The star-studded soundtrack to Zach Braff’s new film Wish I Was Here hits stores next week, and as we approach that release date, tracks from indie-folk giants like the Shins and Bon Iver continue to trickle out. Today, Cat Power and Coldplay have shared their collaborative cut “Wish I Was Here.”
Braff tells NPR that the piano-driven team-up came about after Chris Martin decided he wanted a woman to sing the song.
“I thought that was a genius idea, because one of the things the film is about is a strong woman (Kate Hudson’s character) becoming the matriarch of her family.” explains Braff. “When Chris and I were talking, we both kind of simultaneously said, ‘Cat Power.’ I set her up to watch the film in her apartment. The whole time she was watching she kept texting me all the different parts she was loving. She said yes the instant it was over.”
Chan Marshall recorded her vocals in New York’s Electric Lady studios and Martin later added his harmonies when the band produced the track. Though recorded by Martin and his band, the stark instrumental seems to skew more toward what Marshall has done of late than any of the icy material that populates Ghost Stories. Stream “Wish I Was Here” over at NPR.
