Everglow (song)

"Everglow"
Single by Coldplay
from the album A Head Full of Dreams
Released11 November 2016 (2016-11-11) (single version)
Recorded2014–15
GenreSoft rock
Length
  • 4:43 (album version)
  • 5:01 (single version)
  • 3:48 (single version radio edit)
LabelParlophone
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
Coldplay singles chronology
"A Head Full of Dreams"
(2016) 		"Everglow"
(2016) 		"Something Just Like This"
(2017)
Music video
"Everglow" on YouTube

"Everglow" is a song by British rock band Coldplay. It is the fourth track from their seventh studio album, A Head Full of Dreams.[1] It features uncredited vocals by Gwyneth Paltrow, who at the time was married to Chris Martin despite their separation being announced in 2014.[2] The track premiered during Zane Lowe's Beats 1 radio show on 26 November 2015,[3] and originally made available as a promotional single for the album on 27 November 2015.[4] Variance ranked it among the best songs of the year.[5]

On 11 November 2016, the song was released as the fifth and final single from A Head Full of Dreams through a new stripped-down version, which was inspired by Martin's unrehearsed solo performance of the song at the Glastonbury Festival.[6] This recording ends with a sample of Muhammad Ali's 1977 speech in Newcastle upon Tyne.[7]

Composition

The track revolves around a heartfelt piano riff and was written in the key of C♯ minor at 73 BPM and a chord progression that alternates between C♯m-A-E-G♯m7 and C♯m-A-E-B.[8]

Background

Martin came up with the idea for the title of the song from a slang word he heard from a surfer. In an interview with Zane Lowe, he explained the origin of the phrase: "I was in the ocean one day with this surfer guy, who spoke just like you'd imagine a surfer guy to speak … This guy spoke like Sean Penn's character from Fast Times at Ridgemont High. He was like, 'Yo dude, I was doing this thing the other day man, it gave me this total everglow!'"[1]

Live performance

The song was debuted during the iHeartRadio album release party of A Head Full of Dreams, on 19 November 2015. On 26 June 2016, Coldplay performed at Glastonbury Festival and after introducing the band, Chris Martin announced they were going to play Everglow. Martin's piano was out of tune resulting in him stopping the song and doing it a key down, resulting in him playing the song with the piano, without the other members of the band. Days later, on 3 July 2016, the band started to play that stripped back version of Everglow, and on 11 November 2016, it was released as the final single of the album because of how much they liked the live performance.

Music video

An initial video directed by Joe Connor was filmed at the Eisstadion am Pferdeturm in Hanover on 30 June 2016, but was unreleased. This video was leaked online in 2017.[9] Another video filmed by Ben Mor, featuring Chris Martin performing the song on a grand piano, was released on 9 December 2016.

Track listing

Digital download
No.TitleLength
1."Everglow"4:43
Digital download[10]
No.TitleLength
1."Everglow" (Single Version) (Radio Edit)3:47
2."Everglow" (Single Version)5:01

Personnel

The song features Martin's ex-wife Gwyneth Paltrow.

Credits are adapted from A Head Full of Dreams liner notes.[11]

Coldplay
Additional musicians

Charts

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[38] Platinum 70,000‡
Canada (Music Canada)[39] Gold 40,000‡
Denmark (IFPI Danmark)[40] Gold 45,000‡
Italy (FIMI)[41] Platinum 50,000‡
Poland (ZPAV)[42] Gold 25,000‡
South Korea — 278,078[43]
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[44] Gold 30,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[45] Platinum 600,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Region Date Format Label Ref.
Worldwide 26 November 2015 Digital download Parlophone [a]
11 November 2016 [10]
United Kingdom 24 November 2016 Contemporary hit radio [46]

Notes

  1. ^ Release as a promotional single.

