Speaking as a Soundgarden fan, and a fan of Chirs in general I have to break it up like this.
LTL and before
Lots of range and power, but mostly just heavy metal wailing. Not that notable.
TOTD
Songwriting took a vast leap forward. He actually started to *sing* to songs, but the heavy metal power high notes were still there. For the most part it worked.
BMF-Superunknown
His range and power are just ridiculously good, any he really does sing with emotion-- unfortunately it seems like he has trouble channeling this any anything but a power scream-- The actual singing is ordinary.
DOTU
I dunno. I really dislike the production and the sound effects on this record. Chris has such a beatuiful voice, and it seems he wants to be a legit singer at this point, but you could hardly tell because of all the damned sound effects. Pretty much any decent rock singer could have sung it and you wouldn't have known because of all the tampering.
EM
Really the first time where Chris attempts to be an actual singer on record-- most of this effort is met with success. He seems to be singing in a higher key on this record then he usually does when he sings pop now.
AS
I'm gonna get flamed mercilessly for this, but I have to say it because I think its the truth-- I think this is his finest vocal performance. Yeah I know he doesn't have the power high notes that would allow him to sing Limo wreck or Slaves and Bulldozers, but h is voice to so rich and powerful on stuff like Getaway Car, I Am The Highway, and Hypnotize it's hard to see him being able to pull these off at anytime previous.
Plus, I think he still sounds badass on Cochsie, Show Me How to Live etc. even if the heavy metal power high note part of his voice is gone, there's still power here. I suspect that something like Cochsie was pieced together from dozens of takes though-- there no way you could pull something like this off live and live to tell the story. All and all, I think this record features the lighter stuff I liked with EM, but still had enough uummpph to make it rock like a beast.
OOE, REV
I think the songwriting isn't nearly as strong in the past, and its pretty clear the CC has left SG metal behind to sing pop. He has a great voice for it. Hell, he could win on American idol, I just wish he'd put it to better use and sing better written, more meaningful, songs. I think I might get my wish when his next solo album comes out.
So, as a *singer,* I think the best might still be ahead of us.
I absolutely love Chris Cornell's voice on every soundgarden & audioslave record and I think that he is one of the most gifted lyricist the music world has seen over the last decade and a half. But I must say that I saw Audioslave three times over the last years and the last two times I saw them Cris's voice was so out of tune it hurt my ears, honestly he can't sing at the level that he delivers on the albums he records.
I will still listen to his records bur I do think it's ashame when you can't perform on stage what you've "promised" on record!!
I think his best vocals were done in the Ultramega OK - Superunknown era. But I could tell with Down On The Upside, and every record thereafter his voice was starting to go. Not to say he sucks, though. Because he doesn't. It actually took Audioslave's first CD for me to get into the rest of his work. And when I did, I was fucking impressed with it all. And still am. Not many vocalists can top him.
Why all the rage towards Cornell? He put out awesome albums with Soundgarden and pretty good ones as a member of Audioslave. Certainly, he was one of the better vocalists to come out of the Seattle scene and that takes some talent.
i dont think it's rage so much as annoyance. you can't talk to a pearl jam fan without them kissing cornell's ass and swearing that he is jesus christ to eddie's god. it's annoying. they react like you're a leper if you say you're not into soundgarden. i find his voice mostly grating, though he has his moments. it's mostly having him rammed down my throat all the time around here that makes me dislike him. kinda like how a good song being played to death on the radio can kill it.
i dont think it's rage so much as annoyance. you can't talk to a pearl jam fan without them kissing cornell's ass and swearing that he is jesus christ to eddie's god. it's annoying. they react like you're a leper if you say you're not into soundgarden. i find his voice mostly grating, though he has his moments. it's mostly having him rammed down my throat all the time around here that makes me dislike him. kinda like how a good song being played to death on the radio can kill it.
I dunno; it seems as if there has been some vitriol thrown about in this thread. That's why I invoked the rage comment.
