charge of the playlist. While the songs played on the show largely stemmed from his own career, the Bromley boy also used the programme to play a series of his favourite songs, including the Blur track ‘Out Of Time’ from their then-recent album Think Tank.
Explaining his choice, Bowie confessed his love for the album, stating: “I think this is one of the best songs from Blur in many a year, but you know what, nearly all of the songs on their new album Think Tank are really, really brilliant. It’s a very, very good album. This one is a particular favourite, though; it’s called ‘Out Of Time’.”
Think Tank marks the only album Blur made without Graham Coxon, who quit the band shortly after they started work on the LP. For the record, Blur took their sound in an electronic direction without Coxon’s influence and subsequently went on a hiatus for five years following its release. It was an adventurous new chapter for the band, but Blur is not quite Blur without the bespectacled guitarist.
