These are the best Coldplay songs of all time! Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the most iconic tunes by this genre-defying British five-piece.
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00:00Never in all this world, that was when I ruled the world.
00:07Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the most iconic tunes by the genre-defining British five-piece Coldplay.
00:14The birds go flying at the speed of sound, to show you how it all began.
00:22Number 20. Every Teardrop is a Waterfall.
00:25I turn the easy cuff, I got my records on, I shut the world outside until the lights come on.
00:33Perhaps most notable for its springy, elastic guitar riff, Every Teardrop finds Coldplay at their most joyful.
00:39Its infectious vibes are highly contagious, and we can't imagine not leaping to our feet every time the aforementioned riff pops up.
00:45The never ends inside.
00:50Based on Peter Allen's I Go to Rio, and partially inspired by the score of the 2010 Spanish-language film Beautiful,
00:56the song is about persevering in the face of adversity and hardship,
00:59and a welcome reminder that something beautiful can grow even in darkness.
01:03A top ten hit on the UK Singles Chart, Every Teardrop illustrates the band's gift for churning out anthems.
01:09This is a waterfall, it's a waterfall.
01:14Number 19. Charlie Brown.
01:16Stole a key, took a car downtown where the Lost Boys meet.
01:24Compared by Rolling Stone magazine to the anthemic works of U2, Bruce Springsteen, and Arcade Fire,
01:29Charlie Brown bears the distinctive stamp of propulsive 2010s indie rock, while still sounding uniquely like Coldplay.
01:36All the boys, all the girls, all the baddest in the world.
01:42Over a crashing, invigorating instrumental, Chris Martin encourages the song's listeners to live life out loud,
01:48to carpe that diem without abandon.
01:50Simply put, Charlie Brown is one of those songs that makes you feel alive when it comes on shuffle.
01:55The titular cartoon character, who isn't name-dropped in the song, could probably take a page or two from Martin's book.
02:01We'll run wild, we'll be glowing in the dark.
02:10Number 18. Midnight.
02:12Hear the darkness, hear the dawn.
02:18Ever masters of the moody and atmospheric, this promo single from the 2010 album Ghost Stories
02:23takes on a twinkly, starry vibe that's well-suited to its title.
02:27Martin's evocative, heavily-processed vocals are reminiscent of the work of not only Enya,
02:32but Justin Vernon and his band Bon Iver.
02:34Hear the answer, knows from whom.
02:40Over the course of five suspenseful minutes, Midnight builds from a whisper to a rather pleasant, thumping roar.
02:46It is satisfying, but at the same time, leaves the listener wanting more.
02:50Since Coldplay has thought about making a 10-minute version a la Taylor Swift's All Too Well...
03:00Number 17. A Sky Full of Stars.
03:03I don't care if you do.
03:11How many EDM bangers have you heard that name both Katy Perry and Nirvana as influences?
03:16That description probably only applies to A Sky Full of Stars, co-produced by the late Swedish DJ Avicii.
03:23The two artists' creative sensibilities are a shockingly good match that might not seem obvious on paper,
03:28but in execution, feels entirely natural.
03:31Cause you're a sky, cause you're a sky full of stars.
03:37Far from a publicity stunt on Coldplay's part, A Sky Full of Stars deftly combines Coldplay's stirring sentimentality
03:44with Avicii's trademark bombast to thrilling effect, with the latter taking over Chris Martin's piano playing duties on the song.
03:51After Avicii's tragic 2018 passing, this song serves as a fitting tribute to the house music giant's considerable legacy.
03:58Cause you're a sky, you're a sky full of stars.
04:03So never leave me.
04:10Number 16. Sparks.
04:12I drive you away.
04:17Well, I know what you'll say.
04:20As you'll see, the further we go, Coldplay not only does rousing piano ballads to perfection,
04:25they're also masters of cozy, intimate acoustic pieces.
