THE BAND:
Chris Cornell
vox, harmonica, banjo
Matt Cameron
drums, percussion
Mike McCready
lead guitar
Stone Gossard
rhythm, slide, acoustic guitars
Jeff Ament
bass
THE ALBUMS:
Temple of the Dog [1991]
THE BAND:
Chris Cornell
vox, harmonica, banjo
Matt Cameron
drums, percussion
Mike McCready
lead guitar
Stone Gossard
rhythm, slide, acoustic guitars
Jeff Ament
bass
THE ALBUMS:
Temple of the Dog [1991]
GREEN RIVER + SOUNDGARDEN. 80's SEATTLE BAND MAKING HUGE SOUNDS. FRIENDS ONE + ALL WITH SIMILAR INTERESTS + A GENIUNE RESPECT FOR EACH OTHER. CHRIS + MATT DID THINGS THAT AMAZED STONE + JEFF AND VICE VERSA. LIFE WAS BEGINNING. THEY HAD MANY COMMON FRIENDS, ONE BEING MUSICIAN/ENTERTAINER FREDDIE PRODIGY ANDREW WOOD WHO LIVED WITH CHRIS, WORKED WITH JEFF + PLAYED AN OCCASIONAL ACOUSTIC SET WITH STONE. GREEN RIVER BROKE UP + ANDREW JOINED STONE + JEFF. .. MOTHER LOVE BONE. LIFE WAS GREAT. SOUNDGARDEN MADE RECORDS, TOURED, POCKED HARD, FLOURISHED. MOTHER LOVE BONE MADE RECORDS + WAS ON THE VERGE OF .. AND WE ALL LOST OUR BEAUTIFUL FRIEND, ANDREW. THE REST OF US HUNG. TOLD STORIES. HELPED EACH OTHER. LAUGHED. CRIED. LIFE WAS CONFUSING. CHRIS WROTE TWO AMAZING SONGS ABOUT ANDY [SAY HELLO 2 HEAVEN + REACH DOWN] + ASKED STONE + JEFF + MATT 2 RECORD THEM. YES. LIFE MOVES ON. WE JAMMED. GUITAR WIZARD, MASTER OF ANIMAL SOUNDS MIKE CAME BY. WE DID COFFEE. ATE HUGE CARCASS-LESS MEALS WITH CYCLOPS AND DRANK WITH SEPTIEM + THE OTHER GODS. MUSIC FLOWED, WE GOT EXCITED, PLAYED A SHOW, WROTE MORE SONGS + PEELED IN A[N] 10 POUNDER. .. IN A GOOD WAY. 10 SONGS. SPONTANEOUS. CREATION. EMOTION. VERY PLEASING. REAL MUSIC. NO ANALYZING. NO PRESSURE. NO HYPE. JUST MUSIC TO MAKE MUSIC. FRIENDS AND A REASON. CHEMISTRY. BEAUTY. LIFE RULES! – JEFF AMENT [liner notes]
IN BRIEF:
MOTHER LOVE BONE broke up with the death of Andrew Wood .. wHile Stone 'n Jeff continued to work together .. TEMPLE OF THE DOG was formed by the two with Chris Cornell [Soundgarden], who was Wood's housemate and Matt Cameron [Soundgarden]. Mike McCready and Eddie Vedder were also recruited and contributed.
This was a one off thang .. tHe sole purpose of TEMPLE OF THE DOG was to pay tRibute to their late friend in Andrew Wood, who died of a herion overdose. These were friends coming together and helping each other out through the grieving process of their loss .. their way of sayin' "goodbYe"
Cornell had written a coupla songs in tribute to Wood .. "Say Hello 2 Heaven" [a gorgeous track] and "Reach Down" .. and offered to record the the lyrics with Gossard and Ament. Cameron came on board along with McCready and the sessions began. TEMPLE OF THE DOG was to become a project .. originally there were ideas just to record a single .. but later it stretched out into becoming an album [not all the songs relate to Wood]. TEMPLE OF THE DOG [self-titled] was released. Although the feedback from the release of their self-titled album was suprising and well received, it was understood that the guys did a show, with a couple of re-unions .. having said that, nothing more will come out of it as they returned to work with their own respective bands in SOUNDGARDEN and PEARL JAM [their bands being just babies at the time].
