Top 10 Coldplay

From time to time, as I mentioned the other day, I will use this blog page to let you know of my top 10 songs by a particular artist/band, explaining my choice behind shortlisting the tracks that I have. To kick this off, it seemed appropriate to consider my favourite 10 Coldplay tracks to date, given that I have just reviewed their latest EP. I realise that music is very subjective, one man's meat is another man's Marmite, to coin a phrase, so no doubt those of you reading this blog will disagree with my choices and will be outraged at some of the tracks which are absent from the shortlist. That is fine, it was in fact quite a difficult process narrowing this list down to 10 tracks given that Coldplay have released a back catalogue of tracks from their four albums and one EP to date and so it is only natural that some songs which others will view as a classic have been left off the final cut. Anyway, here is the magic dectet (if such a word exists), in reverse order:

10. Lovers In Japan
I already mentioned this track in my review of Prospekts March and I think already this has grown on me to the point of me believing this belongs amongst Coldplay's classic pantheon of songs. It seems like a U2 influenced song and the best compliment I can pay is that it would not be out of place on one of their albums.

9. Shiver
This track comes from Coldplay's first album Parachutes from back in 2000. Yellow and Trouble tend to be the tracks that have largely retained the classic status from that album, but this track, which I think I am right in saying was Coldplay's first ever singles release is a mighty fine song in its own right. Chris Martin's vocals capture the vulnerability that the lyrics of the song are trying to convey while the change of moods is equally well captured by there being quieter moments followed by a burst of guitar. A very good song.

8. Trouble
We stay on the Parachutes album and for this track to only poll eighth in my list is some testament to the tracks above it. The haunting piano solo segments are matched only by Chris Martin's haunting vocals on the record. This was iconic at the time it was released and I think it has aged quite well, it still sounds good to hear some eight years after its release.

7. Talk
Again, it is no slight on this track to only poll seventh. Of the singles that Coldplay released from their X&Y album, this was quite clearly their best. Chris Martin's falsetto vocals are at their best on this track and a burst of guitar in the middle of the track are particular highlights. Some see this as quite a sad song, but I actually regard it as more of a hopeful song, an olive branch.

6. Viva La Vida
I must admit this was a song that I did not immediately take to, but over the past few months with more listens, I have realised it is a masterpiece. Thoughtful, clever lyrics which seem be based around how one is judged when their time is up, the great thing about this track is the fusion of instruments that are used in putting the track together. In particular, the strings and the gospel style backing singing go together well and it almost gives this song a religious feel, perhaps in keeping with what the song is about. It is an ambitious composition but it works brilliantly and I imagine it is a marvel to behold when performed live.

5. Life In Technicolor II
It might seem controversial to include this song so high in the list when it is a new track, but I instantly took to this track. It just sounds like a Coldplay signature tune. It starts out with quite an Eastern feel to the track, with instruments that sound from that part of the world. As the track progresses though it feels more and more like a punchy Coldplay track and both the background and Martin's vocals capture extremely well the building of tension that the song seems to be pointing to. If this gets released as a single, I think it could well be remembered as one of Coldplay's finest moments.

4. Green Eyes
This is perhaps something of a curveball, but this was always a particular favourite when Rush Of Blood To The Head. It is just a simple love song, but Martin's vocals are delivered in such a way that he really gets the message across. A lot of the tracks were much edgier and had riffs that people remember and so this song has fallen off the radar. But this is the type of love song that Snow Patrol have been yearning to write for the past three albums and not pulled off. The beauty of this song is in the simplicity of its message and its delivery.

3. White Shadows
Another song from X&Y and I never understood why this was not released as a single in this country. I think it was released as a single in Australia and other parts of the world, but strangely not in Britain. I can only think this was because perhaps at over five minutes long, commercial radio might have been put off. Whatever the reason, it is a great shame. The way the song starts out and the way in which Martin delivers his falsetto vocals, this reminds me a little of The Unforgettable Fire by U2 which is certainly one of that band's finest moments. Martin's vocals on this record are fantastic, but this is a track that is recommended for far more than the vocal or the lyrics, as a musical composition it just sounds so great to listen to.

2. The Scientist
If you don't like Coldplay, you are likely to loathe this song because you will likely see it as depressing. I think that is misleading. I think the message in the song is actually far less morose and more about the concept of going back and correcting past mistakes, at least that is my personal interpretation of the song. Whatever the song actually does mean or is about, Martin's vocals are at their most haunting and the use of the piano on this song is an artform.

1. Violet Hill
The opening to this track sounds a little akin to Brothers In Arms by Dire Straits. Fortunately that is the only element of the track that is in any way reminiscent to the 80s dad rockers. The song is essentially an anti-war song but which sees things from the perspective of a soldier returning home. The piano and guitar are both used to great effect in the song and for a track that lasts less than 4 minutes, so much seems to happen in that time. It has been out for less than a year and already it seems like an epic. This is certain to be on the shortlist at the Brit Awards and quite rightly so, for this listener at least, it is Coldplay's finest work to date.


So there you are. That is my list and there are some very notable absentees from the shortlist, including Speed Of Sound, Fix You, Yellow and Clocks. 42 and Daylight were my eleventh and twelfth choices incidentally and these would have been followed by Square One, Rush Of Blood To The Head and Speed Of Sound had I extended the list further. It was a tough call narrowing this down to 10 tracks though and I know that there are some obvious favourites that would have been top of other people's lists. But, hey, it's my blog!