04:29This fan-favorite deep cut is a plainly expressed cry for redemption on Martin's part,
04:33begging a lover to take him back after a deep heartbreak.
04:37I know I was wrong.
04:42But I won't let you down.
04:46Calling to mind the works of the late, great Elliot Smith, the song was almost entirely recorded live,
04:51and captures the band in a completely different mode than what fans are used to.
04:56Not that that's a bad thing. Restraint sounds good on them.
04:59I saw a spark.
05:04Yeah, I saw a spark.
05:08Number 15. Paradise.
05:10When she was just a girl, she expected the world.
05:16A certified smash hit inherently meant to be belted by music festival attendees,
05:21Paradise is Coldplay at their poppiest.
05:23Intended by the band as a winner song for the singing competition reality show The X Factor,
05:28Coldplay drummer Will Champion, well, championed the song,
05:31insisting to Chris Martin that they had a hit on their hands that would be foolish to give away.
05:35Paradise. Paradise.
05:42It's a good thing that Martin clearly respects Champion's opinion.
05:46Paradise became yet another belt notch for the band.
05:49The song reached number 15 on the Billboard Hot 100,
05:51and was warmly received by critics,
05:53who compared its genre-spanning sound to acts as disparate as Rihanna
05:57and British indie rockers Friendly Fires.
06:00Paradise. Paradise.
06:07Number 14. Let Somebody Go.
06:09Had a kind of love I thought that it would never end.
06:16This collaboration with pop icon and Only Murders in the Building star Selena Gomez
06:20is proof that sometimes we get by with a little help from our friends.
06:24In their nearly 30 years as a band,
06:26Coldplay has never stopped daring to switch up their sound,
06:29as evidenced by this ballad.
06:31All the storms, we weathered everything that we went through.
06:37While it has all the bones of a classic Coldplay song,
06:40low-key piano, an unabashedly sentimental vibe, and Chris Martin's patented falsetto,
06:44it also seamlessly incorporates 21st century pop songwriting and techniques.
06:48Case in point, the American producer Metro Boomin,
06:51better known for his hard-hitting collaborations with rappers like Future and Young Thug,
06:55has a songwriting credit on Let Somebody Go.
06:58It hurts like so, to let somebody go.
07:05Number 13. Strawberry Swing.
07:07We were sitting, we were sitting on the strawberry swing.
07:14This isn't the first example of Coldplay employing world music influences
07:18that will be going over on this list.
07:20However, it's definitely one of the most striking.
07:23If you didn't know this song was by Coldplay,
07:25you might think it was a forgotten Paul Simon or Peter Gabriel tune.
07:33That's due to the song's pronounced African influences,
07:36which Chris Martin has attributed to time spent in Zimbabwe.
07:39The singer's mother hails from there.
07:41Comfortingly nostalgic and heartbreaking in a way that's more felt than spoken,
07:45Strawberry Swing conjures up memories of an idyllic childhood,
07:48as well as the bittersweet realization that we can't go back there.
07:51It's such, it's such a perfect day.
07:58Number 12. God Put a Smile Upon Your Face.
08:01Where do we go, nobody knows.
08:06While Coldplay is perhaps best known for their tear-jerking ballads,
08:09this grunge-tinged, unsettling stomper is a wonderfully welcome exception to the rule.
08:14As per Chris Martin, the band was looking to move their sound in a heavier direction,
08:18influenced by musicians like PJ Harvey and fellow British rock band Muse.
08:31The result of Martin and Coldplay bassist Guy Berryman jamming it out in the studio,
08:36the song also evokes nirvana and early Radiohead
08:39before exploding into classic Coldplay for its chorus,
08:42a deep cut beloved by fans.
08:44God Put a Smile Upon Your Face is a perfect example of the band zigging when you expect them to zag.
09:02Coldplay's dominance of the mid-2000s alternative rock scene was emphasized with this song,
09:07which builds on the 80s influences common in the genre
09:10by interpolating the riff of Computer Love by Kraftwerk.
