Paul McCartney joined Damon Albarn and 40 other musicians abroad the Africa Express train musical tour, and performed two Wings song on September 9th 2012.
Right after being awarded the French Legion of Honour, the Beatles singer met Damon Albarn in Granary Square and hopped on board the train.
Sir Paul McCartney also performed alongside Led Zepplin's bassist John Paul Jones, Tony Allen and Gruff Rhys of Super Furry Animals. A star studded cast for the last night of Damon Albarn's newest tour.
After rumours that Gorillaz will collaborate with Paul McCartney were rejected a few years ago, many were probably wondering when Damon Albarn and the legendary Beatles singer will cross swords. So, here it is...finally our Beatles-Gorillaz-Blur connection!
September 9, 2012
Paul McCartney joins Damon Albarn in Africa Express finale
September 7, 2012
Blur - Sir Elton John's Cock Lyrics
September 5, 2012
Damon Albarn having the 'party of his life' after Blur
Before we get to the details, look - Damon Albarn played Gorillaz during his Africa Expres Train tour!
Dailystar reports that Damon Albarn is "having the time of his life thanks to booze from the Olympics". According to recent interviews, the singer is having the ultimate musical party of his life after embarking on an Africa Express Train tour, all around the UK and Scotland.
And with many other prominent musicians, including Jarvis Cocker, Gruff Rhys, Eliza Doolittle, Rizzle Kicks and many African musicians on the train, the Africa Express is indeed a musical riot.
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| Party!... from xlrecording's twitter |
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| Damon peering out of his train of music |
“It’s a 24-hour party.
"It’s not necessarily a massive drunken party, but it’s one celebrating music and how it makes us feel.” The final date this Saturday at King’s Cross Granary climaxes the London 2012 Cultural Olympiad Festival.
Damon added: “There’s a bar on the train, it’s booze left over from the Olympics that takes up a few carriages.” Africa Express began in 2006, with Damon wanting it to show the brighter side of the continent.
He explained: “It reminds people that Africa isn’t the cliché of this struggling place ravaged by war and famine. Those are very big problems there, but it’s also a very exciting continent, futuristic and forward-thinking in many respects.” The gigs, including “some pretty surprising” guest stars on Saturday, are totally unrehearsed.
Damon laughed: “It’s rhythmical, groove-orientated stuff, so you go into a bit of a trance on stage. “Although, on a bad day, you think: ‘Oh, this is getting a bit boring.’ It’s a fine line. “But that’s what we’re doing on the train, getting inspired together, so hopefully by London we’ll be fairly articulate.”
Last year’s album Rocket To The Moon which Damon made with Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea, 49, and drummer Tony Allen, 72, was inspired by them travelling to Lagos for Africa Express. And Damon revealed: “I might well make another record with people on this trip, you never know.
“That’s one of the joys of Africa Express, that spontaneity.”
Could this mean a new album for Damon Albarn after the tour ends?
The Africa Express train tour is currently up in Glasglow, Scotland as of today. It will end in a finale concert on September 8th 2012 in London's Granary Square, King's Cross.
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| Check out Africa Express's official website with lots of pictures here |
Although tickets were long sold out, do check out The Guardian's live coverage of the entire tour as it goes along. Damon Albarn sure is looking very happy up on his musical train. It is looking to be an excellent tour.
Tune in for a later post with the very best pictures of Africa Express 2012 - the highlights.
September 4, 2012
Blur features in DIY, Loaded Magazine - August 2012
BLUR NEWS: Blur has been featured on many more magazine and media coverage. Highlights include DIY Magazine, where Blur can be found across four fully coloured editorials on Pages 6-10. Read the magazine here: http://www.thisisfakediy.co.uk/magazine/read/september-2012/
Last month's Loaded Magazine featured Blur on a 6 page cover. There's new / old pics of the band and and an exclusive interview with Alex James. Check out the large scans, awesome Blur union jack logo and some other rare pictures of the band below.
September 3, 2012
Blur - Hyde Park versus Brit Awards
September 1, 2012
Alex James' Big Feastival - Music and fine foods galore
Alex James has been continuing with his various, multicoloured side projects since Blur finished their Hyde Park gig (with Damon Albarn saying there are no plans to continue yet).