FWIW... if I had to rank the lead vocalists from the big four, Cornell would rank third behind Staley and Vedder. Hell, could a case be made that Cantrell was a very good vocalist? I don't know - probably. Regardless, pretty good company, nonetheless. Makes me that more appreciative of the groups that came out in the day.
ok euphoria morning has possibly the bets vocals by a rock singer IMO. i prefer eddie over chris, but technically chris's voice is 'better'. [i still would take eddies tho] anyhow, badmotorfinger...cmon, who the fuck can sing like that..and temple of the dog..listen to say hello to heaven and call me a dog. AMAZING. all soundgarden was fucking fantastic in every way shape and form. his solo album was BRILLIANT. audioslave i thought was great, but not what he used to be..
2006: Hartford
2008: MSG 1, Hartford, Mansfield 2, Ed Solo NYC 1
2009: London (O2), Philly 1, 2, 3, & 4
2010: Hartford, Boston, MSG 1 & 2
2011: Ed Solo Hartford
2012: Philly (MIA Fest)
2013: Worcester 2, Brooklyn 1 & 2, Hartford
why do people feel the need to post slamming the threadstarter..... if i tell people i like PJ and they say "oh man they're shit!!" i just think... its your loss buddy
i'm not keen on Cornell.. vastely over-rated to me... but if you like him then at least post responses to this thread that have some cognitive thought...
why people get angry cos people dont like their favourite bands is beyond me
oh scary... 40000 morbidly obese christians wearing fanny packs invading europe is probably the least scariest thing since I watched an edited version of The Care Bears movie in an extremely brightly lit cinema.
why do people feel the need to post slamming the threadstarter..... if i tell people i like PJ and they say "oh man they're shit!!" i just think... its your loss buddy
i'm not keen on Cornell.. vastely over-rated to me... but if you like him then at least post responses to this thread that have some cognitive thought...
why people get angry cos people dont like their favourite bands is beyond me
I think its more the fact that he said
I think he sucks as a singer
he is a very good singer if you have listened to TOTD and all the other sg albums it is clear to see .. but if you have just heard the audiosalve discography then say he sucks then its unfair
which isnt really that bad is it? its his opinion.. big deal! i dont think it merited these kinds of responses, yours especially, which i have noticed you've edited
it was "fuck you" or something wasnt it.. all for saying Cornell sucks as a singer :(
ahhh well...
oh scary... 40000 morbidly obese christians wearing fanny packs invading europe is probably the least scariest thing since I watched an edited version of The Care Bears movie in an extremely brightly lit cinema.
which isnt really that bad is it? its his opinion.. big deal! i dont think it merited these kinds of responses, yours especially, which i have noticed you've edited
it was "fuck you" or something wasnt it.. all for saying Cornell sucks as a singer :(
ahhh well...
bah i didn't mean it lol
i just cant understand how you can say he sucks, its ok say you dont like him, but not to say that he totally sucks?
is that even possible to say that he is a really good singer but i dont like it :S
well his solo record was flawed, as are audioslave. In my humble opinion the last good record he was involved in was superunknown (oh and blackholesun was total shite). Saw soundgarden live in 96 and well..........
I would agree with this... CC was at his best by far in his Soundgarden days. After that, he just grew kind of wussy and his voice isn't nearly as good as what it was... and I still can't believe that there are Audioslave/Cornell fanboys who say otherwise. I enjoy Audioslave quite a lot, but the voice is no where near what it was back in the day.
But by the way, Black Hole Sun is NOT total shite. It's a great song, and admitting that it's great doesn't mean that I'm not a 'real' Soundgarden fan like you seem to think it does. Overplayed, yeah, but not shitty by any means.
Well us fanboys remeber an album called down on the upside, and actually listened too euphoria morning whic is a greeat cd, but I can understand why someone wouldnt like it , because so many people do not have the time for full albums, also we took audioslave for what it was, a cool band that rocked and toured.
And it doesnt take a genious to accept the fact that any singer would have all their talent left after 25 years.
sorry but are you ok ? are you out of mind? chris is the best singer of the 90`s ok now he distreud his voice a bit (alcohol probs etc.) but his voice is great
I like Eddie and Layne better than Cornell! Cornell is good, but he is a bit overrated! I think Layne had the best vocals of the 90's....eventhough I prefer Eddie!
