Coldplay at Super Bowl 50: The Guitar Wrangler
Travelling with Jonathan M. "Jonny" Buckland brought out the best in me as
a guitar player, but it's time to move on.
For three years, almost like an understudy, I’ve been his
instrument “Wrangler” in charge of all his 20+ guitars: repair, maintenance,
packing, moving, tuning, cleaning, and readying each one, for each song, of each
set in Coldplay concerts.
Playing alongside him in rehearsals, bouncing riffs back and
forth like Lebron James’ practice dummy: catching the ball, throwing it back…
catching the ball, throwing it back… riff after riff after riff. While I’m
actually doing Jonny’s mundane tasks I don’t think about it; it’s events like the NFL's Super Bowl 50 that make me think about what's next?
Wearing all black from head-to-toe, the best part of the job
is bringing Jonny guitars onstage, sometimes changing in the middle of a tune.
I pick up a little extra cash from Under Armour, one of the Coldplay tour
sponsors, by wearing everything they make from shoes/socks, pants, hooded
sweat-top, even black, sticky, football receivers gloves all sporting the
interlocking “UA” symbol—I can’t drop guitars!
With the white-hot spotlight on the star and me in all
black, I slip on and off the stage cat-like, never tripping on pedals, cords, amps, or
speakers; each guitar is tuned-up, set to the right volume, and ready for
another solo. The cat-burglar gets away.
It’s not quite like a NASCAR pit crew, but we have to keep accurate timing for a performance choreographed much like a Broadway
play; what looks like a free-form, extemporaneous detour by one of the world’s
best guitarists, has been practiced and tweaked like a daytime soap opera.
The
timing of a concert is exact, down to the last song. Only the encores are off
the clock… The audience earns the encores, which are truly made-up as they play them. Coldplay’s Super Bowl 50 halftime is scheduled by the second, and we’ll
probably only play three songs (that's a secret).
As big as the band is, we're just a few chaps from University College who'll get to perform in front of 100 million people on a stage in the middle of a bloody football field. (They're so humble they are performing for free; ironically, Jonny's favorite "football" team is the Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, which plays a different kind of game):
As big as the band is, we're just a few chaps from University College who'll get to perform in front of 100 million people on a stage in the middle of a bloody football field. (They're so humble they are performing for free; ironically, Jonny's favorite "football" team is the Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, which plays a different kind of game):
"I think we're firmly split down the middle between those of us who know absolutely nothing about football, and those of us who know almost absolutely nothing about football," said Buckland.
The instruments are Jonny’s tools, like a surgeon, and he principally uses a '72 Telecaster by Fender, which is like a Strat. Jonny Boy occasionally straps on a Gibson Les Paul, and sometimes even a Rickenbacker. More than 20 guitars used by Buckland provide a unique sound to accent Chris Martin’s lead vocals.
In the last two CDs there have been guitar solos revealing his incredible talent:
Look to "True Love" off of Ghost Stories CD at 2:57 on the track; compared with "Up&Up" off their latest album at 3:19 in the song. There are more guitar solos I could quote you, but those two will do the trick.
In the last two CDs there have been guitar solos revealing his incredible talent:
Look to "True Love" off of Ghost Stories CD at 2:57 on the track; compared with "Up&Up" off their latest album at 3:19 in the song. There are more guitar solos I could quote you, but those two will do the trick.
For me it has always been about the guitar. As an aviator or driver it is all about the vehicle, for a singer it’s about the voice, and in coaching, the victories. For me it is about the instrument. The rhythm, which provides structure for the song, the tone, which provides melody, and the chords, which undergird the accent of the words; all come from the lead guitarist: he’s the straw that stirs the drink. My inherent talent uses my eyes, ears, and fingers in coordination to play one of the most important instruments in the music industry. It was what I was made to do, and now I must be more purposeful about this gift.
After our 15-minutes of fame end with the halftime of Super Bowl 50, and I take off my black ninja suit; we’ll probably finish the evening back at the hotel playing our guitars, inventing new riffs. I may not even remember who won the game?
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