Coldplay

In 1996 Chris Martin and Jonny Buckland met during freshers weeks at University College London. They got together to form a band they called Pectoralz. Next university friend Guy Berryman joined them, and the band's name was changed to Starfish. Local clubs showed some interest in them, and the band played a number of small gigs in the Camden area. Early in 1998, Will Champion joined the band to play drums (he'd never played them before, but was an all-round musical talent, quickly mastered them). Not long after Will joined, the band's name underwent a final change - to Coldplay

The first record released by the band was the Safety EP. Only 500 copies were made, and most were given away as demos. The profile of the band slowly rose as they made a series of EPs and played to every growing audiences - in the summer of 1999 they appeared at Glastonbury festival.

At first, relationships in the band were strained. After a bustup Champion left, but then came back after the rest of the band pleaded with him to return. Together they put in some ground rules to help the band survive - all income was to be shared equally between the members, and everyone would receive equal credits on albums and sheet music.

Coldplay released their first album in 1999, called Parachutes. The hit singles Yellow and Trouble spun off the album to achieve chart success. The band embarked on their first tour of North America to promote the album.

In 2002 the band�s second album A Rush of Blood to the Head was released. Brilliant tracks on the album include In My Place, Clocks and The Scientist. A Rush of Blood to the Head went on to serious chart success - it was number one on both sides of the Atlantic. The band then toured for over a year, visiting over 20 countries.

X & Y, Coldplay's third album, came out in 2005. Favorite tracks off the album include Speed of Sound and Fix You.

Coldplay returned to the studio as early as 2006 to start work on their next record. But disagreement and disillusionment struck, and it was a difficult and long process till 2008, when the album Viva La Vida became available. The first single off the album Violet Hill, a beautiful and mesmeric song, proved the band's creativity and musicianship.

As an aside, Chris Martin is now married to Gwyneth Paltrow, a famous Hollywood actress, who has starred in a string of blockbuster movies, like Emma.