With Bono recovering from a bicycle accident, Bruce Springsteen and Coldplay’s Chris Martin filled in for the U2 lead singer at a performance for World AIDS Day on December 1. The performance, in Times Square in New York City, included Springsteen singing “Where the Streets Have No Name” and “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For.”
Coldplay is often compared to U2 for various reasons, so another natural choice for a Bono fill-in was Chris Martin. Check out Martin sang “Beautiful Day” and “With or Without You.” [Update: Unfortunately, videos of these performances are no longer available as of 2024.]
Nobody can match Bono on these songs, but Springsteen and Martin do a great job, with Springsteen adding a rough edge while Martin most closely matches Bono’s voice. We wish Bono a quick recovery and are thankful that these superstars filled in for a good cause.
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I enjoyed the show alot, especially the Boss’ part. He cannot seem to give less than 110%! I thought Carrie Underwood was pretty good too. I don’t know much about Coldplay, but I didn’t know if Chris Martin was playing down his performance out of deference to Bono or if he’s just a more laid back performer. Either way, he sure is pretty to look at.