RIP Chris Cornell

2, maybe 3 hours ago. I never write this soon after. I took me a day to write about Michael Jackson. 2 weeks for Prince.

I first heard Soundgarden with their 2nd album, "Louder Than Love" (from the best drummer on Planet Earth, Mike Froedge) and when their 3rd album - "Badmotorfinger" - came out, I played the cassette tape until it broke. They were among the most unique & creative bands around, and were playing at the highest level. And the singer....the singer. Chris Cornell was a god. Straight from Olympia to the stage.

My sister, Vicki, turned me on to Temple of the Dog's song "Hunger Strike" when it was released and I was stunned into silence.

Fast forward to a decade or so, and Cornell joined forces with Tom, Brad, & Tim of Rage Against the Machine, and Audioslave was born.

His work with this band was, to my ears, equally unique, creative, and of the highest order.

Fast forward another decade, and I'm sitting (guitars in hand) with Chris Norris (the biggest Cornell fan I know), and he's telling me about Cornell's solo acoustic shows. And we're talking about Cornell and Steven Tyler and only a handful of others and how so few vocalists just keep getting better with age. How so many peak in their 20s and how Cornell just doesn't stop improving...with his playing, his voice, his fearless explorations in composition. He's like a machine...moving forward...moving up...moving on....

Fast forward to 5-18-2017 at roughly 6am...and my phone chimes...and I see a text from Paulie Felice. And I read it. And I make coffee and handle the morning routine because others rely on me to get things done. And then its 9:30am...and I'm sitting here numb, but not quite numb. And I can't quite bring myself to put on his music just yet.

But I will.....