These guys had successfully completed in what they had set out to do. TEMPLE OF THE DOG bore the trademarks from both of the combined bands, creating something that was totally unique and perhaps can not be re-created without the individual members. The feel of the album was something they all shared .. this was indeed a moving tribute to their dear friend through a labour of love .. Jeff puts it beautifully in his liner notes on the CD sleeve.
ALBUM: Temple of The Dog [self titled]
RELEASED: 16th April 1991
LENGTH: 55:11
TRACK LISTING:
Say Hello 2 Heaven [6:25]
Reach Down [11:12]
Hunger Strike [4:06]
Pushin Forward Back [3:45]
Call Me a Dog [5:04]
Times of Trouble [5:42]
Wooden Jesus [4:10]
Your Savior [4:04]
Four Walled World [6:54]
All Night Thing [3:49]
lyrics are copyright © to Temple of the Dog
NOTES: PRODUCED BY: Rick Parashar and Temple Of The Dog .. ALL SONGS ARRANGED BY: Temple Of The Dog .. MIXED BY: Tim Palmer for Worlds End [America] Inc. .. RECORDED: weekends at London Bridge Studios, Seattle, WA Nov-Dec 1990 .. ADDITIONAL ENGINEERING: Don Gilmore .. MASTERED BY: Ken Perry & Rick Parashar at A & M Mastering Studios
ADDITIONAL: RICK PARASHAR: piano on "Call Me a Dog", "Times of Trouble", "All Night Thing" and organ on "All Night Thing" .. EDDIE VEDDER: additional background vox on "Pushin Forward Back", "Your Saviour", "Four Walled World" and additional lead vox on "Hunger Strike"
Please, mother mercy
Take me from this place
And the long winded curses
I keep hearing in my head
Words never listen
And teachers never learn
Now I'm warm from the candle
But I feel too cold to burn
He came from an island
And he died from the street
He hurt so bad like a soul breaking
But he never said nothing to me
So say hello to heaven
New like a baby
Lost like a prayer
The sky was your playground
But the cold ground was your bed
Poor stargazer
She's got no tears in her eyes
Smooth like whisper
She knows that love heals all wounds in time
Now it seems like too much love
Is never enough, you better seek out
Another road cause this one has
Ended abrupt, say hello to heaven
I never wanted
To write these words down for you
With the pages of phrases
Of things we'll never do
So I blow out the candle, and
I put you to bed
Since you can't say to me
Now how the dogs broke your bone
There's just one thing left to be said
Say hello to heaven
REACH DOWN I had a dream the other night And pick the crowd up Now I had some angel shine my wings, she said Reach down and pick the
HUNGER STRIKE I don't mind stealing bread
PUSHIN FORWARD BACK Mother mother found me on her step Baby brother clinging to her hair Falling down, now I know her
CALL ME A DOG You call me a dog well that's fair enough Well you say it's bad luck But when it's my time to throw You tell me I'm low cause I've slept on the floor But when it's my time to throw the next stone
TIMES OF TROUBLE When the spoon is hot Don't try and do it When you try to talk I saw you singing
WOODEN JESUS Wooden Jesus where are you from Can I be saved, I spent all my money Porcelain Mary her majesties pure Can I be saved, I spent all my money
YOUR SAVIOR People like you, I know myself People I choose, life on my own People I choose, I know myself
FOUR WALLED WORLD Well she cried, and she cried Well she's tired and she's tired In my four walled world Well she tries and she tries In my four walled world And now the sun is low
vCornellv
You were in a bar in the corner on a chair
Wearing a long white leather coat
Purple glasses and glitter in your hair
And you said hey this is where I'm gonna sit
And you buy you a drink someday
You were going to the dog shows
But you kinda lost your way
You say now I got all this room
And no money to decorate it, so some
Local customer put me in touch with the man
Upstairs, he said little man you go no
Business gettin' frustrated, you gotta rest
You gotta rest you gotta reach down
Carry back in your hands
To the promised land
Nothin' but the best for the golden boy
She made me promise not to tell I had her under
