THERE are dozens of ex-music bosses around the country drowning their sorrows in the boozer over how they “almost” signed a huge band.

 

Pop history is littered with examples - THE BEATLES were initially ignored, DAVID BOWIE struggled for years to get a deal and SIMON COWELL even turned down TAKE THAT.

 

Now ALEX JAMES from BLUR has revealed he is in the bungling music bigwig’s club for failing to sign COLDPLAY when he had a record label for a short time in the late Nineties.

 

“I went to see Coldplay with DAMIEN HIRST and JOE STRUMMER — my fellow record company executives — and we all thought they were ordinary and passed on them. I think everyone did, except Parlophone, just like happened with The Beatles — and Blur. Then again, I still think Coldplay are a fairly ordinary band, although the singer is good. It’s quite hard to make a succinct three-and-a-half-minute pop song. The trick, almost no one in town can do, is to write really good words to simple melodies.”

 

Alex now lives happily in the Oxfordshire countryside, on a farm with his wife and four children, cultivating cheese. If he had signed Coldplay, Alex would now be basking in the glory of being a member of one of the country’s best Britpop bands AND finding their replacement.

 

CHRIS MARTIN’s band have done pretty well for one that Alex describes as “ordinary”. By his own admission, if Blur had been coming through the ranks now they would have been dropped after their second album came out in 1993.

 

In an interview he said: “In the current climate we’d have got dropped after Modern Life Is Rubbish because it didn’t sell many copies.”

 

He shouldn’t worry about missing out on Coldplay. Some incredibly successful people have got it very wrong. Such as SIR ALAN SUGAR. He once said the iPod would never catch on.

 

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/showbiz/bizarre/article2161875.ece

"It’s quite hard to make a succinct three-and-a-half-minute pop song. The trick, almost no one in town can do, is to write really good words to simple melodies.”

 

Is he saying that Chris can do that? If so would that not make them extra-ordinary? Considering it's so 'hard' to do? :thinking: :P

"It’s quite hard to make a succinct three-and-a-half-minute pop song. The trick, almost no one in town can do, is to write really good words to simple melodies.”

 

Is he saying that Chris can do that? If so would that not make them extra-ordinary? Considering it's so 'hard' to do? :thinking: :P

 

Yeah, I do not understand that either.

He mentions Guy briefly in his autobiography he bumped in to him at The Groucho Club and didn't seem that impressed with him. I don't think he finds them "rock star" enough

He mentions Guy briefly in his autobiography he bumped in to him at The Groucho Club and didn't seem that impressed with him. I don't think he finds them "rock star" enough

 

well that's stupid. how could he not be impressed with them? :thinking:

Alex James should clearly stick to farming.:dozey:

clearly he was in awe of guy's looks, so he was unable to function haha

 

anyway, all of this seems like a backhanded compliment but a compliment no less I suppose! so thats good rgiht?

It wasn't like he hated him or anything, I think he just thought they maybe take themselves too seriously - something Alex James could never be accused of!

 

It's actually a really good book, very honest, very funny, a really interesting insight in to the life of a band

uh ok.

clearly he was in awe of guy's looks, so he was unable to function haha

 

 

:lol: hahahah

this is so stupid...

A sucker is born every minute. Granted, Alex James is one of those really big suckers like the kind you get at a carnival or theme park.

 

 

Then again, I still think Coldplay are a fairly ordinary band, although the singer is good. It’s quite hard to make a succinct three-and-a-half-minute pop song. The trick, almost no one in town can do, is to write really good words to simple melodies.”

 

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/showbiz/bizarre/article2161875.ece

 

What in the world? He still thinks they a fairly ordinary band? And the singer is good?

 

Well. I think they are an EXTRAORDINARY band, and the singer is GREAT!!!!

Wow it must suck to be this dude! lol

I love Alex James, he's kind of an idol of mine. But seriously he should learn how to keep his mouth shut sometimes.

old news ink

 

Isn't he kind of saying "I knew them when..." If his rejection of Coldplay happended before Parlophone signed them, the fact that he's recounting that in an interview now just shows what an extraordinary band they are!

(And let's not insult the farmers.)

Understand, at the time, they didn't have Yellow or The Scientist or Viva La Vida. At that pre-Parachutes time, their best songs were a rough draft of "Trouble", "Brothers & Sisters", and possibly "Ode to Deodorant". Not exactly chart-topping material there.

 

 

Honestly, if it were me, I probably wouldn't have taken a chance and signed them then. Hindsight's 20:20 but at the time they were a small band who had a very unoriginal sound, not the greatest lyrics, and were no different than any other up-and-coming alternative/rock/pop band. I see no reason why this guy should be trashed. He didn't sign a young band who wasn't even close to hitting their stride yet. Happens all the time. No one could have foreseen the band's success.

Well, seems fair enough - personally, I turned down buying Blur records, cos they were boring...:smug:

Understand, at the time, they didn't have Yellow or The Scientist or Viva La Vida. At that pre-Parachutes time, their best songs were a rough draft of "Trouble", "Brothers & Sisters", and possibly "Ode to Deodorant". Not exactly chart-topping material there.

 

 

Honestly, if it were me, I probably wouldn't have taken a chance and signed them then. Hindsight's 20:20 but at the time they were a small band who had a very unoriginal sound, not the greatest lyrics, and were no different than any other up-and-coming alternative/rock/pop band. I see no reason why this guy should be trashed. He didn't sign a young band who wasn't even close to hitting their stride yet. Happens all the time. No one could have foreseen the band's success.

 

Well said :) Yes, they're an amazing band, but they've changed, matured and become a lot better than they were when Alex James first saw them.

Well, there are two factors to his comments. First, I think its fair to say that he wouldn’t have been the only executive of a record label who thought they’d rather not sing the boys. As mentioned before, at the time Alex James saw them they weren’t exactly chart toppers, but then again, no new band who have just started making music ever is!!!!

 

Secondly, although I think we shouldn’t criticise him because he didn’t sign them, I think Alex James seems to be extremely unhappy and jealous that Coldplay are very successful! His comments sound very bitter and big-headed, especially to us Coldplay fans. It seems like he knows that Coldplay are much bigger and better than Blur ever was, but he doesn’t want to accept that fact.

 

 

 

“I still think Coldplay are a fairly ordinary band, although the singer is good. It’s

 

 

 

WHAT?!! HAHAAHA:lol: I was both very frustrated but yet amused by this guy’s comments!! I’m sorry, but how the f*** do you let yourself to call them “ordinary”. “Although the singer is good”!!! Pay attention to the fact that he calls Chris “the singer”!!! How ironic!! He knows Chris is such a huge figure and yet he calls him “the singer”.

 

But hey, at least the guy knows he probably made the biggest mistake of his life!!

Well, seems fair enough - personally, I turned down buying Blur records, cos they were boring...:smug:

 

Ditto!!:P

I was never a huge fan, but I own a couple of albums and look forward to hearing some new stuff

Ditto!!:P

 

:laugh3::laugh3::laugh3:

Alex James...what a Knob.

 

So what happened to your record label Alex? Oh yeah, it folded and now you've been reduced to sitting on the panel for Orange unsigned acts. So you can keep your pearls of Wisdom for Channel 4 now ok mate! Twat.