outshined
...chris cornell sings the new 007 theme and discusses the red carpet experience
by tom lanham, the wave, november 2006
Planning on checking out the latest James Bond flick, Casino Royale? Get ready to be blown through the back of your theater, and not just titillated by chisel-cheekboned Daniel Craig’s performance. The movie’s gale-force theme song sets the high-velocity pace over the opening credits, and it isn’t trilled by some sultry pop diva this time; “You Know My Name” was written and performed (with scorer David Arnold) by none other than Chris Cornell, the biggest, baddest banshee on the modern rock playground.
The former Soundgarden singer put both his Audioslave career on hold, as well as his current solo set he’s tracking with Steve Lillywhite, to compose the 007 number for producer Barbara Broccoli. Cornell says: “We’re already putting their asses on the line, taking a British indie film actor and putting him in the most important role of a British film. So why not go all the way and get somebody to do the song that’s actually appropriate for this new character? And I think they made the right choice.” Cornell fans make out like bandits – they can bide their time with his politically-minded showcase on Audioslave’s recent release, Revelations; they can rock out to “You Know My Name” in theaters; and in just a few months, they can enjoy his second acoustic-themed solo album. We took some time to talk with Cornell this past week.
The Wave: You just attended the royal premiere of Casino Royale in London. But you’ve been to premieres before, right?
Chris Cornell: As far as a movie premiere goes, I went to Singles. And I think there was one more that I had a song in... Oh, yeah – Great Expectations, the modern version. And the use of the song was great – I’ve been really lucky with that. And I remember that one specifically, because I didn’t know anything about red carpets. I didn’t understand what they were for. I thought you get out of the car, you go in, you see the movie, and then you go to a party if you want. So I get out of the car, and there’s a whole bunch of photographers and they’re flashing, and a couple of ’em are yelling my name, but I just kept going – I thought they just took a picture of you while you go. And then I could tell, as I got two-thirds of the way down the red carpet, that they were mad at me. They’re like, “Thanks a lot! Thanks, bro!” And I was totally innocent – I didn’t understand it. Nobody took me aside and said “These are the photographers, and they just wanna take your picture, and it’s good for ya.” So that was disconcerting, like “Oh, my God – I guess I did the bad thing!”
TW: So how was the Bond one?
CC: This was like a red carpet village. It was huge. And you could actually probably get lost if you didn’t have someone with a nametag that would help you get to the center and the entrance of the theater. It was enormous. But it wasn’t mayhem, though, I have to say that. It was really cold out and my wife was freezing, and we were doing different interviews for different things. So I was conscious of that, and then trying to jump over the velvet ropes because there were a lot of fans that wanted me to sign stuff. So I wanted to do that, because to me that’s kinda the most important thing. So I was running back and forth, and it was a little bit crazy, but in a cool way.
Chris & Vicky Cornell at the Casino Royale premiere: photo ©Karwai Tang/Alpha 2006
TW: A royal premiere, of course, means royalty was there?
CC: Well, yeah – I met the queen, actually. A royal premiere means that the core of the people that are associated with making the film go stand in a room with their significant others, and a guy comes around and gives you a Tic-Tac so you don’t offend the queen, I suppose, with your bad breath. And then there’s also a list of protocol, but it’s all very simple stuff, like “Don’t be an idiot,” basically. Don’t start chit-chatting, just let her speak, and when she asks you a question, you answer it and that’s it. And it was really cool. I think if you’re not British, you don’t get too wound up about it, because you weren’t raised with the whole concept of a monarchy. So it’s just nice when a well-dressed woman with a lot of security comes around and shakes your hand.
TW: What did the queen say to you?
CC: She was just trying to figure things out. And she’s the Queen of England – she doesn’t have to say anything. It could’ve been like “And this is Chris Cornell – he sang the song for the title sequence.” And she could’ve gone “Great. Seeya.” But she didn’t. She said “Oh, you sang the song and wrote the music?” And I was like “Yeah, I didn’t do the music, but I sang, ma’am.” And I bowed a little bit. And David Arnold was next to me, and she was introduced to him, and she was trying to understand – “Now you both did the music?” She was actually making conversation. And to work that hard at her age, and just to be that polite to everybody, I thought was pretty amazing. And I think that’s one thing we don’t have here in the U.S. – traditions like that. And a lot of tradition can be actually really harmful and really destructive, and corruption can breed within it. But I also think that some tradition is good. Like, at the end of it all, whether you or I disagree, we still have this one sacred tradition that we can agree on or fall back on. So that was the first time it made sense to me – the monarchy in England still existing.
Chris meets HM The Queen: screenshots from Casino Royale premiere webcast 14 Nov 2006
TW: You were on your way to the UK when it went down. But you have to admit, the midterm elections were certainly heartening.
CC: I actually got that front-page news the day before I left. And right now, the working title of one of my new songs is “Silence The Voices,” and the subject matter is that thought that I’ve had many times with Bush Sr. and Bush Jr.: When they go to put the green light on some huge militaristic move, where they know there’s gonna be collateral damage, they know children and adults are gonna be killed, along with our own American servicemen and women, where’s the voice that says, “Unless they’re coming down your driveway with a f--king tank, let’s exhaust all other possible avenues for peace.” Where’s that voice? I don’t get how someone can put a green light on something where they know even one hair on one head of an innocent child is gonna be harmed. And yet these people do it. So I almost try and approach song lyrics like that – not from the standpoint of judgment, but just from... wonderment. I’m trying to figure out people. I’m 42 years old now, and there are certain things I just can’t understand. I think there’s a certain sociopathic nature to a person that – without exhausting all other diplomatic possibilities – can throw a bunch of people into a meat grinder.
TW: Well, no matter which way things go from here, at least you can always say you were a Bond guy!
CC: Yeah. From now on. And you know what I can’t wait for? They do these compilation CDs – they do ’em with the original artists, but they also do ’em without the original artists. And I bought one, thinking it was the real thing, and there was a band that vaguely sounded like Garbage doing the theme that Shirley Manson did. And they’re really awful, and they can’t come too close to reproducing it because that’s illegal, but they get as close as they can. So I can’t wait for that – for the non-original-artist version of “You Know My Name.” It’s gonna be exciting!
Reprinted without permission from Volume 6, Issue 24 of The Wave Magazine.Originally available as an illustrated feature here.
Footnote: You can watch video of Chris arriving at the Casino Royale premiere, giving a red carpet interview and meeting the Queen at Live & Rare.
