The best No 1 records: Coldplay – Viva la Vida

2008: Coldplay's record label cautioned against releasing Viva La Vida as a single yet they needn't have worried – it's since become a fan favouriteThe frustrating truth for anyone hellbent on writing a hit record is that, ultimately, there's no formula. Few hits in the last decade illustrate the point as well as the song which reimagines Chris Martin as a deposed dictator reduced to "sweep[ing] the streets I used to own". Perhaps because of its lack of a chorus, or the presence of a string ar...

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