Coldplay taps Pete Yorn for tour opener

NEW YORK (Billboard) - Coldplay has chosen singer-songwriter Pete Yorn to open for the band on more than a dozen dates of its spring tour.

Yorn returns to active duty on June 23 with the release of "Back and Fourth," his first album since 2006's 'Nightcrawler." He's expected to highlight songs from "Back and Fourth" on the Coldplay dates.

Yorn radically revamped his creative process for the new album's intensely personal 10 tracks. He wrote the lyrics first, then recorded the album over a two-month period on producer Mike Mogis' home turf in Omaha, Neb., rather than in Los Angeles.

After playing most of the instruments himself on his previous releases, Yorn worked with a well-credentialed group of musicians that included drummer Joey Waronker (Beck), guitarist Jonny Polonsky, pianist and arranger Nate Wolcott (Bright Eyes, The Faint, Rilo Kiley), bassist Joe Karnes (John Cale) and backing vocalist Orenda Fink (Azure Ray).

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As much as it was what I wanted to do, it was definitely hard on me," Yorn told Billboard.com about working with a band for the first time. "I'm so used to doing it all myself, it's definitely a challenge for me to let go and let people bring their stuff to the table. But these were all musicians I definitely have a lot of respect for, and they played some things I don't think I would have thought of myself, so that was good."

Tour dates for Coldplay and Pete Yorn:

May 15: West Palm Beach, FL (Cruzan Amphitheatre)

May 17: Atlanta, GA (Lakewood Amphitheatre)

May 18: Birmingham, AL (Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre Birmingham)

May 20: Virginia Beach, VA (Verizon Wireless Virginia Beach Amphitheatre)

May 21: Washington, DC (Nissan Pavilion)

May 23: Hartford, CT (Meadows Music Theater)

May 24: Hershey, PA (Hershey Stadium)

May 26: Philadelphia, PA (Susquehanna Center)

May 27: Saratoga Springs, NY (SPAC)

http://www.reuters.com/article/entertainmentNews/idUSTRE5326IS20090403