Temple Of The Dog
Temple of the Dog

THE REVIEW

The greatest album in the history of rock, 10 songs that could have been 10 singles, as in the case of "Ten".

Temple of the Dog (a name chosen from a line of a song by Mother Love Bone) is the result of the collaboration between members of Pearl Jam (Eddie Vedder, Mike McCready, Stone Gossard, and Jeff Ament) and Soundgarden (Chris Cornell and Matt Cameron).
The most inspired and vocally gifted singers of the grunge period, the two quintessential guitarists, and "The drummer" could do nothing but produce this masterpiece released in 1991, mainly initiated by Chris Cornell, writer of the lyrics and most of the music, roommate of Andrew Wood (to whom the album is dedicated), the singer of the aforementioned Mother Love Bone, who passed away prematurely due to a fatal overdose.

"Say Hello 2 Heaven", an electric ballad of great intensity accompanied by a moving lyric, already shows the value of the album, with Cornell's voice standing out, reaching majestic and devastating power in the finale.
"Reach Down", with its eleven minutes, is an acid rock/blues track, where the guitars intertwine to the point of conversing with each other (Gossard and McCready excel in the over five-minute solo), Cornell adds his touch in the finale alternating with a gospel-like choir, proving to possess one of the greatest voices ever heard. It can be considered one of the top 10 pieces ever written in the musical landscape of all time.
In "Hunger Strike", Vedder and Cornell duet (it's a bit hard to distinguish the two in the lower parts), while in the chorus, Chris raises the tone and then explodes in the finale in his stentorian manner. The most beautiful and heartfelt track.
"Pushin Forward Back" is the most lively track, the guitars are powerful and rhythmic, Cameron is a hammer, and Cornell suitably embellishes the whole.
"Call Me a Dog" is the song that perhaps moved me the most, due to the intensity of the performance and the high note after the second verse, Chris leaves one perplexed by the tonal ranges he can reach with his full voice. Outstanding.
We move to "Times of Trouble", a beautiful ballad with piano insertion (also appears in "Call Me a Dog", "All Night Thing" and organ in "Four Walled World", played by Rick Parashar), a track also present under the name "Yellow Leadbetter" in the B-sides album "Lost Dogs" by Pearl Jam, sung only by Cornell who here perhaps shows a bit of protagonism.
"Wooden Jesus" opens with a drum pattern difficult to understand that pays homage to the Soundgarden drummer first and Pearl Jam now. In my opinion, the two singers duet again, but Vedder's collaboration does not appear. Third most beautiful track of the album.
"Your Savior" is perhaps the song I appreciated the least, except for what Cameron does in the finale. Beautifully connected and different drum passages, which characterize his unique style.
"Four Walled World" is a tribute to Cornell's unparalleled voice, while "All Night Thing" closes the album worthily with a final goodbye to Andrew.

I highly recommend anyone who loved the grunge period to listen to this album, the ultimate work of the Seattle movement. The musicians were just over twenty, and I believe that few, at that age, are capable of such creative genius and composing songs of such evocative power. Dedicated to all those who consider Grunge a pale, useless movement that left no mark on the musical landscape. 

I apologize if it has already been reviewed, but I wanted to express my opinion on an album that accompanied a difficult period of my life, with sleepless nights and dark days, and taught me how to sing...

I dedicate it to a friend of mine who passed away in 1998, "Say Hello to Heaven" brother, R.I.P.