Source: Coldplay

The Glastonbury Festival live stream, known to be England’s biggest annual contemporary performing arts event, was a huge success despite of the technical glitches encountered by several patrons who paid a registration fee in order to access the event online. As various artists and bands came together to mount a once-in-a-lifetime musical extravaganza, its undeniable and overwhelming success is one for the books. For one, fans were tickled with excitement when British rock band Coldplay played their new single titled Human Heart, a collaboration with sister duo, We Are KING. 

The band, led by its frontman Christ Martin, played in front of the Pyramid Stage in the rain, adding extra flavor to their performance. Coldplay was one of several performers who appeared at the Live at Worthy Farm event, scenes of which were shot in different locations. 

Coldplay also played its classic fan favorites, including Higher Power, The Scientist, Vida La Vida, Clocks, Fix You, and the hit song A Sky Full of Stars. As can be expected, fans were generous with their praises on social media after the band completed its set. Some got emotional with the band’s overall performance during the live stream, while so many others congratulated the artists for their awe-inspiring new release. 

Earlier this month, Chris Martin and Jonny Buckland were hinting at a potential new record that may be released anytime this year. If ever, the new record would be Coldplay’s eight studio albums. Neither of the two confirmed that a new record is underway, but Buckland was candid enough to add that they have started recording more than one song. Reports earlier this year started circulating that the award-winning band has been working on an album, which will be called Music of the Spheres. 

Sources close to the band revealed last February that the band has been making the most of their time during the quarantine season. Apparently, they have been keeping themselves busy writing new songs and recording them. The last album the band released was in 2019, titled Everyday Life. 

Apart from Coldplay, the five-hour Glastonbury event also featured Wolf Alice, Damon Albarn, HAIM, and Radiohead’s Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood’s new band, The Smile. The band debuted their song We Don’t Know What Tomorrow Brings. Other songs performed by The Smile included The Smoke, You Will Never Work in Television Again, Opposites, Panavision, Just Eyes and Mouth, and Thin Thing. 

Wolf Alice, on the other hand, started off with their love song Don’t Delete the Kisses, followed by Smile, Formidable Cool, The Last Man on Earth, and Giant Peach. The band also debuted its new song How Can I Be Okay? from its album titled Blue Weekend. 

Music fans also enjoyed phenomenal performances from Michael Kiwanuka, George Ezra, the IDLES, Jorja Smith, Kano, and DJ Honey featuring Roisin Murphy. 

Poetry was also a huge part of the Glastonbury event courtesy of Kae Tempest, George the Poet, and PJ Harvey. A skit was also delivered by Kurupt FM from the English sitcom People Just Do Nothing. 

REFERENCES:

1. https://www.nme.com/news/music/coldplay-debut-new-song-human-heart-glastonbury-livestream-2946389 
2. https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-57216005
3. https://www.bandwagon.asia/articles/glastonbury-live-at-worthy-farm-festival-report-gig-review-coldplay-haim-michael-kiwanuka-wolf-alice-idles-radiohead-the-smile-jorja-smith-kano-may-2021 
4. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/music/concerts/coldplay-pull-glastonbury-festival-back-brink-disaster/ 

Image source: Ultimate Classic Rock

While the 1980s are often associated with electro dance music, the decade also saw the rising popularity of rock, with bands like Kiss, Led Zeppelin, and Guns N’ Roses making one hit after another. In the mid-80s, Bon Jovi reached global recognition, making them one of the most famous rock bands of all time. While most people can easily recognize lead singer Jon Bon Jovi for helming the band’s name, Richie Sambora has been equally responsible for the band’s success.

Born and raised in New Jersey, Richie Sambora’s first venture into music with the accordion, playing from six years old before picking up the guitar in 1970, following Jimi Hendrix’s death. Growing up, the young musician was heavily influenced by the rock and roll of the 1960s and the blues genre. Sambora also cites Spanish classical music as a major influence. He would later learn the drums, bass, saxophone, and piano.

Sambora would take his musical gift to co-found the band Message with the late Dean Fasano before leaving to take a two-week trip to Los Angeles, where he hoped to win an audition for a place in the band Kiss. However, Sambora’s venture was unsuccessful. He would return home, where a friend referred him to a local artist whose music taste and style aligned more closely with his. Meeting the artist, Sambora would join Jon Bon Jovi, replacing Dave Sabao as the band’s guitarist. By 1983, the band would get signed with Mercury Records.

From there, Richie Sambora would become Bon Jovi’s writing partner. The duo co-wrote some of the anthems that continue to be praised as classics today, like “You Give Love a Bad Name,” “Living On a Prayer,” “It’s My Life,” and “Wanted Dead or Alive.” Throughout the 80s, the band encountered massive success, visiting more than twenty-two countries and performing more than 232 shows. Sambora and Bon Jovi would later perform a sold-out homecoming concert in New Jersey before flying to the Soviet Union to perform, making them the first band officially sanctioned by the Soviet government to perform in the Soviet Union. Their album New Jersey became the first American album to be legally released in the USSR.

However, the tours had taken a toll on everyone as they endured sixteen months of concerts. Following their Mexico tour, Richie Sambora and his bandmates went home as they realized there were no clear plans for their future. By 1991, Sambora, like his fellow bandmates, went into solo ventures. He released his first solo album titled “Stranger in this Town,” which allowed him to showcase his passion for the blues. Although it did not meet commercial success, the skillful guitarist was able to achieve a lifelong ambition. It would take seven years before he released a second album titled “Undiscovered Soul.” Released during a return with Bon Jovi, the album moved away from his blues sound, instead showing a versatile approach with power ballads alongside arena rock material. 

By 2009, Richie Sambora and Jon Bon Jovi were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame, establishing his place in history as one of the most iconic songwriters in the rock genre. Upon leaving Bon Jovi in 2013, Sambora would later work on a third solo album called “Aftermath of the Lowdown,” where he explored music areas comparable to David Bowie and Coldplay. 

References:

1. https://www.allmusic.com/artist/richie-sambora-mn0000852376/biography
2. https://www.songhall.org/profile/richie_sambora
3. http://mmusic-zone.blogspot.com/2014/01/richie-sambora-biography-bon-jovi.html