thanks to Kyle Hellie for the photo

The Denver crowd had suffered more than most, with not one but two postponements of this show meaning the crowd was probably thinner than it might have been.

Intro - Let Me Drown - Outshined - Show Me How To Live - No Such Thing - You Know My Name - Be Yourself - Hunger Strike - Spoonman - Fell On Black Days - Billie Jean - I Am The Highway - Like a Stone - Doesn;t REmind Me - Cochise - Rusty Cage - Arms Around Your Love - Can't Change Me - Out of Exile - Black Hole Sun - Jesus Christ Pose - Burden In My Hand - Safe and Sound - Seaons - Slaves & Bulldozers/Whole Lotta Love.

by tigerfaerie

The band came on stage and the crowd woke up. Yogi was wearing his fedora and a jacket. Corey actually wasn't wearing a hat, which surprised me. And naturally when Chris came on, the place blew up. They launched directly into 'Let Me Drown.' Considering at the last one, they began with 'Cochise' I was excited about something different. To be honest I wasn't really paying attention to band dynamics at this point, but that speaks well of how they've really jelled. I didn't notice them as a separate entity.

'Outshined' was the second song. Those of us front and center already knew that because that was the one song on the setlist we could see (or more precisely what the girls in front of me saw and announced). This is still one of my favourite songs to date, even though it is rather overplayed. One of my favourite Audioslave songs is 'Show Me How to Live'. I think that was made even more so when I saw the video since it's based off of one of my favourite movies. I had heard them soundcheck it in Philly and was saddened they didn't play it there. But they did in Denver. And it was wonderful. Peter is very good at taking Morello's solos and making them his own. I was quite impressed.

The first Carry On tune to be played was 'No Such Thing'. I think the crowd was as excited about that as I was for they stopped jumping around for the most part and were pretty quiet. I'm not a big fan of 'No Such Thing' and I have seen it before live. I didn't really notice any improvement since the last time I saw it so there's not much to say about it.

They followed this up with 'You Know My Name'. As a Bond-phile I do always appreciate hearing this song. But I do think it's rather overplayed. Didn't really excite me all that much. The following song was one I was in fact hoping that they wouldn't play.

I've never been a big fan of 'Be Yourself' mainly because it makes me cry. I know it's supposed to be a positive song, but ever since I first heard it, I've identified with the negative parts of the song, not the positive parts. And I was fairly certain if Chris played it, considering the place I'm in right now, that I would cry at the concert. I didn't. Maybe if it had been acoustic I would have. Actually I'm glad it was a full band version because I've never heard a full band version before, just acoustic boots before.

When I was working at the Halloween store, the radio station would do a flashback lunch hour, where they would play 90s and older songs. And I swear every single time they would play 'Hunger Strike.' Imagine hearing that five times a week. Anyways, that's to set up the fact I was already tired of this song. He really could have played something else from ToTD. And it really is kinda weird to hear it without Eddie, though Peter does compliment Chris quite well. My favourite part is how the crowd sang Eddie's part the first time around, not Peter.

One of my favourite popular Soundgarden songs is 'Spoonman.' Even though I've heard it a ton, I still get excited whenever I hear it. I can't really explain the why of it. I just do. Once more the band proved itself very apt at covering Soundgarden songs and transforming them into their own. I seriously had no of the 'oh they aren't Soundgarden at all.' They're very much a band at this point, making me sometimes think 'Soundgarden who?' Not often though ;). Jason got a little solo here. Chris even jumped up on the drum platform beside him, crouching down to watch. When he went to leave, he stumbled some but didn't fall before launching back into the rest of the song.

thanks to Kyle Hellie for the photo

Then it was time for acoustic Chris. I seriously love acoustic Chris (note to self: get the petition in the mail). The first song he played was 'Fell on Black Days'. In the quietude of acoustic, I think this song has that much more feeling to it. And it showcases Chris's voice quite well.

'I Am a Highway' was next on the bill. I think I like this song just for the use of the word bereft. Who uses that word in songs? Really. It makes me think of a lot of things, but I think that's Chris's point with all his imagery.

I am so freaking glad that he played 'Billie Jean' acoustically. I had missed out on that in Philly and I really do think it sounds so much better acoustic than with a full band. You can really hear the way that Chris strips it down that way. And like he's mentioned before in interviews, the lyrics mean more when you hear them his way. It did in fact give me chills.

Next we got 'Like a Stone'. I'm always listening to hear if he'll sing it the album way or the way I'm accostomed to hearing. You know the part in the lyrics where it's either 'to the pagans' or 'like a pagan'. This time it was 'to the pagans'. And I definitely like it better acoustic than full band.

Straight up, I do not care for the song 'Doesn't Remind Me'. Never have. Not even with Chris a few feet away from me playing it on his acoustic guitar. It was however the song that the band came back on stage to. I always like the transitions from acoustic back to full band. Especially since Chris is definitely happy to see his band again. This is also the song that Chris played around with Corey, scatting some while Corey mimicked him on the bass. It was very, very cool. I'm not sure who won in that face-off.

The guys let Chris get a short break, drinking his water offstage while they jammed for a bit. This eased into Cochise. It was nice that it wasn't an opener. And I do think that Jason once again does Morello's solo quite aptly, though clearly with his own twist. And it doesn't sound like it doesn't belong. I won't lie.

