Coldplay charted with "Clocks"

Clocks Coldplay

Writer(s): Guy Berryman, Jonny Buckland, Will Champion, Chris Martin (see lyrics here) Released: December 10, 2002 First Charted: November 30, 2002 Peak: 29 US, 21 RR, 4 A40, 115 AA, 9 MR, 9 UK, 7 CN, 28 AU, 5 DF (Click for codes to charts.) Sales (in millions): 1.0 US, 0.6 UK, 1.70 world (includes US + UK) Airplay/Streaming (in millions): 0.4 radio, 419.18 video, -- streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: “Coldplay haters are a dime a dozen” LR and much of why the band is criticized rings true: “they’re boring, Chris Martin writes lyrics that are meaningless at best and embarrassing at worst, they’ve inspired a generation…that tries to soar and mostly just whines.” DS However, on songs like “Clocks” “there’s something to the construction of the song that can be admired.” DS The song taps into the “atmospheric English rock of the early ‘80s” TC with “dark melodies against the soaring strings.” TC It is “built around one of the most compelling piano riffs of the entire decade.” AB’00 It “burrows deep into the brain as it runs throughout the song and possesses a haunting, concerto-like beauty.” SS It “doesn’t progress like a standard Romantic melody, it interlocks and shifts with the tides.” DS “It’s almost unnerving, how Martin’s voice gets more delicate while the music gets more strident.” LR The song wasn’t initially intended for A Rush of Blood to the Head, the band’s second album. Martin “had a crisis of confidence about the proposed release” NME’09 “en route to filing the tracklisting to label Parlophone” NME’09 and requested a two-month delay on the album’s release. At the suggestion of the band’s manager Phil Harvey, recorded “Clocks.” NME’09 The title alludes to “the world’s obsession with time” AMG while the lyrics pose the big question regarding our purpose for being here. Martin has said British rock band Muse served as the song’s inspiration, AB’00 and critics have noted how the album as a whole and this song in particular “drew upon the art-rock group Radiohead’s atmospherics.” SS However, U2 is the biggest band at play here since “Clocks” marks the moment when Coldplay thought “they could challenge U2 as The World’s Biggest Band.” PD Resources: AB’00 About.com (2009) “Top 100 Pop Songs of the 2000s” AMG All Music Guide TC Toby Creswell (2005). 1001 Songs: The Great Songs of All Time. Thunder’s Mouth Press: New York, NY. Page 596. LR LowResolution.blogspot.com (1/4/2010). “Retrospecticus: 100 Favorite Songs of the Decade” NME NME.com (11/11/09). 100 Tracks of the Decade PD PopDose.com (11/24/09) The Best Songs of the Decade SS Steve Sullivan (2013). Encyclopedia of Great Popular Song Recordings (Volumes I & II). Scarecrow Press: Lanham, Maryland. Page 505. DT Dave Thompson (2011). 1000 Songs That Rock Your World. Krause Publications: Iola, WI. Page 190. Related Links: Last updated 4/12/2023.

Documentary Standing in the Shadows of Motown released

November 15, 2002 Standing in the Shadows of Motown released

Standing in the Shadows of Motown is a film about the Funk Brothers, the Motown house band from 1959 to 1972. As the trailer for the documentary says, “they were the biggest hit machine in the history of music” producing more #1 hits than the Beatles, Elvis Presley, the Rolling Stones, and the Beach Boys combined. They backed the Four Tops, Marvin Gaye, Gladys Knight & the Pips, the Miracles, the Supremes, the Temptations, Stevie Wonder, and others. The members of the Funk Brothers included Richard “Pistol” Allen (drums), Jack Ashford (percussion), Bob Babbitt (bass), William “Benny” Benjamin (drums), Eddie “Bongo” Brown (percussion), Dennis Coffey (guitar), Johnny Griffith (keyboards), Joe Hunter (keyboards), James Jamerson (bass), Uriel Jones (drums), Joe Messina (guitar), Melvin “Wah Wah Watson” Ragain (guitar), Earl Van Dyke (keyboards), and Eddie “Chank” Willis (guitar). They have received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. They’ve also been inducted into the Musicians Hall of Fame and R&B Hall of Fame. The documentary was inspired by the book Standing in the Shadows of Motown: The Life and Music of Legendary Bassist James Jamerson. Allan Slutsky wrote it as a bass guitar instruction book which also featured a biography of James Jamerson. The movie offers archival footage as well as interviews with the surviving band members. The Funk Brothers also perform some of Motown’s hits with Bootsy Collins, Chaka Khan, Gerald Levert, Joan Osborne, and others. Resources and Related Links: Dave’s Music Database: “History Index” for more important dates in music history DMDB encyclopedia entry for The Funk Brothers Dave’s Music Database: “Motown: Top 100 Songs” WK Wikipedia First posted 11/14/2023.

The movie 8 Mile opened.

November 8, 2002: 8 Mile opened.

Directing: Curtis Hanson Writing: Scott Silver Starring: Eminem, Brittany Murphy, Kim Basinger, Mekhi Phifer This 2002 dramatic feature film starred Eminem in his film debut portraying white rapper Jimmy “B-Rabbit” Smith Jr. in his efforts to launch a hip-hop career. Movie critic Roger Ebert said “this movie stands aside from routine debut films by pop stars” WK and reflected on the somewhat autobiographical story of Eminem’s real life that it is “a faithful reflection of his myth.” WK Critic Peter Travers said, it “is a real movie, not a fast-buck package to exploit the fan base.” WK The movie title comes from a Detroit Highway called 8 Mile Road which separates the largely white suburban communities from the predominantly black urban core of the city. Rotten Tomatoes describes the road “as the city limit, a border, a boundary. It is also a psychological dividing line that separates Jimmy…from where and who he wants to be.” RT Jimmy is a blue-collar worker at a car factory who lives in a trailer park near 8 Mile Road with his alcoholic mother. At the encouragement of his best friend, Future (Phifer), he competes in a freestyle rap battle, defeating members of the Free World crew, a rival rap gang. The movie made $51 million in its opening weekend, going on to make $242 million worldwide across its run. The soundtrack (featuring five songs from Eminem) went four times platinum, fueled by the huge success of the song “Lose Yourself,” which topped the Billboard Hot 100 for 12 weeks. It won an Oscar for Best Original Song as well as a Grammy for Best Song Written for a Motion Picture, Television, or Other Visual Media. MTV crowned it the Best Video from a Film. For more important days in music history, check out the Dave’s Music Database history page. Resources and Related Links: Dave’s Music Database: “History Index” DMDB encyclopedia entry for Eminem RT Rotten Tomatoes WK Wikipedia First posted 11/5/2023.