It seemed I was the last one to find out today. Once I had learned of his suicide, I was crushed... Hit by a ton of bricks.

The Early Days

When I was in the 7th grade, way back in 1988, I attended a Danzig show in Chicago at the Riviera, and Soundgarden was opening. The show was fantastic and I will never forget it but I did not become a Soundgarden fan right away. I was there for Danzig, the leader of the Misfits, who was my all-time favorite musician at the time.

Years later in high school, Soundgarden had broke into the main scene. They were all over MTV producing many of our favorite jams throughout the early 90s. I had a lot of appreciation for Soundgarden, I owned the CDs, but other bands had my primary focus.

Audioslave

My real appreciation for Chris Cornell began with Audioslave. I was a HUGE fan of Rage Against the Machine and while graduating high school, Tom Morello was my favorite guitar player in the universe. The break-up of Rage Against the Machine hurt like hell and seeing the that band back together again, with that dude from Soundgarden I saw in Chicago all those years ago, absolutely blew my mind.

Audioslave would retain slots on my daily playlist for many years to come. I have the latest Soundgarden albums now too, having found a deep appreciation for Chris Cornell through Audioslave.

My Tribute To Chris Cornell

I felt like I was stuck in the Army when Audioslave took over my iPod. I felt like I had no way out, I was depressed, and I really depended on my iPod to get me through such tough times. Audioslave gave me the confidence and strength that I needed to get through. God damn I wish I could have done the same for him.

Many celebrity deaths hurt, but this one really stings.

This guy could sing something special, and we are going to miss him.

Here are some of my faves...

TURN IT UP!