Happy Birthday Chris Cornell (Never Outshined)

Chris Cornell and the music of Soundgarden are probably the biggest influences in my life not named Karen Mulder or George Carlin. The music of Soundgarden forever changed my perception of music and got me through some of the toughest times in high school. I’ll always cherish those memories first learning to play the guitar and wanting to start a band with my best friend that sounded like Black Sabbath, Kyuss, Sleep, Hum, and Soundgarden lol.

In the interviews that I would watch and read of Chris Cornell’s, he always seemed like this even keeled, conscientious, funny, calm and collective guy without the pretentious notions you’d expect from a rock musician. When it comes to bands, I’m not much into trivia and backstories. But reading Chris Cornell’s battles with substance abuse in his teens, being a recluse, school dropout, yet finding a saving grace in music and playing in bands, made me appreciate more the person Chris turned out to be and all the success he had.

It’s hard to believe he’s not here anymore. It’s probably immeasurable how much Chris Cornell impacted music, culture or the lives of everyday people around the world that his music so deeply touched, but the often stated, “No one sings like you anymore” is sincerely felt. Thank you and Happy Birthday Chris Cornell. You’re never outshined.