09:13What results is a dusty, atmospheric barn burner that bears similarities to The Killers,
09:18the band's contemporaries.
09:24Talk most clearly demonstrates, however, Coldplay's ability to wear their influences on their sleeve
09:29without it sounding derivative or reheated.
09:32Stressing the need for communication in an ever-fragmenting society,
09:35Talk is the sound of a rock band simply trying to make sense of it all.
09:40It's not really making any sense at all. It's Talk.
09:51It probably goes without saying at this point that Coldplay is pretty well known for their penchant
09:56for experimenting with their sound.
09:58Arabesque is tangible proof of that.
10:00It somehow combines disparate elements of world music that shouldn't work together,
10:04nor should they sound like Coldplay,
10:06but pulls this off in a way that seems totally effortless.
10:11One of only two singles from the album Everyday Life,
10:16Arabesque could play on pretty much any radio station around the world without sounding out of place.
10:22We challenge you not to get out of your seat and dance once that climactic, hypnotizing crescendo starts up.
10:41The final single from Parachutes, the band's debut album,
10:44proved that they had the goods right from the get-go.
10:47Case in point, Don't Panic is one of Coldplay's earliest written songs,
10:51and it is a clear showcase of all the elements that fans would come to love about the lads.
10:56A subtle but gorgeous guitar line, lightly psychedelic vibes,
11:00and heartfelt lyrics that were allegedly inspired by an awkward date that Martin went on.
11:05We live in a beautiful world.
11:09Interestingly enough, Don't Panic is the rare Coldplay song
11:12that features a lead vocal contribution from someone other than Martin.
11:16In this case, guitarist Johnny Buckland.
11:18It's both too short and the perfect length.
11:21In most places we've grown, all of us are done for.
11:36Leave it to Chris Martin of all people to write the Gen X to Carly Simon's You're So Vain.
11:40Since the song's 2000 release, speculation has endured as to the song's subject,
11:45which Martin has confirmed is indeed about a real person and not a fabrication created for Shiver.
11:58Whatever his inspiration might have been,
12:00the Parachutes single is definitely universal in the themes it tackles,
12:03particularly unrequited love and the pitfalls of modern romance.
12:07As if Martin wasn't bummed out enough in the writing of the song,
12:10he's described it as Coldplay's quote most blatant ripoff song.
12:13In this case, late singer-songwriter Jeff Buckley.
12:16Don't be so hard on yourself, Chris.
12:18We think Shiver would have made Buckley proud.
12:34We will be talking about Yellow a bit more later on,
12:37but after that song's massive global success,
12:40Coldplay was cast with the Herculean effort of trying to follow it up.
12:43With this song, it's pretty clear that they succeeded.
12:46In My Place swaps out the distorted guitars of Yellow
12:49with Will Champion's pounding, instantly memorable drums.
12:53Although those drums come crashing in,
12:55the rest of the band subverts the listeners' expectations
12:58by delivering another yearning, Oasis-esque alt-rock ballad.
13:02Martin's poetic lyrics hint at a relationship that he must salvage through his pleading cries.
13:07It's quite literally classic Coldplay.
13:23The first single from Coldplay's sixth album,
13:26Magic succinctly shows off the band's knack for adapting to the times.
13:30A sweet, deceptively simple ballad with light R&B influences,
13:34Magic burns slowly over the course of five minutes,
13:37drawing the listener in without them ever realizing it.
13:53The song takes all the things we've known the band to excel at over the years
13:57and adjusts them for the 2010s,
13:59serving as a mellow, healing bomb to Coldplay's more dramatic, explosive epics.
14:04Magic draws from every era of their sound,
14:06from the guitar-focused sound of their earlier albums
14:09to the experimental, psychedelic electronics of Viva La Vida.
14:23Speaking of which...
14:33Coldplay's first number one hit on the Billboard Hot 100
14:36not only sounded unusual when compared to the band's output at the time,
14:39but compared to anything else on the radio even to this day.
