Speed of Sound (song)

"Speed of Sound"
Single by Coldplay
from the album X&Y
B-side	"Things I Don't Understand" "Proof"
Released	19 April 2005 (2005-04-19)[1]
Genre	Rock[2]
Length	4:49 (album version) 4:23 (radio edit)
Label	Parlophone Capitol
Songwriter(s)	Guy Berryman Jonny Buckland Will Champion Chris Martin
Producer(s)	Danton Supple Coldplay
Coldplay singles chronology
"God Put a Smile upon Your Face" (2003) "Speed of Sound" (2005) "Fix You" (2005)
Music video
"Speed of Sound" on YouTube

"Speed of Sound" is a song by British rock band Coldplay. It was released as the lead single for their third studio album, X&Y (2005), on 19 April 2005, following its radio premiere on the previous day at Steve Lamacq's BBC Radio 1 show. Written by all members of the band, the song was built around a piano and guitar riff, peaking into a synthesiser-heavy chorus. A physical version of the single was issued on 23 May in the United Kingdom, containing the B-sides "Things I Don't Understand" and "Proof".

Vocalist and pianist Chris Martin stated that the song was written after the band had listened to English singer Kate Bush. Upon release, it charted in the UK Singles Chart at number two. In the United States, it debuted at number eight on the Billboard Hot 100,^[3] becoming their first top ten hit and highest-peaking song until "Viva la Vida" went number one in 2008.

"Speed of Sound" was named the Song of the Year by the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) and later nominated for Best Rock Song and Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal at the 48th Annual Grammy Awards. It won the Brit Award for Best British Single at the 2006 Brit Awards. In the same year, the music video received four nominations at the MTV Video Music Awards. "Speed of Sound" is also notable for being the billionth download purchased on the iTunes Store.