For those in the UK and are free on September 1st - 2rd, master chef Jamie Oliver is presenting The Big Feastival with Alex James, a colourful two-day celebration of music, food and fun for all the family, set on Alex James’s very own Oxfordshire farm.
As mentioned on the website, you can "enjoy music from top acts, tuck into top chef demos in the Big Kitchen and have your fill from The Menu, which brings together pop-ups from top restaurants and the cream of the UK’s street food crop."
Browse the Artisan Food Market for more edible enjoyment from a stunning selection of small producers and food businesses, and between eating, drinking and dancing, join a cookery session, dig a herb garden, raid the dressing-up box or take a spin around the on-site funfair.
Keep big and little kids happy in the fun-filled Little Dudes Den, where Peppa Pig herself will be among the all-day entertainment highlights – or put them to work in Mini Masterchef and turn them into little Jamies. Go for the day, go camping, or style it out with our glamping options provided by The Pop-Up Hotel – there really is something for everyone.
So, if you want to meet Alex James, or enjoy the music, remember to visit the site for full details of where it is, what’s on and why you mustn’t miss out on the Feastival. Buy tickets here.
August 30, 2012
Damon Albarn to put Blur aside for now
According to a recent report by Total Essex, Damon Albarn dismissed the 'this-is-all-over' Blur talk that was all over the media before and after Hyde Park 2012.
On Hyde Park, Damon Albarn was patriotic and very proud to be British: "It was brilliant really. The whole thing was very special. What an extraordinary couple of weeks it's been. The whole Olympics has been brilliant – a tonic for the whole country – and it was an honour to be a part of that.
"I love this country and I love this city. London is our city and I live just round the corner from Hyde Park so when I was given the invitation to do the gig, I jumped at it really."
"Yes, It's a full stop for now because we've all got other stuff going on – Graham has another solo album due out, Dave is busy with politics and being a lawyer and Alex is combining making cheese and running a farm with his life as a media whore while the African Express sets off round the country this week – but to say it's 'The End', that's not true at all."
There's also a secret - Damon also remarked: "We've talked about it privately and I have my own idea of a scenario but it probably won't be that either because you can't be that clear about such things because you just don't know."
So, 21 years later and the vision is still no clearer than ever. Yes Blur or No Blur, it's still a blurred future.
All we want to know is - what exactly did Blur discuss about that they can't tell us ?
August 29, 2012
Graham Coxon - A new album to be out in 2013
Graham Coxon has revealed that there will be a new solo album out some time next year. His latest, A+E, was his seventh solo work after leaving for Blur's Think Tank.
The guitarist posted several cryptic tweets on his official Twitter page with revealing pictures of various body parts. When someone asked, he said that these were hints as to the name of his new solo album. Given the short time of announcement, it is likely to say that the new record will be out some time in January or early 2013.
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| "Yes Clues" says the next mysterious tweet |
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| Ankle ? Knees ? |
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| Who's a Graham Coxon Fan ? |
For you Graham Coxon fans, this is exciting and great news. New album out soon in 2013! We all could do with something new. Since the Olympics closing ceremony and it's grand Blur gig, some may feel like it's a Blur slump after the climatic return.
So here's the riddle:
August 27, 2012
Damon Albarn hops abroad train for next big tour - Africa Express live
Damon Albarn's moving on after Blur, and he's moved on fast. The front-man literally jumped abroad a fast moving, speedy train and hired all his fellow musicians to create a massive Africa Express tour extravagance. Damon Albarn's Africa Express will be playing from September 3rd 2012 to September 8th 2012.
Led by Damon, Africa Express brings together musicians from different cultures, genres and generations to break boundaries and offer a new perspective on Africa and its music.
Moreover, there's a train set involved in all this. And it's not unlike the train from the cover of Blur's 'Modern Life is Rubbish' album. Africa Express, the collective of African and Western musicians, is filling a moving train with many guest artists and collaborators and taking it on a musical adventure across mainland Britain this September, produced in association with the Barbican as part of London 2012 Festival.
Africa Express will become ‘The Africa Express’, departing London’s King’s Cross on 2nd September for a unique musical tour journey passing through England (Bristol, Cardiff and more), Scotland and Wales.
Check out some scans (credits to Shelley) of Damon's recent Africa Express interview, dated August 26th 2012 from The Guardian, below.
Check out the times and dates for Africa Express, and buy your tickets here.