14:43Instead of their usual guitar-based-drums-vocal dynamic,
14:46the song is famously driven by that unforgettable string section riff,
14:50with only minimal contributions from the band's traditional lineup.
15:00Listeners were won over, however, by the band's boldness
15:03and willingness to explore unfamiliar sonic territory.
15:06This is, of course, in addition to the song's epic subject matter,
15:09which Chris Martin has said was inspired by the turbulent life of Mexican painter Frida Kahlo.
15:14Take note, rock musicians, taking creative risks pays off.
15:21But that was when I ruled the world.
15:32Has such an iconic rock song ever developed
15:35out of a bunch of dudes just messing around in the studio?
15:37Fittingly inspired by A Beautifully Starry Night,
15:40Chris Martin improvised that now-famous vocal melody.
15:43You know I love you so.
15:45Oh, and this was while doing an impromptu Neil Young impression,
15:49which Martin attributed to the inclusion of the word stars.
15:51According to him, it, quote,
15:53"...seemed like a word you should sing in a Neil Young voice."
15:56Furthermore, Martin has publicly admitted that the word yellow
15:59has no inherent meaning within the song,
16:01and was simply what sounded good at the time.
16:04Powered by Johnny Buckland's churning guitar riff,
16:06yellow arose from inconspicuous origins to help put Coldplay on the map.
16:20Number three, Clocks.
16:28Be honest, the second you heard the title song,
16:31that famous propulsive piano riff immediately started playing in your head.
16:35Clocks serves as an important lesson to listen to your friends slash creative collaborators.
16:39Phil Harvey, the band's manager and officially credited fifth member,
16:43ensured Chris Martin didn't discard the song due to his own dissatisfaction.
16:49Tides go out and I can't be saved
16:52Tides that I tried to swim against
16:55Harvey also contributed the song's outro guitar melody by whistling it to Johnny Buckland,
17:00as Harvey doesn't play the instrument himself.
17:02Reworked and re-recorded just two months before the album's release,
17:06Clocks showcases the band's natural talent for perfectly coordinated emotional build-ups.
17:11Home, home, where I want it
17:17Number two, The Scientist.
17:26Coldplay is renowned for their skill in crafting powerful piano ballads.
17:30An ode to the trials and tribulations that come with becoming close to another person,
17:34The Scientist beautifully details the challenges, both big and small,
17:38that come as part and parcel with love.
17:47Asked to comment on the song's meaning,
17:49Chris Martin explained that despite its expansive sound,
17:52The Scientist was inspired by the all-too-common feeling that despite, quote,
17:56whatever else is on your mind, the thing that always gets you most is when you fancy someone.
18:01Never has being vulnerable and opening your heart to someone sounded like a more appealing choice.
18:06I'm going back to the start
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18:28Number one, Fix You.
18:30When you try your best but you don't succeed
18:36Arguably Coldplay's signature song, Fix You is an emotional roller coaster
18:40with a lifetime's worth of feeling packed into five all-too-brief minutes.
18:44Reportedly inspired by Martin's ex-wife, the Oscar winner Gwyneth Paltrow,
18:48Fix You resonates with themes of loss and healing.
18:51For context, Gwyneth's father, filmmaker Bruce Paltrow, had passed away three years prior,
18:56just weeks before Martin and Paltrow first met.
18:59Nights will guide you home
19:05While Fix You is straightforwardly about helping someone else to process their grief,
19:09its ringing guitars, plaintive piano, and almost choral harmonies
19:13elevate the song's already moving message into a modern-day hymn.
19:17Fix You implores listeners to, in the wake of tragedy,
19:20get up, shake off the rust, and press on forward.
19:23We're not crying, you are.
19:25I will try to fix you
19:31What's your favorite Coldplay song? Let us know in the comments below.
19:35Yeah, you could be
19:39Someone special
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19:55What's your favorite Coldplay song? Let us know in the comments below.