How can someone with that power and range 'suck as a singer'? Fair enough if you don't like his voice, but to say he sucks, means you can't be very discerning when it comes to judging vocalists.
Whever you think of him, rock music just wouldn't be what it is today without Chris Cornell.
Soundgarden were the first of the 'Seattle Bands' to be signed to a major label. That opened the door to greater success for all that followed.
Eddie Vedder has said that without Cobain, Pearl Jam wouldn't be where they are. Similarly, without Cornell where would any of them be...?!
Cymru Am Byth
PJ albums, at the moment!! -
1,Vs 2,Vitalogy 3,No Code 4,Yield 5,Ten 6,Backspacer, 7Pearl Jam 8,Binaural 9,Riot Act.
How can someone with that power and range 'suck as a singer'? Fair enough if you don't like his voice, but to say he sucks, means you can't be very discerning when it comes to judging vocalists.
its called personal opinion and everyone is entitled to it..
Mariah Carey has power and range... but i dont like her as a singer...
everyone is entitled to an opinion
oh scary... 40000 morbidly obese christians wearing fanny packs invading europe is probably the least scariest thing since I watched an edited version of The Care Bears movie in an extremely brightly lit cinema.
How can someone with that power and range 'suck as a singer'? Fair enough if you don't like his voice, but to say he sucks, means you can't be very discerning when it comes to judging vocalists.
its called personal opinion and everyone is entitled to it..
Mariah Carey has power and range... but i dont like her as a singer...
everyone is entitled to an opinion
NO NO, you are COMPLETELY missing the point.
Singing is a talent, not everyone can sing in key through a whole range of tones and notes. I don't like Mariah Carey as a singer either, BUT she has a fantastic ability, it just so happens that nothing she does floats my boat. The same goes for Cornell, you may not like his voice (and as you quite rightfully said that is down to personal opinion), but in the purest definition of a singer, he does not in any way 'suck'.
I think CC has technically one of the best voices in rock and roll. I think Ed has a great voice too, but theres no way he could sing Jesus Christ Pose. From what I've heard from CC's current tour, his voice is as good as ever. I will get to find out in month when I go to his Astoria gig.
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Comments
LTL and before
Lots of range and power, but mostly just heavy metal wailing. Not that notable.
TOTD
Songwriting took a vast leap forward. He actually started to *sing* to songs, but the heavy metal power high notes were still there. For the most part it worked.
BMF-Superunknown
His range and power are just ridiculously good, any he really does sing with emotion-- unfortunately it seems like he has trouble channeling this any anything but a power scream-- The actual singing is ordinary.
DOTU
I dunno. I really dislike the production and the sound effects on this record. Chris has such a beatuiful voice, and it seems he wants to be a legit singer at this point, but you could hardly tell because of all the damned sound effects. Pretty much any decent rock singer could have sung it and you wouldn't have known because of all the tampering.
EM
Really the first time where Chris attempts to be an actual singer on record-- most of this effort is met with success. He seems to be singing in a higher key on this record then he usually does when he sings pop now.
AS
I'm gonna get flamed mercilessly for this, but I have to say it because I think its the truth-- I think this is his finest vocal performance. Yeah I know he doesn't have the power high notes that would allow him to sing Limo wreck or Slaves and Bulldozers, but h is voice to so rich and powerful on stuff like Getaway Car, I Am The Highway, and Hypnotize it's hard to see him being able to pull these off at anytime previous.
Plus, I think he still sounds badass on Cochsie, Show Me How to Live etc. even if the heavy metal power high note part of his voice is gone, there's still power here. I suspect that something like Cochsie was pieced together from dozens of takes though-- there no way you could pull something like this off live and live to tell the story. All and all, I think this record features the lighter stuff I liked with EM, but still had enough uummpph to make it rock like a beast.
OOE, REV
I think the songwriting isn't nearly as strong in the past, and its pretty clear the CC has left SG metal behind to sing pop. He has a great voice for it. Hell, he could win on American idol, I just wish he'd put it to better use and sing better written, more meaningful, songs. I think I might get my wish when his next solo album comes out.
So, as a *singer,* I think the best might still be ahead of us.
