I had a breakthrough, I think my life just became calmer, I gave up drinking. My priorities changed as I had a young daughter. The group didn’t want me to record for the Think Tank album… so I took it as a sign to leave.

I’m still trying to discover my position on my own artwork and hopefully at this exhibition someone will come and tell me. I’m open to listening to criticism.

It’s a bit loose and the people in my group have got other groups. They don’t have to have a total allegiance to me. I think that’s really a bit weird and showing some weird insecurity.

There’s a focus that hasn’t been there for ages and ages and some American bands are sounding quite English like they did in the late 70s and early 80s.

I think now, more than anytime I can remember, bands are sounding pretty similar whether they’re English or American, from Manchester or London… or Leeds or Welsh or Irish.

It’s the clothes that influence the music I’m going to play.

I’m not going to pretend that I am the best thing in their life and they have to be totally loyal.

I love the magic of the studio.

But live shows are cool. I just got back into the idea of enjoying it live.

It’s the faster bands that made me want to play guitar, bands like The Jam.

I think of someone like Mariah Carey as a singer.

I think a lot of cynicism has dropped away from my shoulders since I stopped drinking.

I liked Germany; I’m not into Berlin, it’s too huge and empty and imposing, but Munich was good.

It was quite nice meeting up because we went through a lot together and we haven’t really seen each much other to communicate one to one for quite a long time.

I suppose my little Martin acoustic guitar is quickly becoming a prize possession. It’s a lovely guitar. I bought it at the Cambridge Folk Festival in 2001 before I had cleaned up.

There are a lot of people who can do it on the guitar and sing at the same time, but I think what is harder is bass players that can play the bass and sing.

Playing and singing at the same time is pretty cool, but sometimes it’s difficult to know when you can just really let go a bit because you’ve got to get back to bloody microphone and sing some stuff.

I’m still amazed by the process of recording.

A singer for me is more like someone who is standing alone with a microphone like Scott Walker, rather than someone who is bashing a plank and is spitting all over a microphone.

Like, Mission Of Burma to me always sounded almost like they were part of the British Arty New Wave. I kind of like that. I like not being able to tell the difference.

I’m a bit of lunatic with shoes and jackets and jeans. It’s just how I am.

With my daughter, who at the time was one, my domestic life needed to take more precedent and really with my own self I needed to develop quite a bit more. So that put Blur down the list of priorities quite a lot by the time I came to thinking about it.

When Blur first started and we were playing Manchester the Hacienda was the place to go. That was where a lot of exciting stuff was happening and London was pretty dead.

I’ve always looked at shoes as being immensely beautiful things.

I don’t think of myself as a singer really.

It’s mostly Mars Bars and peanuts and cheese and you go to the fridge and there’s Red Bull and Beer. It’s not like people are holding me down and pouring beer in my face.

Manchester has it’s own pride and London has it’s sort of pride and sometimes we can be a bit mean to each other, but I think if we dig the music we can get on really well.

I sing, but I don’t think of myself as a singer.

But those audiences in Spain, they were just so stoned. I don’t like playing to audiences like that because they just don’t do anything. I’m up here with my band and we’re working really hard and they are just stoned.

There were some extremely good teachers there that were great artists really in their own right. It was actually very hard to concentrate on getting down to going any work being an art student especially when it’s a flighty thing at best.

The other guys drink, but they don’t drink anywhere near what I used to. And I think they’re slightly respectful of the fact that I’m off it, so it’s not a problem.

Being a singer now I have to get all fussy… I must have my ginger and lemon and all that.

You know Manchester is always a bit of a hard place for people coming from London, just with all the history. Manchester has this immensely huge and healthy history musically.

I had a breakthrough, I think my life just became calmer, I gave up drinking. My priorities changed as I had a young daughter. The group didn’t want me to record for the Think Tank album… so I took it as a sign to leave.