I Follow Chris Cornell in Heaven
First off, I never heard of the guy. Or Soundgarden, or Audioslave.
Second, I never got into grunge. Bought Nevermind cause I read it was good stuff. Liked the cover. Played it once. Put it away. Got divorced. The LP lives with my ex.
I should explain for people who don’t know me. I’m 70 years old. Maybe 71. Explains a lot, yes?
So, why am I following Chris Cornell (I have to assume it’s Chris Cornell) through a fairy-like pastoral woods as he plays acoustic guitar? I’m enjoying the scenery, my footsteps following his some 10 feet to the rear but, why am I here? I don’t understand. I don’t even much like what he’s playing. And yet I follow. The woods are filled with love and magic. Maybe that’s why. Destination unknown.
Scene 2 — Did you not figure out that this is a dream from early this morning?
Chris is playing guitar on a small stage in the woods. I’m sitting on stone bleachers maybe 35 feet back. It’s like a small Greek ampitheater. Very much like this one…
There’s a small assembly of people sitting around me.. His music sounds much better than when I was following him throught the woods. Everybody’s grooving.
Scene 3 — I’m surrounded by even more people on the stone bleachers.
Chris is playing piano on the left hand side of the stage. He’s singing. Everyone is enthralled. Best of all, there’s this blonde haired girl and she’s resting her head on my shoulder as we listen. Never felt so peaceful… never felt so good… not in this life.
My morning habit is Twitter and news.google. I see it on Twitter first. Soundgarden and Audioslave frontman Chris Cornell has died. Don’t mean much to me, yet I retweet it cause I know there must be a lot of folks who loved him.
I read more on news.google. Hey! Wait a minute! I remember liking this song!
The dream reasserts. I put away my attempts at understanding and just enjoy the privilege and the pleasure of baring witness to Chris Cornell in heaven.
UPDATE: Found this song I like. Ok, love.
It’s off the album Temple of the Dog.
Temple of the Dog was an American rock band that formed in Seattle, Washington in 1990. It was conceived by vocalist Chris Cornell of Soundgarden as a tribute to his friend, the late Andrew Wood, lead singer of the bands Malfunkshun and Mother Love Bone. The line-up includes Stone Gossard on rhythm guitar, Jeff Ament on bass guitar (both ex-members of Mother Love Bone), Mike McCready on lead guitar, and Matt Cameron on drums. Eddie Vedder appeared as a guest to provide some lead and backing vocals.
The band released its only album, the self-titled Temple of the Dog, in April 1991 through A&M Records. The recording sessions took place in November and December 1990 at London Bridge Studios, in Seattle, Washington with producer Rakesh “Rick” Parashar. Although earning praise from music critics at the time of its release, the album was not widely recognized until 1992, when Vedder, Ament, Gossard, and McCready had their breakthrough with Pearl Jam.
The band toured in 2016 in celebration of the 25th anniversary of their self-titled album.
The exploration continues…
