Cornell

"Encore?".. "But enough!"

My God, a phrase between two commas, how horrific! It's a good thing you pointed it out to me; now that I've noticed it, I do feel a bit ashamed..

Take back your gift.

Santa Claus doesn't exist..

Christmas is already gone..

P.S.: Among all the versions, Chris, let me tell you, you were really a nice guy, but with that smooth helmet, you were truly unmissable..

Most of the music and lyrics by Soundgarden (after Yamamoto's departure) are the work of Cornell (you could say he wrote almost everything on Superunknown). I consider him a great talent, and I’m always a "little" biased when it comes to Soundgarden, just like the old great Blackdog (can you tell?). I think Ultramegaok, Louder Than Love, Badmotorfinger, Temple of the Dog (mostly Chris's work) and Superunknown mark a noteworthy evolutionary path for a band; they are spectacular albums and have also, albeit to a lesser extent, marked an era in the history of rock. Cornell's voice in the early days was the most powerful, high-pitched, rich, and in-tune that I have ever heard (we're talking full voice, not falsetto…). I have rarely encountered voices that could shock me like his. It might bother some, and sometimes may seem over the top, but the vocal talent that Cornell had is something few can boast of in the hard rock scene. Over time, his voice has declined a bit (in the highs), due to excessive and always on-the-edge use, but it gained color, tone, and a warmer, enveloping timbre in the lows, along with a certain awareness of proper usage (albeit a bit too late). This album was an attempt to migrate toward more pop sounds, but in a more refined way, not chart-driven, winking at Radiohead and Jeff Buckley. I didn't mind it at all; in fact, I still listen to it with great pleasure. It's a 3-star work + 1 for the voice and the session musicians who were called to accompany him (including the old Matt Cameron, if I'm not mistaken, a drummer I've adored). With Audioslave, it was an (un)happy interlude: the first album was good, the second was forgettable, and the third was the same old reheated soup, so the breakup was inevitable. Carry On sits heavily with me like a pepper stew with chicken and hard-boiled eggs at four in the morning. As for the collaboration with Timberland, I dare not comment; I fear it may be senile dementia creeping in. Nevertheless, I cared for you, and know that I was one of your biggest fans.

How wonderful not to be forced to watch conventional television anymore: I didn't hear about the start of Friends, Big Brother, or all the various crap, and I'm not stuck choosing between the awful fiction from RAI with Ricky Memphis and Taricone and the garbage from Mediaset.. Silvio, fuck you, Piersilvio and the Toffanin (great merits, huh? She must be on television for some reason..) and your shitty networks! No way I’m giving you the audience and no way I’m buying the products you advertise! May you burn along with all of Maria De Filippi's friends, including her and all the contestants from Big Brother, the island of the losers, the mole, those idiots from Le Iene, and everyone who poses as commentators in those pathetic post-game shows and all those silly and degrading Sunday nonsense for the human race! Screw you all, football (up yours) and have a nice Sunday everyone!

But let Zeus himself strike you down!

@ANTONIO: You hit the nail on the head, especially when you say that Page had to "fill" and harmonize with riffs, solos, and whatever else the void left by the absence of another guitar. There are many bands with only one guitarist, and I assure you (as a former member of a band) that it's not easy to fill a song with just one guitar. We were five, two guitars, bass, drums, and vocals.. Then the rhythm guitarist left, and we had to completely reinvent our repertoire from scratch. Everything felt emptier, even though we had a great soloist, but it wasn't enough to fill the harmony created by two guitars. I know what that means. Then you might have two guitarists, but if they are terrible, it’s better to have at least 1/4 of Jimmy Page.. More than enough. As for Plant's vocal performances, I don't know how many singers are in this discussion, and if they realize one thing: Plant had spine-tingling (natural) vocal power, he always sang in high octaves (If anyone can perform a piece like Communication Breakdown, Dazed and Confused, Black Dog, etc., on par with Plant, they should go to Page for the Led Zeppelin reunion as a candidate to replace him), Plant doesn't seem like a virtuoso from singing lessons, I don't know if he ever studied or not, but I doubt it, Plant was touring all over the world with very tight dates.. THE VOICE IS AN INSTRUMENT, BUT YOU HAVE TO HAVE THE ABILITY TO USE IT WELL, AVOID GOING BEYOND YOUR LIMITS AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE, PROPERLY REGULATE BREATHING, MUSCLE CONTROL, AND DIAPHRAGM WORK, SET UP FACIAL EXPRESSIONS TO PROJECT THE SOUND WITH MAXIMUM INTENSITY AND MINIMUM POSSIBLE EFFORT, THE VOICE, LIKE OTHER INSTRUMENTS, WEARS OUT OVER TIME, BUT UNLIKE GUITARS AND BASSES, WHICH CAN HAVE THEIR STRINGS REPLACED OR HAVE A LUTHIER HANDLE OTHER REPAIRS, OR DRUMS, WHICH CAN HAVE SKINS, CYMBALS, AND STICKS REPLACED, IT CANNOT BE "REPAIRED", VOCAL CORDS CAN'T BE CHANGED AND IF THEY BREAK, IT'S GOODBYE. That's why a singer's performance should always be evaluated keeping these fundamental parameters in mind. Weather conditions, excesses, and a myriad of factors can influence their output. It's up to a good singer to understand what can and can't be done in a given evening. Maybe by lowering the key or avoiding high notes, reinventing the piece. But then it's down to saying "What a disappointment Plant, he didn't do this, he didn't do that..”. I challenge anyone to do a tour like that of Led Zeppelin, or Deep Purple, or Iron Maiden and still end up with the same starting voice. Take Chris Cornell, for example, go see his performances of Jesus Christ Pose, Slaves and Bulldozers, Beyond the Wheel from the early '90s, you will be amazed by his power and range, now tell him to do them again..