Led by the powerhouse vocals of Chris Cornell, Soundgarden was one of the pioneering Seattle bands associated with the dawn of grunge rock. By 1994, they were on the charts with "Black Hole Sun," the haunting ballad whose creepy video burned into everyone's brain. The song became their biggest hit, peaking at #24 and winning a Grammy for Best Hard Rock Performance. Cornell's gloomy lyrics and the band's gritty riffs made some other notable chart appearances through the decade. "Fell On Black Days" (#54), "Pretty Noose" (#37), "Burden In My Hand" (#40), and "Blow Up The Outside World" (#53) are classics of the genre. The band broke up in 1997 but reunited after a few years. They scored one final chart appearance in 2010 when "Black Rain" hit #96. It was a previously unreleased song, but the reunion led to a new album in 2012 called "King Animal." Appropriately, the first track is called "Been Away Too Long" and kicks ass. "Halfway There" is a more radio-friendly mid-tempo number that deserved to put the band back on the charts. In addition to his work in Soundgarden, Cornell recorded with Temple of the Dog and Audioslave, amidst completing several solo albums. Sadly, this tremendous talent committed suicide in 2017 at the age of 52.
One of the best and most versatile vocalists of our day, in my humble opinion, is Chris Cornell. Cutting his teeth in the 90s hard rock band Soundgarden, Cornell was also a member of two successful alternative rock super groups, Temple of the Dog and Audioslave. Cornell's first solo effort, the hauntingly beautiful "Euphoria Morning", reached #18 on the Billboard Top 200. Singles "Can't Change Me" and "Preaching The End of the World" are both amazing in their own way, but didn't chart. Cornell did have a taste of chart success as a solo artist with "You Know My Name", which served as the theme song to the James Bond movie Casino Royale in 2006 (it got to #79). The song appeared on his sophomore record, "Carry On", helping propel it to #17. But despite the release of additional strong cuts like the rocking "No Such Thing" and the melancholy "Arms Around Your Love", no other singles from this record hit the charts. I've nothing to say about his strange 2009 record, "Scream". Cornell's latest record, "Higher Truth", appeared in 2015 and got to #19. One of his most introspective and thoughtful records, the sparse and largely acoustical sound draws attention to Cornell's vocal talents and songwriting. "Our Time In The Universe" is classic Cornell. It is a welcome return to form.
