Songbook

OMG this singer is the living end.....he is quite incredible!! He sings with astonishing emotion and brilliance. I heard the first track and was blown away -- this must be the very best personal testament to addiction. Virtually every song/performance tops the one before it. I was pleasantly surprised to discover this singer was the same one that delivered "Hunger Strike" the stand out song from Temple of the Dog which he was a member of - little did I know. But needless to say I have been a fan of that song for so long now. I knew nothing about a singer named Chris Cornell....never having been familiar with Soundgarden or Audioslave his other two rock bands. I was driving back from a Dental appointment in my car when this song came onto the car radio which I found out from further investigation was "Hunger Strike" and when I heard it, I almost drove off the rode. I thought it was the greatest song ever recorded. You see great music affects this way. So sad to hear of this singers passing by his own hand in 2015, such incredible and indelible talent we have left but It is my opinion without Chris here now (this world is a much smaller place).

I've been a Soundgarden and Audioslave fan for many years. But, for whatever reason, I'd never gotten around to purchasing any of Chris Cornell's solo music. Not really sure why, just never did. Well, the other day, while flipping through the options on XM, I stumbled upon Cornell's live acoustic version of "Like a Stone". I was floored. It literally stopped me in my tracks and gave me chills. (It's been a LONG time since that has happened... maybe Jeff Buckley, back when "Grace" was released....?) Needless to say, I immediately purchased the "Songbook" CD, and I have to tell you: EVERY single song on it is amazing. He covers Led Zeppelin's "Thank You" with such emotion; really intensely beautiful. And "Doesn't Remind Me"... a simple little melody... but, as with all his music, his haunting voice gives it such depth. I always loved his voice when he was with Soundgarden and Audioslave... but on this CD, his profound talent goes to a WHOLE new level. His voice is powerful, gentle and soulful, all at the same time. I just can't get ENOUGH of his music, and find myself wishing "Songbook" was a double CD. I'm hoping a live concert DVD will be released next. AND I'm ALSO hoping he'll come back to play Atlanta again soon. I'll be there.

Classic. Naked Chris Cornell, with acoustic guitar. O.K., his voice is naked, free of anything which may hide the subtleties of the best voice in Rock, and aguably any genre.This is from a huge fan of Soundgarden's Wall of Awesome Darkness. Well-recorded: he sounds as if he is with you in your living room. With this, Mr. Cornell continues to help me through Black Days. My favorite: the previously unreleased "Cleaning My Gun", a beautifully written and strangely comforting song. Buy it. Actually, labelling Soundgarden may dissuade some of you from exploring Soundgarden's consistently great catalog of music. They are a smart,versatile band capable of playing anything.I personally like their heaviest stuff. On this c.d.,you may notice Mr. Cornell's subversive skill at creating a pretty, hummable melody to convey some very dark subject matter. I have never heard anyone do that better.So,excellent recording of one of the greatest talents of any generation. Buy it. And check out Soundgarden if you haven't already (although I'm pretty sure most of you have).