I will still listen to his records bur I do think it's ashame when you can't perform on stage what you've "promised" on record!!
http://www.myspace.com/unlockandunload
i dont think it's rage so much as annoyance. you can't talk to a pearl jam fan without them kissing cornell's ass and swearing that he is jesus christ to eddie's god. it's annoying. they react like you're a leper if you say you're not into soundgarden. i find his voice mostly grating, though he has his moments. it's mostly having him rammed down my throat all the time around here that makes me dislike him. kinda like how a good song being played to death on the radio can kill it.
I dunno; it seems as if there has been some vitriol thrown about in this thread. That's why I invoked the rage comment.
FWIW... if I had to rank the lead vocalists from the big four, Cornell would rank third behind Staley and Vedder. Hell, could a case be made that Cantrell was a very good vocalist? I don't know - probably. Regardless, pretty good company, nonetheless. Makes me that more appreciative of the groups that came out in the day.
2008: MSG 1, Hartford, Mansfield 2, Ed Solo NYC 1
2009: London (O2), Philly 1, 2, 3, & 4
2010: Hartford, Boston, MSG 1 & 2
2011: Ed Solo Hartford
2012: Philly (MIA Fest)
2013: Worcester 2, Brooklyn 1 & 2, Hartford
i'm not keen on Cornell.. vastely over-rated to me... but if you like him then at least post responses to this thread that have some cognitive thought...
why people get angry cos people dont like their favourite bands is beyond me
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I think its more the fact that he said
I think he sucks as a singer
he is a very good singer if you have listened to TOTD and all the other sg albums it is clear to see .. but if you have just heard the audiosalve discography then say he sucks then its unfair
which isnt really that bad is it? its his opinion.. big deal! i dont think it merited these kinds of responses, yours especially, which i have noticed you've edited
it was "fuck you" or something wasnt it.. all for saying Cornell sucks as a singer :(
ahhh well...
bah i didn't mean it lol
i just cant understand how you can say he sucks, its ok say you dont like him, but not to say that he totally sucks?
is that even possible to say that he is a really good singer but i dont like it :S
but im very glad that he said layne ant not kurt
I cannot wait to see that yummy morsel in a couple of weeks. *drools*
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Oh my, they dropped the leash.
Morgan Freeman/Clint Eastwood 08' for President!
"Make our day"
Its post like this that keep this place going.
Pure humor.
no more shows
Well us fanboys remeber an album called down on the upside, and actually listened too euphoria morning whic is a greeat cd, but I can understand why someone wouldnt like it , because so many people do not have the time for full albums, also we took audioslave for what it was, a cool band that rocked and toured.
And it doesnt take a genious to accept the fact that any singer would have all their talent left after 25 years.
no more shows
I like Eddie and Layne better than Cornell! Cornell is good, but he is a bit overrated! I think Layne had the best vocals of the 90's....eventhough I prefer Eddie!
I agree.
How can someone with that power and range 'suck as a singer'? Fair enough if you don't like his voice, but to say he sucks, means you can't be very discerning when it comes to judging vocalists.
Soundgarden were the first of the 'Seattle Bands' to be signed to a major label. That opened the door to greater success for all that followed.
Eddie Vedder has said that without Cobain, Pearl Jam wouldn't be where they are. Similarly, without Cornell where would any of them be...?!
PJ albums, at the moment!! -
1,Vs 2,Vitalogy 3,No Code 4,Yield 5,Ten 6,Backspacer, 7Pearl Jam 8,Binaural 9,Riot Act.
its called personal opinion and everyone is entitled to it..
Mariah Carey has power and range... but i dont like her as a singer...
everyone is entitled to an opinion
Well, it's all subjective, is it not?
Edit: Dunk said it first.
NO NO, you are COMPLETELY missing the point.
Singing is a talent, not everyone can sing in key through a whole range of tones and notes. I don't like Mariah Carey as a singer either, BUT she has a fantastic ability, it just so happens that nothing she does floats my boat. The same goes for Cornell, you may not like his voice (and as you quite rightfully said that is down to personal opinion), but in the purest definition of a singer, he does not in any way 'suck'.