Songbook

Chris Cornell | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (November 21, 2011)
• Original Release Date: 2011
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Universal Music
• ASIN: B005SZNZAY
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (34 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #925 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. As Hope and Promise Fade

2. Scar On The Sky

3. Call Me A Dog

4. Ground Zero

5. Can't Change Me

6. I Am The Highway

7. Thank You

8. Cleaning My Gun

9. Wide Awake

10. Fell On Black Days

11. All Night Thing

12. Doesn't Remind Me

13. Like A Stone

14. Black Hole Sun

15. Imagine

16. The Keeper

Editorial Reviews

Seattle Post-Intelligencer

"Cornell...carried the entire show with ease, demonstrating just how capable he is of commanding a stage all by himself. He was an absolute powerhouse, belting out songs with a voice that rocked the rafters."

"Chris Cornell still possesses the best voice in rock music... this `Songbook' is open and it's worth reading again and again because the author is one of the most important artists to ever walk the face of the earth."

"Sometimes you don't recognize the full power of a voice until you strip everything away from it. Such was the case with Chris Cornell's drop dead great show at Town Hall last night....the approach served to reveal both the full force, and the utter control, of his singing... as well as how rare his timbre remains."

Product Description

After a sold-out spring tour this year, Grammy-award winning singer/songwriter, Chris Cornell, has announced fall and winter tour dates for the second run of his acoustic Songbook tour. These intimate shows highlight the songs Cornell has written throughout his illustrious career and are made up of entirely acoustic, solo performances. An album of live SONGBOOK tour performances will be released on November 21st, featuring songs written by Cornell as well as a few covers. In addition to being one of the most acclaimed voices in rock, he stands in a class of his own as a songwriter whose works have reached limitless audiences, the world over. Familiar songs emerge in a new context, showing that great songwriting translates to any idiom.

Chris Cornell has been heralded as one of the pioneers of the grunge era for writing a string of hits for Soundgarden, including the Grammy award-winning "Black Hole Sun" and "Spoonman." In 1991, Chris formed Temple of the Dog, writing the classic song "Hunger Strike" featuring a duet with Pearl Jam frontman Eddie Vedder. In 2000, Cornell joined former Rage Against the Machine members (Tom Morello, Tim Commerford, and Brad Wilk) in Audioslave and wrote a series of the band's hits including "Like a Stone," "Be Yourself" and "Doesn't Remind Me." Cornell's career as a songwriter for film has included such songs as "Can't Change Me," and "Mission", from the soundtrack to Mission Impossible II as well as hit theme song "You Know My Name" for James Bond thriller Casino Royale, one of the most successful installments of the spy franchise to date. His songs have been recorded by diverse artists from Johnny Cash to Alice Cooper.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars MUST HAVE, November 21, 2011

By 

T K (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Songbook (Audio CD)

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'.

15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Chris Cornell's Good, Bad and Beautiful.........., November 26, 2011

By 

northdakotagal "northdakotagal" (Mandan, ND United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Songbook (Audio CD)

Just a quick review of the best CD I've purchased in several years:

The Good:
1.) His voice is as absolutely spectacular as it's ever been and makes an obvious choice for an acoustic record, where he can and does show it off. He shimmers throughout.........

The Bad:
2.) Well, as hardcore fans we always have a couple suggestions on song selection, right? Like we've seen on youtube he did several other tunes on this tour I would have loved to see on this collection: "When I'm Down", "Like Suicide", "Seasons" and the online medley masterpiece, which includes "Man of Golden Words", "Comfortably Numb" and "Say Hello to Heaven"..........

The Beautiful:
Man, in my opinion he sits atop the lead vox mountain as the greatest vocalist over the last 20 some odd years, hands down. Throw 10 bucks down on these 18 songs, grab it and rush it around town shouting to your friends and relatives "You gotta hear this!! Take it home, listen to it several dozen times like I have while youtubing the couple nuggets left off..........

The Suggestion:
Chris and crew, follow this bad boy up with a "Live" Acoustic Songbook DVD, please!!!

The Funny Story: I bought this at the nearest location of one of the massive media chains in the country, you know the one I mean. Employee comes up to me to ask what I'm looking for. I said the new "Chris Cornell" to which he replied, "Is he a classical composer or a jazz artist?". No joke!! I said "You know, the former lead singer of Soundgarden and Audioslave", in which a blank stare appeared from the employee. Apparently they don't offer the Rock 101 training course at this chain. Told him it'd be easy to find if he'd just point me to the "Has Talent" section as it'd be the only CD there!!!!!

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Chris Cornell raw!, November 21, 2011

By 

Michael (Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Songbook (Audio CD)

Songbook is the new live acoustic album from Chris Cornell showcasing his awesome vocals and songwriting ability as performed along his very successful recent solo tour. Chris Cornell is a true survivor of rock having had success with Soundgarden, Audioslave, and three solo albums prior to this amazing collection of acoustic tunes. There was a little taste of what this album contains with the hidden track at the end of his previous solo album but Songbook is definitely what fans of this iconic voice wanted to hear. Highlights include the amazing Temple Of The Dog classic "Call Me A Dog", the brilliant version of the Audioslave track "I Am The Highway", the dark sound of Soundgarden's classic track "Fell On Black Days", and the memorable melodies of the Audioslave hit "Like A Stone". It is amazing how he can turn relatively simple chord progressions into memorable songs with his powerful voice and interesting lyrics. I saw Chris Cornell perform these songs at The Sydney Opera House recently and I can tell you it was a stunning show and Songbook is a great memento of his tour. What more can be said about Chris Cornell and his decision to please his fans with a gift like this - essential listening!