A spell singing golden words in a broken voice
And I caught some blessing on the wind I'm
Feeling lighter than a whisper from a dove
I've got no hands to tie behind my back
And I'm sparking like a heart attack, now I've got
Room to spread my wings and my messages of
Love, yes love was my drug, but that's not
What I died of, so don't think of me
Crying louder than some billion dollar baby
Cause I gotta rest I gotta rest I gotta
Crowd up, carry back in my
Hand to the promised land
vCornellv
From the mouths of decadence
But I can't feed on the powerless
When my cup's already overfilled
But it's on the table
The fire is cooking
And their farming babies
While the slaves are working
The blood is on the table
And their mouths are choking
But I'm hungry
vCornellv
Gracious mother held me to her breast
Until the day I started pushin
Too late to cry she turned away
I started pushin
I saw no future in this lack
I started pushin forward back
Gracious pleading not another
Soul to bare he started pushin
All my kings have fallen down
I started pushin
Fallen heroes feed the ground
I started pushin forward back
I know I'll never drown
I was pushin forward back
vCornellv
Cause it ain't no use to pretend
You're wrong
When you call me out I can't hide anymore
I have no disguise you can't see through
To have fallen for me
Well what can I say to make it good for you
You wore me out like an old winter coat
Trying to be safe from the cold
The next stone
I'll call you beautiful if I call at all
And out in the woods with the badgers & wolves
You threw me out cause I went digging for gold
And I came home with a handful of coal
I'll call you beautiful if I call at all
And when it's my time to call your bluff
I'll call you beautiful or leave it alone
You call me a dog
Well that's fair enough
It doesn't bother me as long as you know
Bad luck will follow you
If you keep me on a leash and
You drag me along
vCornell, Gossard, Amentv
And the needle's sharp
And you drift away
I can hear you say
That the world in black
Is upon your back
And your body shakes
So you ditch away
And you close the shades
Don't try to kill your time
You might do it
Then you can't change your mind
You've got a hold on to your time
Till you break through these
Times of trouble
And the words get hard
And they put you down
Don't you stay
Don't you ditch away
Swinging your mother's sword
I know you're playing but
Sometimes the rules get hard
But if somebody left you out on a ledge
If somebody pushed you over the edge
If somebody loved you and left you for dead
You got to hold on to your time till you break
Through these times of trouble
vCornellv
Korea or Canada or maybe Taiwan
I didn't know it was the Holy Land
But I believed from the minute
The check left my hand, and I pray
On a future grave
Wooden Jesus I'll cut you in
On twenty percent of my future sin
Looking for virgin territory
Coat hanger halos don't come cheap
From television shepherds with living room
Sheep, and I pray
On a future grave
Wooden Jesus I'll cut you in
On twenty percent of my future sin
vCornellv
Walk in the shoes of somebody else
Whisper to me, my tragic fate
Whisper to me, my tragic end
But don't give me your savior
Burn me your fuse, throw me your stones
Give me your brand, burn on my hand
Whisper to me, my tragic end
But don't give me your savior
Lay my need out, give you my help
But you give me your blues
And you whisper my fate
But don't give me your savior
vCornell, Gossardv
All night to the sound of the freeway hum
And she swears she'll be gone
When the sun hits the ground
And she ain't coming back to my cell
Of this life she's been leading too long
And the time turns around
Through the walls that surround
To the chimes of a jailors song
But my feet just won't leave the ground
And I'm tired and I'm tired
Of this prisoners life, and these chains
That drag me down
And these walls try to break my soul
And now the moon is full
And I won't see nothing tonight
But the tears in her eyes and
My four walled world
