Coldplay

In this generation of pop stars, Coldplay has still been one of those remarkable alternative rock bands that storm the world with hits like “Yellow” and “Fix You.” The musicality of Coldplay really captivates the heart of the millions around the world. Their heavy but soft lyrical music reflected the meditative aspect of the soul.

Humble Beginnings

The group hailed from London, England. It was the group’s lead vocalist, Chris Martin, and the lead guitarist, Johnny Buckland, who started the formation years of Coldplay. Chris and Johnny met during the orientation week at University College of London (UCL) in 1996. Chris Martin’s longtime friend, Phil Harvey, became their manager. Will Champion also joined the group where he played percussions. Out of nowhere, an engineering student in UCL by the name of Guy Berryman approached Chris Martin and from that moment on, Berryman became the bassist of the group.

Coldplay’s Success

“Parachutes” was the title of Coldplay’s debut album in 2001. One of the hits in this album is “Shiver,” which became Coldplay’s first single in Top 40. Their breakthrough and hit single entitled “Yellow” reached number four at UK Singles Chart.

Due to this success, Coldplay’s “Parachutes” was also released in North America and reached double-platinum status in record bars. The group also have guest appearances in Saturday Night Live, Late Night with Conan O’Brien and The Late Show with David Letterman.

In Grammy Awards 2002, “Parachutes” also won Best Alternative Music Album.

Coldplay’s second album was released in August 2002. “A Rush of Blood to the Head Tour” was the name of the album and it notably released popular hits such as “Clocks,” “The Scientist,” and “In My Place.” The album promotional tour was in fact extended resulting in the release of their DVD live album, “Live 2003.”

In 2003 and 2004, Coldplay received three of the most prestigious awards under their belt. First was the Rolling Stone’s Best Artist of the Year. The second and third award was in the Grammy: Best Alternative Music Album for “A Rush of Blood to the Head” and Record of the Year for “Clocks.”

Coldplay’s third album also went on a commercial board. “X&Y” became the bestselling album in 2005. Upon its release in 2005, the album garnered worldwide sales of 8.3 million. There were two stand-out singles in the album. First is the slow-tempo hit “Fix you.” The single earned positive reviews from Rolling Stone, NME Magazine and PopMatters. That’s why; it reached number 18 in US Billboard Modern Rock and number four in UK. The second hit, “Talk,” reached number one in Dutch Top 40 and the band performed it live at 2005 MTV Europe Music Awards and at 2006 Gammy Awards at Los Angeles.

It took three years after Coldplay completed their Hispanic-inspired fourth studio album, “Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends”. In an interview in Entertainment Weekly, Chris Martin said,

“We’re slightly terrified about this record, because we’ve thrown away all our tricks. The truth is, we tried to find new ones.”

Yet the good side paid off and the album was a success again. Rolling Stone gave it three and a half stars, The Times with also three stars and NME with eight out of ten. The album already sold 125,000 copies on its first day at UK, 41,041 in Australia and 316,000 in US. It’s also named as the most-paid downloadable album online. There were four singles released from the album. “Violent Hill” in April, “Viva La Vida” in May 2008, “Lost!” in November 2008 and the only US-released “Lovers in Japan” in December 2008.

The second of the four became the Coldplay’s first Translantic number one hit, reaching the top spot of US Billboard Hot 100 and UK Singles Chart. It was also named as the Song of the Year at 51st Grammy Awards.