Chris Cornell (Chris Cornell) - singer, musician, composer. During his short life, he was a member of three cult bands - Soundgarden, Audioslave, Temple of the Dog. Chris' creative path began with the fact that he sat down at the drum set. Later, he changed his profile, realizing himself as a vocalist and guitarist.
His path to popularity and recognition was a long one. He went through all the circles of hell before they started talking about him as an up-and-coming singer and musician. At the peak of popularity, Chris forgot where he was going. Increasingly, he was noticed under the influence of alcohol and drugs. The struggle with addiction was intertwined with depression and the search for one's life purpose.
Childhood and youth
Christopher John Boyle (real name of the rocker) hails from Seattle. Date of birth of a celebrity - July 20, 1964. He was brought up in a family that had the most distant relation to creativity. My mother was an accountant, and my father worked in a pharmacy.
When Christopher was young, his parents divorced. After the divorce, he took his mother's surname. The woman took upon herself all the troubles of raising and providing for her son.
He fell in love with music when he first heard the tracks of the legendary Beatles. Music at least slightly distracted him from his apathy. As a child, he suffered from depression, which prevented him not only from enjoying the joyful moments of life, but also from studying. And he never finished school.
At the age of 12, he tried drugs. From that moment on, illegal drugs became an obligatory part of his life. Once he promised himself a year not to use drugs, hoping that he would give up this addiction. After spending 12 months without drugs, Chris aggravated the situation by provoking the onset of depression. Since then, it has changed state regularly.
As a teenager, a guitar fell into the hands of a guy. He joins the youth bands that perform covers of popular bands. To earn his living, he had to first get a job as a waiter and then as a salesman.
The creative path and music of Chris Cornell
The start of the creative career of the musicians began in the 84th year of the last century. It was in this year that Chris and like-minded people founded the musical group Soundgarden. Initially, the musician sat down at the drums, but later began to try his hand as a vocalist.
With the arrival of Scott Sandquist, Chris finally takes on the role of singer. At the end of the 80s, the group's discography is replenished with several mini-LPs. We are talking about Screaming Life and Fopp collections. Note that both records were recorded at the Sub Pop recording studio.
After a warm welcome from fans of heavy music, the guys will present their full-length debut LP Ultramega OK. This disc brought the musicians their first Grammy. Interestingly, in 2017, the band decided to release an extended version of the disc, the composition of which was supplemented by six songs. On the wave of popularity, the guys will present another disc - the album Screaming Life / Fopp.
In the early 90s, the group presents another novelty. We are talking about the collection Badmotorfinger. The record repeated the success of the debut album. The collection was nominated for a Grammy. In America, the album went double platinum.
In the mid-90s, the band's discography was replenished with the Superunknown record. Recall that this is the fourth studio album. He was appreciated not only by fans, but also by music critics. Experts noted the impact on the compositions of the fourth studio work of the Beatles.
The Peak of Soundgarden and Chris Cornell
The team has received worldwide recognition. Chris Cornell's popularity peaked during this period. The fourth album in a row occupies a leading position in the Billboard 200. The disc became platinum several times. All singles were accompanied by the release of clips. The team received several Grammys at once. The fourth studio album was included in Rolling Stone magazine's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.
The release of the LP was accompanied by a tour. After the tour, Chris took a break for a while due to health problems. He made the most of his free time. Chris collaborated with Alice Cooper and even composed a track for him.
In the 96th year of the last century, the presentation of the disc Down on the Upside took place. A year later, it became known about the dissolution of the team. In 2010, Chris announced on one of the official social networks that he had revived Soundgarden. A couple of years later, the musicians presented the album King Animal.
He is the owner of a voice with a range of four octaves. In addition, he owns a powerful belting technique. According to experts, all the groups in which Chris participated, to a greater extent kept afloat because of his presence.
Participation in the Audioslave project
Some time after the dissolution of his team, he joined the Audioslave. Together with the musicians, he worked until 2007. The group released several studio albums, one of which reached the so-called platinum status. Out of Exile reached number one on the American music charts.
Chris' creativity changed after he got into a car accident. When he went through rehabilitation and joined the creative process, he began to work closely with Timbaland. The latter had a very remote relation to heavy music.
In 2009, the presentation of the Scream logplay took place, which really surprised fans of Chris Cornell's work. It cannot be said that the "fans" appreciated the efforts of the idol - they accused him of being pop. It is interesting that a boxer starred in the track Part of Me, which was included in the presented studio album, and Vladimir Klitschko was the position for 2021, the mayor of Kyiv.
Creativity Chris often served as musical accompaniment to films, TV shows and computer games. For the soundtrack The Keeper to the tape "Machine Gun Preacher" he received the "Golden Globe".
The song You Know My Name for the film “Casino Royale” is the first time since 83 when the name of the tape about the main character does not match the musical theme, as well as the first musical accompaniment with male vocals in two decades.
The single Live to Rise, which was released by Soundgarden after the reanimation of the band, became the soundtrack to the movie The Avengers. The latest independent release is The Promise. The track sounds in the tape "Promise".
Details of Chris Cornell's personal life
Susan Silver is the first wife of a musician and singer. Young people met at work. Susan worked as the group's manager. In this union, a common daughter was born, but even the birth of a child did not save the couple from divorce. The divorce proceedings took place in 2004.
Chris and Susan were unable to amicably divorce. They shared 14 guitars. A four-year struggle for ownership of musical instruments ended in Cornell's favor.
By the way, the rocker did not grieve much for his first wife. He found solace in the arms of Vicky Karayiannis. The woman worked as a journalist. In this marriage, two children were born - Tony and son Christopher Nicholas.
In 2012, the family founded the Chris and Vicky Cornell Foundation to help the homeless and disadvantaged children. The organization received a certain amount of money from ticket sales.
Death of Chris Cornell
On May 18, 2017, fans were stunned by the news of the rocker's death. It turned out that the musician hanged himself in a hotel room in Detroit. The news of the suicide shocked relatives, colleagues and close friends.
Musician Kevin Morris, who attended Soundgarden's last performance on May 17, spoke about Chris' strange behavior in an interview. Kevin said that he seemed to be in prostration.
Before hanging himself, Cornell used an impressive amount of drugs.
The funeral ceremony took place on May 26, 2017 at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery in Los Angeles. Rock legends, fans, friends and relatives saw him off on his last journey.
