Richard Ashcroft a limited number of appearances in 2003, Ashcroft was absent from the music business for about two years. He later explained this in 2006, stating that "[e]veryone got it into their heads over the last few years that I was in my ivory tower like Lennon, baking bread all day. The fact of the matter was that I was bringing up kids". Ashcroft began playing gigs again in mid-2005, and, on 2 July at the Live 8 concert in Hyde Park, Coldplay invited him to perform with them during their set. They performed The Verve's hit "Bitter Sweet Symphony", after
John Ashcroft with author Gary Thomas titled "Lessons from a Father to His Son". Ashcroft was given an honorary doctorate before giving the commencement at Toccoa Falls College in 2018. John Ashcroft John David Ashcroft (born May 9, 1942) is an American lawyer and former politician who served as the 79th U.S. Attorney General (2001–2005), in the George W. Bush Administration. He later founded The Ashcroft Group, a Washington D.C. lobbying firm. Ashcroft previously served as Attorney General of Missouri (1976–1985), and as the 50th Governor of Missouri (1985–1993), having been elected for two consecutive terms in succession (a historical first for