Chris Martin On Howard Stern
He played "Billie Jean".
Chris Martin has been so abused that he’s reluctant to appear arrogant, he evidences confidence at best, he tries not to reveal too much, he doesn’t want any "gotcha" moments.
And Howard was trying hard. Just to get him to open up, to play along, to say anything. If this was the real Chris, you wouldn’t want to hang out.
But when he plays… You SWOON!
It’s why all the girls fall in love with rock stars. They speak through their music! All the nuance and emotion of life comes out through their playing.
And when Chris’s fingers danced on the keyboard, I was hooked too.
Maybe it’s the intimacy of radio. It’s so different from TV, it takes place in your mind, it’s not something you see. It’s not a shared experience, just something for yourself.
Chris said "Yellow" started off as a joke, it was a Neil Young imitation.
He said he didn’t walk the red carpet with Gwyneth because he wasn’t selling anything. And that’s what movie premieres are all about, selling.
And he said he wouldn’t do a commercial either. Sure, he did one with iTunes, but that’s different, we all know that. But Chris wouldn’t slam those who did, that’s what’s wrong with him, he’s noncommittal, at least in public.
And he admitted the criticism hurts him. Especially when it’s correct. But he soldiers on because when he hits the stage and sees all those people who paid, not only for tickets, but parking, he feels the love!
"Clocks" was written in a matter of minutes. And when he played the riff that hole in my heart I didn’t even see was suddenly filled. That’s what music does, it makes life 3-D.
There’s the world of radio, recordings. Where you perfect and calcify and it stays that way for all time. But too often, the emotion ends up being removed. What results is not alive.
But when Chris played on Howard’s show today, he was fully alive, it translated.
We’re in a new era. The money’s on the road and people enjoy it most when it’s different. Wanna have a long career? Use the recording as a jumping off point. It’s when you stretch it and play with it that we’re thrilled. We feel like we’re witnessing history, that the moment is created just for us.
That’s exactly how I felt listening to Chris Martin play on Howard Stern today.
Start listening at 3:00, when Howard asks about "Clocks", Chris says Bob Marley is his favorite and…
