A song from David Bowie and Coldplay might have been a dream come true for many fans, but unfortunately Bowie prevented it from ever happening.
It’s a decision he may have come to regret, as the album that Coldplay suggested he feature on ended up going on to sell more than 6,800,000 records in its first year.
Coldplay were hoping to team up with Bowie on one particular track (Bryan Bedder/Getty Images)
Why did Coldplay want to team up with Bowie?
Well, it basically comes down to the fact that Bowie was a music legend.
Even if he wasn’t going to perform on their track, Coldplay had earmarked a spot on the song for what they described as a ‘David Bowie-type character’ to help bring the song to life.
Hoping to land the man himself, Coldplay frontman Chris Martin sent a letter to Bowie asking if he’d like to be involved.
What song did Chris Martin want Bowie on?
The ‘David Bowie-type character’ Coldplay was envisioning was set to feature in their 2008 track ‘Lhuna’, which featured on their album ‘Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends’.
The song told the story of someone fantasizing about a woman, Lhuna, with Coldplay hopeful that Bowie would be able to take on the character inspired by him.
Following its release, the album became the top-selling global release of 2008, so it’s safe to say it was a success – but why didn’t Bowie want to feature on it?
Coldplay didn’t need Bowie to succeed (Buda Mendes/Getty Images)
What was Bowie’s response to the opportunity?
Though Coldplay have proven their talent time and time again with their hit songs, ‘Lhuna’ was one song that Bowie just wasn’t keen on.
His reaction to the offer was remembered by Coldplay drummer Will Champion following Bowie’s death in 2016, when he revealed in an interview with NME that Bowie didn’t mince his words when responding to the opportunity.
According to Champion, the ‘Starman’ singer responded: “It’s not a very good song, is it?”
Martin also recalled Bowie’s response to their offer in his own interview to NME, saying: “He called me and said, ‘It’s not one of your best’.”
Though Bowie didn’t end up featuring on the track, Coldplay didn’t hold a grudge as Champion said: “He was very discerning – he wouldn’t just put his name to anything. I’ll give him credit for that!”
But while Coldplay might not have succeeded in getting Bowie’s name on their album, it obviously didn’t stop the ‘Viva La Vida’ record from being a hit.
