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Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends

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Untitled
This article is about the album by Coldplay. For its title track, see Viva la Vida (song).

Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends (also known as Viva la Vida) is the fourth studio album by English alternative rock band Coldplay. The album was released on 12 June 2008 in the UK and on 17 June 2008 in North America. Coldplay released two singles from the record, "Violet Hill" and "Viva la Vida" in early May 2008.

Viva la Vida (Spanish for Long live the Life) takes its name from a painting by 20th century Mexican artist Frida Kahlo.[2] The album's artwork features the painting Liberty Leading the People (La Liberté guidant le peuple) by French painter Eugène Delacroix, commemorating the July Revolution of 1830.

In the UK, the album sold 125,000 copies in its first day of release and 302,074 in three days, debuting at #1. [3] The album has since sold over 500,000 copies in 10 days since its release, beating the first week UK sales of Coldplay's previous album X&Y.[4] The band stated that they will release another album in late 2009, mostly comprised of songs that were, in the end, not included on Viva la Vida.[5]

Recording history

In December 2006, Billboard.com announced that Coldplay's next album was set for release in late 2007. The band subsequently denied this through their official website, which also announced a new Latin American tour for the beginning of 2007. During this tour, the band began to write material for their fourth studio album, but no new material was played, due to the band's concerns that their performances would leak on to the Internet.

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

Chris Martin in an Entertainment Weekly interview[6]

In January 2007, during an interview on BBC Radio 4's Front Row, musician and producer Brian Eno revealed that he would be the producer for the album.[7] During recording, Coldplay's website included notes on sessions with Eno and Markus Dravs, stating that the lyrics are "much more abstract, much more visual than before," and that the music is "less straight-forward, more oblique".[8] Additionally, Martin will be making a vocal transition from his trademark falsetto to a lower register.[9] Later, in July, Coldplay revealed that the album was shaping up with Hispanic influences after having recorded in churches and other areas in Latin America and Spain,[10] such as Barcelona.[6] However, it was stressed that the influence was not in any specific sound but a general feel to the songs taken as a whole. On their website, the band also described taking acoustic guitars and basic recording equipment to churches and experimenting with particular sounds.

Throughout the recording of the album, Coldplay communicated to fans through their web site, and in late October, a message on Coldplay.com suggested that two new songs, "Famous Old Painters" and "Glass of Water", had been written and were being considered for the album. While this announcement hinted at further delays, in early December another post suggested that recording was nearly finished, saying that "the creative momentum keeps on gathering". The article was signed 'Prospekt', strengthening rumours that this would be the album's title. In January, Coldplay announced two more songs: "Lovers in Japan" and "Strawberry Swing", and also denied that the album was called 'Prospekt'.

The band have stated that the track 'Lost!' resulted from listening to the early Blur track "Sing", as featured on Blur's debut album Leisure, while they were on tour in the United States.[11]

Release and promotion

In an April Rolling Stone interview, Chris Martin announced the album's title and its release date. Viva la Vida takes its name from a painting by Frida Kahlo, the acclaimed 20th century Mexican artist.[12] On 10 April, a new journal entry appeared on Coldplay.com announcing the track list and release date, as well as hinting at new tracks to be issued before the album's release. "Violet Hill" was confirmed as the first single from Viva la Vida, with a video filmed in Sicily, Italy[13] and a release date of 5 May.[14] In May 2008, Coldplay made an advertisement for Apple's iTunes that featured the song "Viva la Vida".

Coldplay.com was updated in late April to reveal the official Viva la Vida artwork as well as a free release of "Violet Hill", which became available for download for one week from 29 April.[15] Free concert dates were also added at Brixton Academy, London on Monday 16 June as well as a free show at Madison Square Garden on Monday 23 June, and another in Barcelona. Seventy-three dates were announced for their upcoming world tour with shows in North America, Europe and Asia. More dates are expected to be announced shortly. The album was leaked around June 5 and the band decided to make the album available to stream via their MySpace profile from 8:30pm BST on 6 June. In the UK, the song "Lost!" debuted at number 62 and climbed to #55 the week ending 28 June without being released as a single.

