Before last week, I only dabbled in Coldplay. I knew their hits and would turn up my favorites when I’d hear them in the car. I knew Coldplay Frontman Chris Martin was married to Gwyneth Paltrow, and I knew the pair recently split. But on the night I was producing the iHeartRadio Album Release Party with Coldplay, I had no idea Chris Martin was so incredibly kind.

To properly set up this story, I need to tell you about my dad. He’s 73 and looks like an elderly version of director Rob Reiner or health guru Dr. Andrew Weil, if, say, the good doctor replaced his vitamins with fettuccine alfredo… and if he was diagnosed with a mysterious brain disorder that ransacked his memory banks. Dad’s once bright eyes now are distant, as if he’s in a constant state of trying to remember where he put the remote. He has trouble recalling my name and what year it is; he sometimes forgets how to put on his pants or buckle his seatbelt. We’re over a year into this new normal, but each day it’s as if he severs one more synapse.

By now you’re probably asking yourself, what does this dude have to do with Coldplay?

“Viva La Vida” was the only album I ever bought my dad. He loved the title track when it came out in 2008. I remember the top half of his body would rock out to the rhythmic violins, his fists clenched above his head, his cheesy, white man’s overbite proudly on display. The song made him joyful, an emotion we rarely see in him these days.

So, when I told him I had to cut out early from our Denny’s breakfast for a shoot with Coldplay, Dad’s eyes lit up. Could he possibly remember Coldplay? Fork still in hand, he gave his best fist pump and hummed the chorus of “Viva La Vida.”

The shoot with Coldplay was hectic, electric and, as often is the case with live productions, I barely had a second to soak it in. But when the band broke into “Viva La Vida,” I took a moment and imagined my dad in the sea of chanting, fist-pumping fans.

Coldplay went on to perform several tunes from their new album “Ghost Stories,” including their latest single “A Sky Full of Stars.” Between songs, they playfully chatted with the event’s host Elvis Duran about making the album and which band member is grumpiest in the morning.

When the show ended, Chris unexpectedly came over to where I was standing with Elvis to thank him for making the band feel so welcome. The two said their goodbyes, and I remembered something my dad had told me when I got up from the table at breakfast.

As Chris and Elvis parted ways backstage, I went to the left with Chris. We had about 50 paces worth of privacy before we’d encounter his team on the other side of the crossover, so I made them count. I briefly told Chris about my dad; how he sometimes can’t remember who I am, but today, he remembered Chris’ song. And as instructed, I told Chris, “He wanted me to tell you ‘Joel said hi.’”

Chris stopped in his tracks and looked at me. This guy who hears compliments and fan stories every day, how could my 73-year old dad’s “hello” warrant a rock star’s full attention? Chris’ expression was a warm mix of sympathy and awe, honored to know that one of his songs was stuck in an old man’s rapidly-emptying head.

Chris removed the “LOVE” button he’d been wearing on his t-shirt all night, and he put it in my hand. “Give this to your dad and tell him I said hi back.”

I smiled, we hugged, and I quickly retreated, letting him walk the remaining paces on his own.

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Coldplay’s “Ghost Stories” is available now. Target exclusively carries the deluxe edition with three bonus songs.

And, if you want to share the LOVE, go to lovebutton.org.