Coldplay · S1 E6

The Blue Room

October 1999. The Blue Room EP is Coldplay's first release on Parlophone. Five tracks recorded with producer Chris Allison at Rockfield Studios in Wales. It enters the UK chart at number 136, and suddenly the pressure is real

Cold Open

Rockfield Studios, Monmouthshire, Wales, October 1999. Four university students walk into a converted farmhouse where Queen recorded Bohemian Rhapsody, and the producer presses record on Coldplay's first major label release.

Coldplay performing See You Soon. A delicate, fingerpicked guitar piece with a melody that aches with nervousness. This is how a first major label session feels: the weight of expectation, the pressure to deliver, and the knowledge that everything comes down to these takes.

Song Breakdown

See You Soon -- Coldplay (1999)

One of the five tracks from The Blue Room EP, built on fingerpicked acoustic guitar and Martin's most vulnerable vocal. The melody is simple and unguarded, the kind of song that only works when there is nothing to hide behind. A fan favorite that rarely gets discussed alongside the bigger singles, but one that captures Coldplay at their most honest.

Rockfield Studios, Monmouthshire

A residential recording studio on a working farm in the Welsh countryside, where bands have been making records since the 1960s. In October 1999, four university students arrived to make their first major label EP within its walls.

SECRET REVEAL

TAP TO REVEAL: Which Parachutes tracks first appeared on The Blue Room EP?

Walking into Rockfield was terrifying. This is where Freddie Mercury sang Bohemian Rhapsody, and we're thinking, what the hell are we doing here?

Chris Martin, from "Coldplay: A Head Full of Dreams" documentary, directed by Mat Whitecross, Amazon Studios, 2018
Bonus Listening

See You Soon -- Coldplay

One of the five tracks from The Blue Room EP and a fan favorite that rarely gets the attention it deserves. A delicate, fingerpicked guitar piece with a melody full of quiet nervousness. Coldplay at their most vulnerable, recorded in the studio where Bohemian Rhapsody was born.

Quick Quiz

What famous song was recorded at Rockfield Studios, the same studio where Coldplay made The Blue Room EP?

Coming Next

Coldplay return to Rockfield Studios with a new producer named Ken Nelson and a stack of songs they've been writing for two years. One of them starts with Chris Martin walking outside at night, looking at the stars, and singing the word "yellow."

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To be continued

Season 2: Parachutes

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