Chris Cornell absolutely is one of the greatest vocalists of all time. Before Songbook tour, he had been constantly criticized for his unstable vocal performances. I believe that the critics were somewhat right for the Audioslave era in which Chris also admitted that he had problems with alcohol and smoking that could have affected his vocal ability during that time. But man... The Old Chris is back. I watched one of the tours last May in Seattle, and his vocal performance was a way beyond my expectation. After seeing his concert, I also have been watching his Songbook tour videos on Youtube and I have to say that he sounded so good throughout the tour. To me, he sounds even better than how he sounded when he was in Soundgarden in the early 90s. The voice is more mature and powerful than ever before. What surprises me is that his vocal performance was so stable throughout the entire tour despite that he had to perform without much gap between tour dates. Having just one or two days off after performing more than two hours for three or four days in a row, and then performing again, on and on, for a few months is not an easy thing for any musician. Although this may not be much of a problem for many singers whose songs do not require much of vocal range, this is not the case for Chris, as many of his songs are above high C. Also, we all know many vocalists, even those who are considered the greatest of all time, could not maintain their quality of voice when they turned about age of 40. Chris is almost 50 now...! He deserves much respect for keeping his singing ability. As you may hear from the tracks, he does not have any problem with hitting right pitch. "Call Me A Dog", for example, goes up around high E or F, but he sounds just fine hitting that note. Now if you think about it, what kind of musicians nowadays can hit that note with power, timbre and soul like Chris's while playing a guitar at the same time? Not just this, but also, without losing voice after performing for more than two hours for three or four days in a row? I certainly can't think of anyone. Of course, vocal range and power are not the only factors that define a good singer, but they certainly indicate the singer's vocal ability. I am so glad to see that Chris gained his master vocal ability back, and I strongly hope he does more tour like Songbook in the future. A tiny little complain I have about this album is that I wish they made it into two CDs because there are so many songs from the tour that could have been included, such as "Say Hello 2 Heaven", "Preaching the End of the World", "Billie Jean", "Getaway Car","Redemption Song", and especially "When I'm Down". Anyway, just one unofficial acoustic album- Unplugged In Sweden - was not adequate for a great acoustic live performer like Chris; fans certainly want more. This Songbook album is a must have for all those who thirst for 'that vocal performance'.

Fantastic cd. Chris was one of the greatest singers of all time. Stripe away all the instruments and you hear the pure quality of his wonderful voice. As with most of the gifted artists, we loose them way before their time and are left with only small snippets of what we could have had. There is not one bad song on this cd. You get Chris Cornell at his best. R.I.P. Chris

Chris Cornell finally comes back to reality, at least for me. After the last horrible solo CD, a couple average CD's with Audioslave and a few other stops, this CD brings him and his beautiful yet powerful Voice back to the forefront. Man and his Guitar. Im a sucker for Acoustic live CD's(albums), but this one is great in terms of the variety of song selection and the aforementioned Voice. He sounds in rare form. I am very disappointed in myself for missing him when he made a tour stop locally after hearing this. I wont do an extreme breakdown of all tracks, but obviously the Soundgarden songs are well done as they are just great songs. No surprise. Temple of the Dog is represented here as well with 'All Night Thing' and 'Call me a Dog'. Stellar! Sound great after all these years in this fresh setting. His solo material is strong and sounds as if they were originally just written by him with his guitar. These interpretations make them even more personal and i will listen to them more than the originals. The couple covers are cool as well. 'Thank You' is so sweetly done and so well sung it brings on a sense of contemplation that is as good as the original. Plant/Page should be proud of this bare bones rendition. 'Imagine' closes the Live portion and is good as expected, but i wasnt floored by it, though, i hate to say, it was never one of my favorite songs anyway. But what (surprisingly) is best about this is how good the Audioslave tracks 'I Am The Highway' and 'Like A Stone' come across. 'Doesnt Remind Me' is done with a nice swagger. Turns out less is more with these tracks as they really shine and are very well sung. These 2 songs are worth the price of this. There are a couple new tracks as well which round this CD off and make it more interesting and desirable to purchase. 'Cleaning My Gun' is a really good track that may be just a touch too long for its own good. 'The Keeper' is a acoustic studio track that is sweet. Nice chord progressions and smooth. Hopefully a sign of things to come after the disaster that was 'Scream'. He may not want to go Grunge/Metal anymore, but this style fits. No band needed. Why the 4 instead of 5? Well, to me it sounds a bit 'loud'. It sounds great, dont get me wrong, but to ME it just sounds like it was pushed up a but loud in the mix giving a static sounding 's' sound and some inappropriate feedback, so i had to do some adjusting on the treble end when listening. Not a big deal though. But it was enough for me to drop 1 star. So its not about content, its about sound. It still is a great quality recording, you just may need to mess around with the EQ. Very cool CD and a reminder of what a talent the man is. Highly recommended, Pick it up.