Track listing

All songs written by Berryman/Buckland/Champion/Martin except where stated.[16][17]

  1. "Life in Technicolor" (Berryman/Buckland/Champion/Martin/Hopkins) – 2:29
  2. "Cemeteries of London" – 3:21
  3. "Lost!" – 3:55
  4. "42" – 3:57
  5. "Lovers in Japan/Reign of Love" – 6:51
    • "Lovers in Japan" – 3:56
    • "Reign of Love" – 2:55
  6. "Yes" – 7:06
    • "Yes" – 4:04
    • "Chinese Sleep Chant" – 3:02 (hidden song)
  7. "Viva la Vida" – 4:01
  8. "Violet Hill" – 3:42
  9. "Strawberry Swing" – 4:09
  10. "Death and All His Friends" – 6:18
    • "Death and All His Friends" – 3:32
    • "The Escapist" (Berryman/Buckland/Champion/Martin/Hopkins) – 2:46 (hidden song)

Bonus tracks:

  1. "Lost?" – 3:39 (Japan and iTunes bonus track)
  2. "Lovers in Japan (Acoustic Version)" – 3:44 (iTunes pre-order only)

Chart performance

The album was highly successful around the world in its first week of release. It debuted at #1 in eleven countries: Australia, Belgium, Canada, Israel, Ireland, Italy, Korea, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, United Kingdom and the United States. It also debuted within the top 10 in Brazil, Croatia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Japan and Taiwan .

In the United Kingdom the album sold 302,000 copies after 3 days of release, making it one of the fastest selling albums in the UK. In its second week it sold another 198,000 getting a platinum certification for those sales.[18] The album debuted with sales of 41,041[19] in Australia and was also certified platinum (70,000) as well as Belgium (50,000), New Zealand (15,000) and gold in Denmark (15,000) and Finland (15,000). In Japan it sold almost 40,000 copies in its first week and a further 40,000 in its second week.

In the US the album debuted at #1 with 721,000 copies sold. This almost equals previous album X&Y's first week sales of 737,000.[20]

Charts and certifications

Chart (2008) Provider Peak
position 		Certification Sales
Australia Album Chart[21] ARIA 1 Platinum[22] 70,000+[23]
Belgium Album Chart (Flanders)[24] IFPI/Ultratop 1 Platinum[25] 30,000+[23]
Belgium Album Chart (Wallonia)[24] 1
Canada Album Chart[26] Billboard 1 90,000[27]
Croatia Album Chart[28] HDU 3
Denmark Album Chart[26] IFPI 2 Gold[29] 15,000+[23]
Europe Album Chart[30] IFPI/Billboard 4
Estonia Album Chart[31] Pedrobeat 4 Gold[32] 5,000+[23]
Finland Album Chart[33] IFPI 2 Gold[34] 15,000+[23]
France Album Chart[26] IFOP 1 47,625[35]
Ireland Album Chart[26] IRMA 1
Israel Album Chart[36] MusicaNeto 1
Italy Album Chart[37] FIMI 1
Japan Album Chart[38] Oricon 3 83,174[38]
Korea Album Chart[39] HANTEO 1 2,173[39]
Netherlands Album Chart[26] NVPI/GFK 1
New Zealand Album Chart[26] RIANZ 1 Platinum[40] 15,000+[23]
Norway Album Chart[26] IFPI 1
Spain Album Chart[41] 1 Gold[41] 40,000+[23]
Sweden Album Chart[26] GLF 1
Switzerland Album Chart[24] Media Control 1
Taiwan Album Chart [42] G-music 4
United Kingdom Album Chart[26] OCC/BPI 1 2x Platinum[23] 500,052+[43]
United States Billboard 200[26] Billboard 1 721,000[44]
United World Chart[26] Mediatraffic 2 359,000+[45]

Release history

Country Date Label Format Catalog number
Japan 11 June 2008 Toshiba-EMI CD TOCP-66805 / 49880 068632 5 5
United Kingdom 12 June 2008 Parlophone CD 5 099921 211409
LP 5 099921 211416
Europe 13 June 2008 Capitol CD
Australia and New Zealand 14 June 2008 EMI CD 2169640
Worldwide

(Unless specified otherwise)

16 June 2008 EMI CD
Canada 17 June 2008 Capitol CD 509992 26126 0 1
United States CD 50999 2 16886 0 7
LP 50999 2 16965 1 0