References

  1. ^ a b "Hear Coldplay's Heartfelt New Ballad 'Everglow'". Rolling Stone.
  2. ^ "Coldplay Debuts 'Everglow,' Featuring Gwyneth Paltrow". Variety. November 28, 2015.
  3. ^ "Listen to new song Everglow". Coldplay.com. Retrieved January 20, 2016.
  4. ^ "Everglow on Soundcloud".
  5. ^ "The 100 Best Songs of 2015". Variance. December 14, 2015. Archived from the original on April 21, 2024. Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  6. ^ "New single version of everglow out today".
  7. ^ Reed, Ryan (November 11, 2016). "Hear Coldplay's Tender, Stripped-Back Version of 'Everglow'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
  8. ^ "Everglow Chords". ultimate-guitar.com.
  9. ^ "Coldplay drehen Video in Hannover" (in German). Deutsche Welle. June 30, 2016. Retrieved March 13, 2017.
  10. ^ a b "Everglow - Single by Coldplay on Apple Music". iTunes. December 4, 2015. Retrieved February 25, 2017.
  11. ^ A Head Full of Dream (booklet). Coldplay. Parlophone. 2015. 1053933969.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  12. ^ Ryan, Gavin (December 12, 2015). "ARIA Singles: Justin Bieber Takes Top Spot with 'Love Yourself'". Noise11. Retrieved December 12, 2015.
  13. ^ "Coldplay – Everglow" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 10 December 2015.
  14. ^ "Coldplay – Everglow" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 4 February 2017.
  15. ^ "Coldplay – Everglow" (in French). Ultratip. Retrieved 4 February 2017.
  16. ^ "Coldplay Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved 18 December 2015.
  17. ^ "ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Digital Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Select 50. týden 2015 in the date selector.
  18. ^ "Coldplay – Everglow" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved 9 January 2016.
  19. ^ "Coldplay – Everglow" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 16 October 2018.
  20. ^ "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Single (track) Top 40 lista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége. Retrieved 11 December 2015.
  21. ^ "Coldplay Chart History". RÚV. Retrieved June 19, 2017.
  22. ^ "Chart Track: Week 48, 2016". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 3 December 2016.
  23. ^ "Coldplay – Everglow". Top Digital Download. Retrieved 9 December 2015.
  24. ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – Coldplay" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 5 December 2015.
  25. ^ "Coldplay – Everglow" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 19 December 2015.
  26. ^ "NZ Heatseekers Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. December 12, 2016. Retrieved December 9, 2016.
  27. ^ "VG-lista – Topp 20 Single uke 52, 2017". VG-lista. Retrieved December 30, 2017.
  28. ^ "Coldplay – Everglow". AFP Top 100 Singles.
  29. ^ "RIAS Top Charts Week 5 (26 Jan - 1 Feb 2024)". RIAS. Archived from the original on February 6, 2024. Retrieved February 6, 2024.
  30. ^ "ČNS IFPI" (in Slovak). Hitparáda – Singles Digital Top 100 Oficiálna. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Select SINGLES DIGITAL - TOP 100 and insert 201550 into search.
  31. ^ "Coldplay – Everglow" Canciones Top 50. Retrieved 13 December 2015.
  32. ^ "Coldplay – Everglow". Singles Top 100. Retrieved 5 December 2015.
  33. ^ "Coldplay – Everglow". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 7 December 2015.
  34. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 5 December 2015.
  35. ^ "Coldplay Chart History (Bubbling Under Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved 9 December 2015.
  36. ^ "Coldplay Chart History (Hot Rock & Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 26 December 2015.
  37. ^ "Hot Rock Songs – Year-End 2016". Billboard. Retrieved January 5, 2018.
  38. ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2024 Singles" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved April 16, 2024.
  39. ^ "Canadian single certifications – Coldplay – Everglow". Music Canada. Retrieved August 22, 2017.
  40. ^ "Danish single certifications – Coldplay – Everglow". IFPI Danmark. Retrieved January 17, 2018. Scroll through the page-list below until year 2018 to obtain certification.
  41. ^ "Italian single certifications – Coldplay – Everglow" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved July 13, 2017. Select "2017" in the "Anno" drop-down menu. Type "Everglow" in the "Filtra" field. Select "Singoli" under "Sezione".
  42. ^ "Wyróżnienia – Złote płyty CD - Archiwum - Przyznane w 2021 roku" (in Polish). Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved November 10, 2021.
  43. ^ "Gaon Chart: Online download (Foreign) – 2017 Year-End Chart". Gaon Chart (in Korean). Korea Music Content Industry Association. Retrieved April 12, 2018.
  44. ^ "Spanish single certifications" (in Spanish). Productores de Música de España. Retrieved January 10, 2024. Select Canciones under "Categoría", select 2023 under "Año". Select 45 under "Semana". Click on "BUSCAR LISTA".
  45. ^ "British single certifications – Coldplay – Everglow". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved November 13, 2020.
  46. ^ "BBC – Radio 1 – Playlist". BBC Radio 1. November 24, 2016. Archived from the original on November 26, 2016. Retrieved December 6, 2016.