Chris Cornell has always been in the habit of moving forward. With blinders firmly affixed, Cornell has moved from band to band, occasionally taking a break for his own solo efforts, never doing more to acknowledge his past accomplishments than the occasional cover song during a concert with his latest band. With a resume that includes lead vocals with the likes of Soundgarden, Temple of the Dog, and Audioslave, Cornell certainly has plenty of material to fall back on, but Cornell has always chosen the road less traveled. That is, until now. In 2010, Chris Cornell reunited with Soundgarden and embarked on an immensely successful tour. Revisiting much of his original material for the first time in over a decade, Cornell then capitalized on his once again heightened fame for a solo tour; offering his fans a retrospective of his entire career. Armed with an acoustic guitar and his uniquely powerful voice, Cornell toured the world with his "Songbook" and is still working his way across the U.S. for the remainder of this year. "Songbook" captures some of Chris Cornell's finest performances to date of both well-known hits and forgotten gems. The album opens with, "As Hope and Promise Fade" which was originally released as a hidden track on his 2009 record "Scream." The track is filled with as much heartache as the title suggests, even more than his performance two years ago. With each emotional cry perfectly in tune, Cornell's vocals have never sounded more personal. As the album progresses, it becomes clear that each track is special to him in some way and the track listing was hand-picked. These are the tracks he is the most proud to be a part of. Although the album leans heavily on Cornell's own material with each of his past bands, there are also two cover songs; Led Zeppelin's "Thank You" and John Lennon's "Imagine." He does take a few creative liberties with the melodies of both tunes, but they remain phenomenal tributes to two of his greatest influences. Like Nirvana and Alice in Chains, Soundgarden's catalog translates to acoustic instruments beautifully. With Cornell's solo, Temple of the Dog and Audioslave selections each mixed into the 16 track setlist of "Songbook," there is plenty of variety to keep the listener interested despite the lack of any heavy electronic instrumentation. Fans of any of his past projects will not be disappointed. Track Suggestion: "The Keeper"

This album is an absolute must-have for any fan of Chris Cornell, Soundgarden or Audioslave. This is just him and his guitar playing with no other accompaniment. What an outstanding talent and tremendous loss when we lost him.

Amazing album...vocals and music on point - excellent song choice - Chris at his best.

良いです。非常に良い品でした。とても良い商品が購入できて満足しています。

I absolutely love Chris's voice. I also love that he took his hits and re-did them in this acoustic manner. Totally different style and every bit as good as the rock versions.

Der Meister ist tot. Ein Mann mit einer unverwechselbaren und unglaublichen Stimme. Damit sind vier Sänger der großen fünf Grungebands (Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Soungdarden, Stone Temple Pilots und Alice In Chans) verstorben (neben Cornell noch Cobain, Weiland und Staley). Unfassbar und zutiefst traurig. Chris Cornell ist gerade einmal 52 jahre alt geworden; er hinterlässt Kinder und Frau... und dieses Album. Sicher, "Higher Truth" ist die letzte Studioplatte, aber "Songbook" gibt mit seinen 16 Liedern einen wundervollen und intim instrumentierten Überblick über Cornells Schaffen. Er spielt die wundervolle, alte Temple Of The Dog Nummer "Call me a dog" genauso stil- und geschmackssicher, wie die Sounndgardenklassiker "Fell on black days" oder selbstverständlich "Black Hole Sun". Die Audioslave-Granaten "I am the Highway" oder "Doesn't remind me" zünden neben den Covern "Thank you" (Led Zeppelin) oder "Imagine" (John Lennon). Und die Solonummern "Can't change me" oder "The Keeper" berühren und erfüllen. Dieses Songbook ist wie ein Requiem, wenn man es vor dem Hintergrund des tragischen Todes hört, ein Vermächtnis, ein Stück Chris Cornell, dass immer bei uns bleiben wird..

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