James turned down "ordinary" Coldplay

Alex James has revealed that he did not sign Coldplay when he had a record label in the '90s because he found their music "ordinary".

The Blur bassist told The Sun that he still considers the group to be quite run-of-the-mill.

"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," he said. "I think everyone did, except Parlophone, just like happened with The Beatles, and Blur."

He added: "Then again, I still think Coldplay are a fairly ordinary band, although the singer is good."

Blur frontman Damon Albarn recently voiced his concerns about the group's upcoming reunion shows, fearing that they will have to work hard to get back to their previous level.