I have a certain predisposition to 'Rusty Cage', considering my dog is named after this song. So even though I kinda think it's overplayed, I still get overjoyed when I hear it. And the band has it down, very much so. I really like how Yogi played the guitar alone for a bit to open up 'Arms Around Your Love'. It would have been really lovely if Chris and Yogi did the entire song like that. Although the moment the entire band joined back in was rather dramatic.

The next song Chris mentioned he was going to play something from Euphoria Morning. I was really, really, really hoping for 'Preaching.' But we got 'Can't Change Me'. Considering I love this song too, I wasn't all that disappointed. And unlike the Philly show I actually managed to record it (though it was full band not acoustic).

I still love this song. I'm not a big fan of 'Out of Exile' but it is a bit different seeing it live. Especially when Chris is mimicking the outline of a woman's body in the first verse (a woman who has like 4 curves though. Maybe we should school Chris about the shape of a woman). Forgive me for laughing at that.

Of course Chris cannot play a concert without singing 'Black Hole Sun'. I think it's in his contract or something. Personally I'm tired of this song (and never really cared much for it to begin with). If it wasn't so overplayed it would be different for certain. After the 70th time hearing it, there really isn't much else to say about it. I get if it's like the only Cornell song you know, that it would be cool to hear it in concert. But alas I'm not in that crowd.

thanks to Kyle Hellie for the photo

'Jesus Christ Pose' seems to also be another Cornell staple. Don't get me wrong, I do love that song. And it's especially fun when Chris is in his own jesus christ pose. And he didn't scream too much so that was good too. And it does seem to be the common closer lately.

Not that we were done with the band at all. Nor really were they us. They returned to the stage a couple of minutes later with 'Burden in My Hand.' That was a happy moment for me, as I've not heard that one live. It actually took me a minute to figure out which song it was.

It always amuses me that Chris thinks 'Safe and Sound' is a silly or a stupid little song. Sure it's a bright hopeful song. That doesn't make it silly or stupid. And it totally shows how that man can sing without the threat of a scream entering. If lighters were allowed, if people actually carried to concerts, this would be the lighter song of the night. Sometimes you'll see people holding up their cell phones in the same manner, but if they did that night they were behind me and I didn't see it. It really is a beautiful song. And the first time I had ever heard it was in concert at Philly.

The only song that would have been better than 'Seasons' would be 'Sunshower'. We got 'Seasons' and that was enough to make me grin. I really do love that song. The lyrics really do it more for me than some of Chris's other songs. And the fact that he medley'ed it into 'In My Time of Dying' was amazing. It was just gorgeous in the middle of 'Seasons'.

Perhaps if I wasn't a big fan of 'Slaves and Bulldozers' I would sick of this one too. But I am so when they started to play that one, I was one happy bunny. Jason got another drumming solo in. And then it was more medley-ing with The Doors' 'The End', 'Overfloater', 'Fourth of July', and 'Whole Lotta Love.' It was a fabulous, fabulous ending.

thanks to Kyle Hellie for the photo

When the band finally exited the stage and people started to vacate into the softly falling snow, I was totally grinning. I haven't been in this city for more than a few days and haven't honestly been all that happy about it either. But this is totally an upswing for me. Early in the show I was hit in the ear with a pick by Yogi, though someone snatched it up before I could. Later a Chris pick hit me and bounced off, but the guy behind me gave it to me. And then Corey looked at me and tossed me one of his. Towards the end, Chris jumped off the stage to watch Peter in his solo. Before getting back up on stage, not without some difficulty, he did run along the fence and touch hands and whatnot, including my own. It really was a fabulous experience for me.

I did buy a hoodie and a shirt on the way out, knowing full well they wouldn't really fit. The hoodie does, but just barely. That's okay, I'm sure it'll fit better before too long. The shirt does not care for my boobies at all, but that's fine. The band really has jelled like people have commented before. It's clear to tell that, especially when comparing it to the Philly concert. They were good then, but they were excellent this time. Even when Chris messed up on the 'Safe and Sound' lyrics, they were so ON. They had pick fights with each other. Chris hugged his bandmates and stood in awe at times while they played. They truly are a band now, not just a guy with his hired guns. I'm really glad that I didn't forgo going to this concert like I was almost tempted. It was a good first step out into my new city. And walking home in a light snow was just grand. This was a really good night.

by pbhtrip

I saw Chris Cornell here in Denver last night and it was great! He has an excellent band and he sang very well. To be honest I've never been more than a casual fan of anything he's ever done and the live stuff I've heard hasn't always been good so I wasn't expecting much, but it was really top notch.

Between the two guitar players (Pete Thorn was one of them, I don't know the other guy) there was a ton of cool gear on stage. A few Divided By 13 amps, an AC30.......I think Thorn might even be using one of the new EVH amps, but I was too far back to know for sure.........great guitars too, a few cool Les Pauls........a Suhr tele! The guitar sounds were awesome. Lots of great mid gain sounds, super heavy sounds when needed.....they covered everything perfectly. The set list was good for a casual fan like myself, all the "hits" were represented. If you're a big Soundgarden fan you might be disappointed because he doesn't dig deep into the catalog, but it was fine for me.

Outshined - thanks Kyle Hellie

Bootleg recording of the show (thanks tigerfaerie) available here

Chris Cornell Fan Page © Clare O'Brien 2007