The A Rush of Blood to the Head Tour was the second concert tour undertaken by British rock band Coldplay. It was launched in support of their second studio album A Rush of Blood to the Head. They performed a total of 151 shows across Europe, Asia, Oceania and the Americas. Between 21 and 23 July 2003, the band filmed Live 2003 at the Hordern Pavilion, Sydney.
Background
Overall, Coldplay's concerts during this period showcased its progression as a bona fide live act. The band began playing more shows in arenas and amphitheatres, moving away from the club venues that dominated earlier tours. Shows also had more elaborate stage and lighting effects. For example, strobe lighting for the song "Daylight" featured the image of a rotating sun superimposed over the stage. Taking a cue from U2's Elevation Tour and Nine Inch Nails' Fragility Tour, Coldplay also adopted a series of back screens that displayed video footage of each band member simultaneously.[2]
Other highlights included:
Lead singer Chris Martin sang with Ron Sexsmith on the track, "Gold in Them Hills" during the headline set.
An ambient, instrumental introduction before the start of "Politik" for every show. This can particularly be heard on the Live 2003 DVD. Note: Not the same as the Brian Eno introduction sometimes used before this intro.
Guitarist Jonny Buckland regularly played a harmonica solo on the track "Don't Panic". He tossed the harmonica into the crowd after the solo's completion. Buckland also performed an original electric guitar introduction for the track.
The aforementioned back screens were unfurled mid-concert, usually during the beginning of "One I Love".
At some shows, Martin sang lyrics after inhaling from a helium balloon.[3]
Martin usually wore a Make Trade Fair T-shirt during 2002 shows to promote the Oxfam campaign. Make Trade Fair booths were present at venues, where concert-goers could sign petitions and learn about the campaign's objectives.
An specially created, ambient introduction for "Yellow", featuring a dark and gloomy tone. Martin sings the lyrics, "Your skin... Oh-oh-oh..." during the introduction, which afterwards leads to the regular start of the song.
Opening acts
Most of the tour included at least one supporting act on each concert, with English singer Richard Hawley opening all performances held between 19 and 28 June 2002.[4] Except for the show at Rome's Valle Giulia (which had the Music), all dates from 30 June to 12 July included 1 Giant Leap.[4] For the second North American leg, Coldplay invited Northern Irish band Ash,[5] while the third European run featured Idlewild.[6] In 2003, Ron Sexsmith opened for the band from 21 January to 9 February.[7] He was succeeded by the Music starting from 24 February.[8] As Coldplay returned to Europe for a fourth leg, Feeder was chosen as their support and Ian McCulloch additionally guested in the United Kingdom.[9] The last North American run counted with Eisley, who were joined by Damien Rice on 25 May,[10] and Sexsmith between 27 May and 13 June.[11] During the tour's final months, Coldplay went to Asia, Oceania and Latin America: the first two continents had Betchadupa,[12] while Mexico featured Jumbo.[13]
Concert synopsis
The tour's concerts were noted for its use of strobe lighting.
The 2002 shows contained a rough 50/50 split in material from Parachutes and A Rush of Blood to the Head. The official tour in 2003 focused on songs from the second album, as well as many unreleased tracks. For example, the future Live 2003 song "Moses" and "Fix You" B-side "Pour Me" were introduced during the tour. Other new songs included future X&Y b-sides, "Gravity" & "Proof", "Your World Turns Upside Down", which would later become a completely different song called "The World Turned Upside Down" as another b-side to "Fix You", and an unreleased piano ballad called "A Ladder to the Sun".
Coldplay also made a habit of covering other artists on the tour, often as outros to their own songs. Covers ranged from a tongue-in-cheek excerpt of Avril Lavigne's "Sk8er Boi" to the Louis Armstrong classic "What a Wonderful World". Coldplay also regularly covered Echo & the Bunnymen's "Lips Like Sugar" in its entirety, in homage to Ian McCulloch's role as a mentor during the recording of A Rush of Blood to the Head.
In total, the tour grossed $27,152,888 from 854,424 tickets sold.[15]Pollstar also reported that Coldplay sold 341,201 admissions in 2003, which placed them at number 42 on the list of most attended tours of the year.[16]Rolling Stone Australia ranked the shows at Sydney's Hordern Pavilion among the best in the venue's history in 2024.[17]
Set list
This set list was taken from the 22 July 2003 concert in Sydney, Australia. It does not represent all shows throughout the tour.[18]
^Chorney-Booth, Elizabeth (21 September 2002). "LIVE: Coldplay and Ash". Chart Attack. Archived from the original on 18 June 2004. Retrieved 12 October 2018.
^"Deleita Coldplay a México" [Coldplay Delights Mexico]. El Siglo de Torreón (in Spanish). 8 September 2003. Archived from the original on 15 January 2023. Retrieved 15 January 2023.
^"Glastonbury 2002". The Guardian. 1 July 2002. Archived from the original on 15 January 2023. Retrieved 15 January 2023.
^"Rock Werchter 2002". Rock Werchter. 2023. Archived from the original on 15 January 2023. Retrieved 15 January 2023.
^"Midtfyns Festival Sliter" [Midtfyn Festival is Struggling]. NRK (in Norwegian). 9 July 2002. Archived from the original on 15 January 2023. Retrieved 15 January 2023.
^"WDR Eins Live". Coldplay Timeline. 10 July 2002. Archived from the original on 15 January 2023. Retrieved 15 January 2023.
^"Head Rush"(PDF). Coldplay E-Zine. September 2002. Archived(PDF) from the original on 15 January 2023. Retrieved 15 January 2023.
^"Fox Theatre". Coldplay Timeline. 16 August 2002. Archived from the original on 15 January 2023. Retrieved 15 January 2023.
^"Coldplay en Direct Sur MCM" [Coldplay Live on MCM]. Le Figaro (in French). 22 August 2002. Archived from the original on 16 January 2023. Retrieved 16 January 2023.
^リキッドルーム [Ebisu Liquid Room]. Coldplay Timeline (in Japanese). 6 December 2002. Archived from the original on 6 March 2023. Retrieved 6 March 2023.
コールドプレイ、東京でのクラブショーが決定 [Coldplay Announces Club Show in Tokyo]. Ototoy (in Japanese). 17 April 2014. Archived from the original on 29 January 2023. Retrieved 29 January 2023.
"Viva Access". J-Wave (in Japanese). November 2002. Archived from the original on 4 December 2002. Retrieved 27 April 2023.
^"Coldplay Kommer til Quart" [Coldplay Comes to Quart]. NRK (in Norwegian). 19 February 2003. Archived from the original on 15 January 2023. Retrieved 15 January 2023.
