A Rush of Blood to the Head

Coldplay started recording A Rush of Blood to the Head in London in September 2001,^[14] but later relocated to Liverpool, where they had recorded some of the songs on their debut album Parachutes (2000).^[15] Lead singer Chris Martin said that once there they "became obsessed with recording".^[15] "In My Place" was among the first songs recorded for the album during this period, and the one that the band released as the album's lead single because it was the song that made them want to do a second album. It kept them going and made them think they could still write songs, following a strange period of not really knowing what they were doing three months after the success of Parachutes.^[15]

The opening track "Politik" was recorded two days following 2001's September 11 attacks. According to an interview with lead singer Chris Martin, "I wrote the song on 9/11 and we recorded it on 9/13. We were all, like everyone else, I suppose, a little confused and frightened. I get off tour and had a rest for one or two days. But then I get antsy again. I want to write songs and do things, 'cause you never know what might happen."^[16] The band wrote more than twenty songs in the months following for the album and some of those, including "In My Place" and "Animals", were performed live during the tours promoting Parachutes.^[9][17] The album's title was revealed through a post on the band's official website.^[18]

During initial recording sessions in Liverpool, Martin and guitarist Jonny Buckland worked alone, and only on weekends. Each Monday, they would present the song ideas that they had developed to their bandmates.^[15] With A Rush of Blood to the Head nearly completed, Martin went into the studio late one night and wrote a piano riff that he has stated "just came out". The band recognised that this early version of the song, that would become "Clocks", was special the first time Martin played it to them. Reasoning that it was too late to include the song on the album, they recorded a demo version and included it on a CD marked "Songs for #3", featuring unfinished tracks they intended to work on for their third studio album.^[19][20]

By June 2002, the band had completed A Rush of Blood to the Head, but thought their output sounded "rubbish" and reached an agreement with record label Parlophone to postpone the release of the album until they were completely satisfied.^[19][20] Subsequently, many songs were discarded because they sounded like they could have been on Parachutes. Martin has claimed that it would have been uninteresting: "It would have shown that we're happy to sit back on what we'd done, and we're not. For us, it was important to progress and try to improve upon our abilities as musicians." Such ambitions put the band under strain: "sometimes practice sessions ended abruptly with one or more members of Coldplay threatening to quit".^[21]

After headlining the 2002 Glastonbury Festival, Coldplay returned to the studio and worked on some tracks from the "Songs for #3" CD they had produced earlier. Phil Harvey, the band's manager, heard "Clocks" and urged them to rework it immediately: "No, you must do that song now 'cause you're going on [in the lyrics] about urgency, and you're talking about keeping this song back. That doesn't make sense."^[19][20]

"God Put a Smile upon Your Face"

"God Put a Smile upon Your Face" consists of electric and rhythm guitar.

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Production of the album began quickly with the writing of the track "Politik", which was a song seen as a reflection of the world at the time, giving the band a renewed perspective on their lives and society. Many of the song lyrics on the album relate strongly to the theme of urgency. Martin has commented that previous songs were more relaxed since they were in a comfortable state of mind: "Perhaps there's a bit more urgency on some of these songs. And that's born from all the places we've been and the things we've experienced." Martin has explained. In relation to the theme of urgency, Martin has also stated that the album's title means "doing something on impulse".^[21]

Several songs on the album are about the themes of love and relationships. These tracks are based on reality, but according to Martin, they were written with a fictional twist: "Songs are like fairy tales: they have a beginning and an end and you can make it all work perfectly. Real life doesn't work like that".^[15]

The album includes ballads and acoustic songs featuring extensive use of guitar and piano. The U2-esque "epic rock" of the album's opening track "Politik", the piano-driven "Clocks", the loud guitars of "A Whisper" and the country rock-inspired guitar in "Warning Sign" were seen as an extension of the band's musical range.^[22] Chris Martin has also stated that the album's title track is an homage to American singer-songwriter Johnny Cash.^[23] The title track is about uncertainties faced in life.^[24] According to Martin, the song "Green Eyes" was composed for an "American friend" and guitarist Jonny Buckland.^[25] During an interview for Apple Music, drummer Will Champion revealed that "A Whisper" was recorded on a single take, adding that the band never managed to re-record the song or play it live properly after the original session.^[26]