References

  1. ^ "Jon Hopkins: News". {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |accessmonthday= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  2. ^ "Rolling Stone Exclusive: Coldplay's New Album Title Revealed". {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |accessmonthday= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  3. ^ http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003816825
  4. ^ Coldplay album breaks through 500,000 UK sales in 10 days Music Week. Retrieved June 23, 2008.
  5. ^ Kylie collaboration - too sexy for Coldplay album. Retrieved June 25, 2008.
  6. ^ a b Clark, Jason, et al. (May 30 2008) "Summer Music Preview". Entertainment Weekly (994):36
  7. ^ Billboard.com: Coldplay drafts Eno to produce fourth album
  8. ^ "4th Album To Be Named 'Prospekt'...?". Retrieved June 24. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  9. ^ Serpick, Evan (2008-04-03), "Coldplay Break the Mold". Rolling Stone (1049):14
  10. ^ Tyrangiel, Josh (2008-06-09), "Coldplay, Viva la Vida". Time. 171 (23):67
  11. ^ http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1589032/20080609/coldplay.jhtml?rsspartner=rssColdFusion
  12. ^ "Rolling Stone Exclusive: Coldplay's New Album Title Revealed". {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |accessmonthday= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  13. ^ "Coldplay In Italy: Video & Photo Shoots, 'Violet Hill' Confirmed As First Single". {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |accessmonthday= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  14. ^ "Coldplay's New Single Violet Hill Released On 5th May 2008?". {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |accessmonthday= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  15. ^ "Coldplay Official Site". {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |accessmonthday= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  16. ^ "Coldplay Indulges Experimentation On Fourth Album". {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |accessmonthday= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  17. ^ "Jon Hopkins". 2008-06-06.
  18. ^ Coldplay album breaks through 500,000 UK sales in 10 days Music Week. Retrieved June 23, 2008.
  19. ^ Coldplay sells Undercover. Retrieved June 23, 2008.
  20. ^ Coldplay Headed To No. 1 On Billboard 200, Hot 100 Billboard. Retrieved June 24, 2008.
  21. ^ ARIA Top 50 Albums Chart. Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved on June 22 2008.
  22. ^ Certifications Australia ARIA. Retrieved June 22, 2008.
  23. ^ a b c d e f g h Certification award levels Retrieved June 22, 2008.
  24. ^ a b c Coldplay: Viva La Vida Or Death And All His Friends Swisscharts.com. Retrieved June 22, 2008.
  25. ^ Ultratop album Chart June 21, 2008 Ultratop. Retrieved June 22, 2008.
  26. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Coldplay: Viva La Vida Or Death And All His Friends aCharts.us. Retrieved June 22, 2008.
  27. ^ [http://jam.canoe.ca/Music/Artists/C/Coldplay/2008/06/25/5981456-ca.html Coldplay has hot chart debut ] Canoe. Retrieved June 25, 2008.
  28. ^ Croatian Album Top 30 HDU. Retrieved June 22, 2008.
  29. ^ Danish Charts week 24, 2008. Retrieved June 22, 2008.
  30. ^ European Album Top 100 week 25 Billboard. Retrieved June 22, 2008.
  31. ^ Estonia Album Top 100 week 24 Pedrobeat. Retrieved June 24, 2008.
  32. ^ Estonia Album Top 100 week 25 + Certification Pedrobeat. Retrieved June 24, 2008.
  33. ^ Viva La Vida's run on the Finnish Album Chart.
  34. ^ Coldplay myi kultaa MTV (Finland). Retrieved June 25, 2008.
  35. ^ Top Albums : Coldplay et Julien Doré en force ! Charts In France. Retrieved June 25, 2008.
  36. ^ Israel top 50 album sales
  37. ^ Classifica
  38. ^ a b Japanese Overall Chart+ Sales Oricon. Retrieved June 22, 2008.
  39. ^ a b Korean Weekly Chart June 22, 2008 HANTEO. Retrieved June 22, 2008.
  40. ^ New Zealand Chart+Certifications RIANZ. Retrieved June 22, 2008.
  41. ^ a b Spanish Album Chart week 25 + Certification Promusicae. Retrieved June 25, 2008.
  42. ^ Taiwan Album Chart Week 24 (Combo) G-music. Retrieved June 22, 2008.
  43. ^ Coldplay album breaks through 500,000 UK sales in 10 days Music Week. Retrieved June 23, 2008.
  44. ^ Coldplay To Bow At No. 1 On Billboard 200 Billboard. Retrieved June 25, 2008.
  45. ^ UWC week 26 United World Chart. Retrieved June 22, 2008.
Preceded by UK Albums Chart number-one album
June 15 2008 - 		Succeeded by
incumbent
Preceded by Irish Albums Chart number-one album
June 19 2008 - 		Succeeded by
incumbent
Preceded by Australian Albums Chart number-one album
June 23 2008 - 		Succeeded by
incumbent
Preceded by U.S. Billboard 200 number-one album
July 5 2008 - 		Succeeded by
incumbent
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