It took me more than a few tries to get into the last great British Band Coldplay. They really first caught my attention when Chris Martin married Gwyneth Paltrow.

I had met the actress at an after party for her film “Sliding Doors” (1998), which remains a classic, with one of the best soundtracks I’ve ever heard … check and see.

I had a few moments with her and found her enormously captivating and charming.

Not anything you’d expect her to be like. She was dating Ben Affleck back then and he graciously hovered in the background letting Gwynnie have her night.

Check out “Every Teardrop” Coldplay’s new song!

Truth be told, I ended up talking with him for the rest of the night and found him even more down to earth, but of course, this was before Jennifer Lopez.

Anyway, from my first listen to Coldplay I became a instant devotee. Songs like “Talk” and “Fix You” were amazing. Then, I heard “Clocks,” which, to me, remains one of the best rock songs ever.

This five-minute opus rivals anything The Beatles, or Led Zeppelin, or David Bowie ever performed. It’s as good as the medley from “Abbey Road,” “Stairway To Heaven,” and “Dream On” combined.

It’s that good!

You may feel that you’ve never heard the group before, but, you have. When “Clocks” was out, it was everywhere.

When their 2008 album Viva la Vida came out, they were equal to U-2.

The album’s ten tracks were just pure gold, with the first single being the title track, a universal hit.

I loved the slower tracks “Violet Hill” and “Cemeteries of London.”

My friend Tom Cuddy invited me to a private show at Madison Square Garden and it was simply phenomenal.

Actually, thinking about it now, it was one of the best I’ve ever seen. And, remember, this was for an invitation-only audience: Critics, media people, a tough crowd for sure, and all immediately won over.

They toured for what seemed like two years and appeared on “Saturday Night Live” twice (where they performed an unprecedented four songs). Yes, they had become an institution.

Since then, critics and audiences alike waited with baited breath to see what they’d return with.

Their new single, with the rather fetching title of “Every Teardrop Is a Waterfall” was their answer.

I’m a title guy and that title just knocked me out wondering what it would sound like? Up-tempo or dreamily atmospheric?

I just listened to the song and it sounds like Peter Allen’s 1985 song “I Go To Rio,” both upbeat and bristling with energy.

Funny enough, the group had an incident in 2008, over the fact that there was a verse on their song “If I Could Fly” that writer/performer Joe Satriani thought sounded like some of his music.

After much controversy played out in the media, the case was settled out of court, meaning Satriani received a bag-o-cash.

I listened to both songs and there was some commonality, but did they rip him off?

Hard to say, but my guess is no; these Coldplay guys are just too real for it to have happened on purpose.

You know, they’re only 26 letters and 12 notes! In, perhaps, a precautionary move, they’ve given Allen credit on this new track … just in case.

It’s a funny take, but just goes to show you how litigious everyone seem to be these days.

That said it’s a great track, worthy of the Coldplay cannon. Great band, yes, one of the last great bands.

Palisades Park

Freddy Cannon is on the verge of a major resurgence; he’s completing his biography, tentatively titled “Where The Action Is,” with best-selling author Mark Bego. It is scheduled for release later this year.

What’s more, his music is as relevant as ever. His third major hit song in 1962, “Palisades Park,” was featured in “X Men/First Class.”

Cannon also holds the record for the most number of appearances on Dick Clark’s late-great “American Bandstand” TV show.

Incidentally, the song was written by game show host Chuck “The Gong Show” Barris, and is now owned by ex-Beatle Paul McCartney.

Cannon, who now resides in Los Angeles, continues to tour throughout the year.

Names In The News:

Roy Trakin, Lamar Fike, Lisa Richie, Joel Diamond, Robey, Bud Scoppa, James Edstrom, Debbie Gibson, Elizabteh Neff, Missy, Morgan Stone, Andy Gould, Erik Stein, Howard Stern, Julian Sundby, David Adelson, Dayme, Keith Girard, Nicole Nirvana, Cfs