Chris Martin On The Simplicity Of Coldplay Songs | Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend

I try to find common ground with people. I talk to and it's very hard because. you're a rock superstar and you know you. think how can I find Common Ground uh. with this with this man without seeming. completely deranged but I do know that. we both grew up in these environments. where what we're doing for a living or. as our art whatever we want to call it. seemed unimaginable when we were kids I. have read that about you that when you. were a young kid growing up in southwest.

of England Southwest of England quiet. very yeah very quiet and you weren't a. young boy that was thinking oh I yeah I. I have my plan I'm going to be a music. Superstar well it's funny I was speaking. to this 15 year old um yesterday about. songwriting he was asking how do you. know when something's good how do you. and I was trying to explain the Duality. between absolute self-belief and. complete wonder and humility and I think.

you have to keep that forever yeah but I. do think that when I was 12 or 13 and. song Started arriving. there was something in me that felt like. oh these are these are really special. but then on the other hand there was no. nothing nearby to measure it against or. no one in our even in the region had. ever gone out and done that so it did. seem impossible but I still headed. towards it if that makes sense yeah it. makes total sense to me because I was. fascinated by comedy as a as a kid I. loved doing it but I never connected the.

idea that this could be something I. could do I feel that no matter where you. grow up or in what social strata if you. just have a couple of people say a. couple of the right things to you yes it. boosts you enough to get to the next. Island yes so who did you have. saying you're pretty good you could do. this you know it's funny it's so it's. like uh it's like a long slow Arc I. think and it's true for a lot of people. but there's this long slow Arc where. there are many little points along the.

way where I made my friends laugh and. then I went my parents sent me to a. summer camp that I hated away in the. woods in Maine and I didn't the kids. didn't like me and I didn't like them. and then there was one counselor. that I just he thought I was the. funniest thing and he kept laughing. really hard and he kept saying are you. guys listening to this kid what's his. name I can't remember now. um I I can't remember his name but he. single-handedly got me through that. summer camp experience it was all.

because he thought this kid's really. funny and then that just kept happening. and I know for you yeah you had I saw. Common Ground there you had a you had a. music teacher a couple of people that I. had. you just reminded me that in the same. year two things happened which was like. a a total microcosm of how my whole life. has turned out I played an original song. in a school concert and got booed off by. a drunk boy in the year above and at the. same time this Dad of a friend who had. been in a pretty successful band in.

England he came to see a concert and I. played another song and he said you're. going to be massive this happened in. almost in the same month you know but. then the drunk kid came back. but funnily enough kind of the drunk guy. showed up backstage in Australia in 2009. and now comes to all of our shows like. the kid that booed you off stage he. might still be booing but there's more. people around him. I don't know why he's there but he's. there he's the one guy booing at a.

Coldplay show I love I love that either. that or he's saying Bruce. [Laughter]. Springsteen I've seen him often after. show tears coming down because he. thought he was booed you're like no no. no I know that you took to the piano at. around 10 11. yeah. but the guitar was first I know yeah. yeah both I wouldn't say I'm very good. either but I'm I do do what you do which. is explore all the time and this is. another thing I was saying to this young. guy yesterday so many of our songs the. portal through which they arrive is some.

failure that I've done on the guitar or. I'm playing the wrong thing but it. sounds good right or I'll often tune to. a different tuning so I don't know what. I'm doing yeah or play without looking. on the piano so I'm just hearing it so I. don't know if it's correct if you see. what I mean yes and often if you analyze. our songs after the fact. they're so simple that we would never. have allowed ourselves to do that have. we known or it's just e to A to B to e. but it's not because I know I mentioned. this to you once I've tried when I first.

approach a Coldplay song that I love to. play there's always something like well. yellow is a really good example of that. high E string. to play it right and have it sound kind. of like I'm going to say the record just. to date myself but the recording that. that that high E string has to be tuned. slightly differently and you and there's. something about it that's there's always. something in your songs and it's a. compliment that is somewhat different do.

you know what I mean even if you think. well this is just a straight B no it's. not no it's really not this goes across. my life too though uh your limitations. are become strength so oh yeah really. early on I realized I'm not going to be. the best singer of all time and I'm. definitely not as fast on guitar as my. friend Simon you know or as Wilson. Pickett I'm not going to be as good a. singer as that or t I'm never going to. dance like Tina Turner but maybe I can. make things weirdly me yes that's what I. feel so encouraged about a whole around.

the whole world right now is seeing. people become themselves even if it's a. bit different yes because that's how I. feel about our music and I don't claim. it's the best but it's definitely the. most us.