The album cover for A Rush of Blood to the Head was designed by photographer Sølve Sundsbø. Sundsbø had been hired by fashion magazine Dazed & Confused in the late 1990s to produce a shot with a "technological feel, something all white", according to himself. As an artist, Sundsbø attempted to do a unique original piece, creating a shot that had never been seen before; he suggested taking shots using a three-dimensional scanning machine—used to measure head sizes for USAF fighter jet helmets—to fulfill his vision.^[27]

The model for the shots, named Mim, wore all-white cosmetic makeup, along with a coloured twill cape, to aesthetically produce optimal and desired results. The scanner could not properly identify some of the colors on the cape, so they were replaced with digital spikes, and the head in the image was chopped as the machine was unable to scan more than about thirty centimetres in height at a time.^[28] At first, Sundsbø had mixed feelings about the image, stating that when he first saw the result, he was terrified. "I thought it was so beautiful, but I was sure the magazine was never going to run it." The editor of the magazine, however, absolutely loved the image, and eventually featured it in one of their publications. After seeing the image in a publication of the magazine, Chris Martin approached Sundsbø for proper permission to use the image as the cover of A Rush of Blood to the Head. For the album's singles, Martin asked Sundsbø for any ideas; Sundsbø suggested scanning the head of each member of the band.^[27]

The album booklet contains only two photos; one with Coldplay in a location that was rumoured to be a forest,^{[clarification needed]} and one with the band in a recording studio. The album cover was among the ten chosen by the Royal Mail for a set of "Classic Album Cover" postage stamps issued in January 2010.^[29][30]

A Rush of Blood to the Head was released on 26 August 2002 by Parlophone in the United Kingdom, and a day later on 27 August 2002 by Capitol in the United States. The album was completed and originally ready to hand over to record representatives and released in June 2002; however, after recording a demo of "Clocks" intended for the third album, the band delayed release by two months to allow them to work it into a finished track and include it on A Rush of Blood to the Head.^[19] Capitol released a remastered version of the album in 2008 on a 180-gram vinyl record as part of its "From the Capitol Vaults" series.^[31]

A Rush of Blood to the Head reached number one in 12 countries.^[98] EMI shipped over 2 million copies of the album in its first week worldwide.^[98] It debuted at number-one on the UK Albums Chart selling 273,924 units.^[99] The British Phonographic Industry has since certified the album 10× Platinum for 3 million.^[100] With the subsequent release of "Clocks" and "The Scientist", the album spent over one year on the chart. A Rush of Blood to the Head has been placed at number seven on the list of United Kingdom's 20 biggest-selling albums of the 21st century, published by Music Week.^[99] In July 2011, the record climbed from number 176 back to number 44 in the album's 250th week there.^[101] As of October 2021, it has sold over 3 million copies in the UK, making it Coldplay's best-selling album and the 10th biggest of the 21st century.^[102][103]

It spent four consecutive weeks at number one on the European Top 100 Albums chart in 2002.^{[104][105][106]} In the United States, A Rush of Blood was Coldplay's first venture into the Top 5, with 140,854 copies sold. It was stronger than its predecessor, Parachutes, which debuted at number 189 in December 2000.^[107] A Rush of Blood debuted at number-one on the Canadian Albums Chart, selling 28,200 copies in its first week.^[108] The album has been certified 4x Platinum by the Canadian Recording Industry Association for shipments of over 400,000.^[109] It has been certified 7× Platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association, having accumulated shipments of more than 490,000 units.^[110]

All tracks are written by Coldplay, with co-production from Ken Nelson.

Credits adapted from AllMusic.^[111]

Coldplay

• Chris Martin – lead vocals, piano, keyboards, acoustic guitar, rhythm guitar (tracks 8–9)
• Jonny Buckland – lead guitar, backing vocals (tracks 1 and 6), acoustic guitar (track 4), twelve-string slide guitar (track 6)
• Guy Berryman – bass guitar
• Will Champion – drums, backing vocals

Technical and additional personnel