Before they were ever consciously uncoupled, Coldplay frontman Chris Martin wrote a song called "Fix You" for then-wife Gwyneth Paltrow. Even 10 years after its release on the album X&Y, "Fix You" by Coldplay continues to resonate with listeners and it's inspired many different covers — so many that I thought it was time to pick the best of them. The song isn't quite the biggest hit single from the album, but it certainly has a following and is one of the most covered and sampled Coldplay songs.
Lead singer Martin wrote the somber tune for his actress wife after her dad and his father-in-law Bruce Paltrow died of cancer. "I weep every time I hear it," Paltrow's mom Blythe Danner told the Daily Mail. And the track has lived on in many forms. "Fix You" was featured in episodes of the TV shows The Newsroom, Without a Trace, Cold Case, and Scrubs. The Los Angeles Kings play the song at their games at the Staples Center and played it after the team won the 2014 Stanley Cup.
And the song has been so widely covered. In no particular order, here are the best covers of "Fix You" that'll be sure to move you.
Carrie Underwood
The singer covered the tune on VH1's Unplugged with some gorgeous strings accompanying her.
Red Hot Chili Pipers
Upon first glance, you might've thought that said Peppers, but it's Pipers — as in bagpipers. These lads have a quite unique take on the song.
Gabrielle Aplin
The British singer and songwriter performed this awesome piano cover at BBC's Maida Vale studio.
Lizzy King
piano, soothing voice, gorgeous melodic
Boyce Avenue & Tyler Ward
The YouTube cover artists collaborated on this truly haunting electric guitar and acoustic mix cover for one of Boyce Avenue's collaboration albums.
Mackenzie Johnson
The singer celebrated her 22nd birthday with this great acoustic cover of the song.
Stereo Kicks
This one starts off slow, but the UK group's voices take this acoustic cover to another level.
Kurt Schneider & Austin Percario
This duo combines for this gorgeous and haunting piano rendition of the song.
Naturally 7
No instruments needed in this purely a capella cover.
Daniel Jang On Violin
This truly somber rendition is gorgeous in this masterful violin cover.
