los angeles 4 april 2007

nissan live sets for yahoo! music

set list

fan reviews

by Trina G.

"So there we all were at a Los Angeles soundstage for the taping of a Nissan Live Sets session that will be on Yahoo! Music. Personally, I'm a bit struck that (a) I made it there, (b)I'm seeing this musical gem live for the first time, and (c) I made it there! LA traffic is a beast, people!

As for reviewing the gig, the best I can do is this:

#1: the atmosphere was casual, pleasant, fun; it was on one of the studio lots (FOX, MGM...I've already forgotten); a typical production scene, cueing us for applause and such. The place was not completely full, there was plenty of room to move around (necessary for productions' sake, cameras and photographers moving through the audience, etc). Great place to catch a show if you're so fortunate.

#2: the man's got a full band...a tight ass band behind him. I'm so glad that this will NOT be a coffee-house acoustic, me-and-my-guitar tour. This is rock and roll or, as a friend of mine put it, "Grunge all grown-up!"

#3: the voice was dead on but, bless his heart, has he learned how to fully use it? Yes, he has. He can croon as well as fly the octaves. The notes he was hitting were insane!

#4: he took Michael Jackson's "Billie Jean" and ripped it a new one. Soul and blues that MJ could only dream of here. I've heard this acoustically and it's great; but with a band behind it and that slow pace, the song is a monster! A friend who came with me to the show and had never heard of Cornell: (a) didn't even recognize the song the way Cornell sang it...only realized it was MJ's Billie Jean after it was over (that's a good song...take the song and make it your own) (b) thought it was right on.

#5: he's so damned charming and funny and quick-witted and coherent for a man born of grunge rock. He was chatty and loose and obviously glad to be where he was.

#6: he exudes the aura of a content man.

set list

(these links will work worldwide)

Q&A's were interspersed throughout the taping. During these I watched the crowd, their faces, their reactions, etc. I saw so many people of varied stages in life (20, 30, 40-somethings, dressed up, dressed down) who were here to see this one man. I guess with 3 successful bands, a solo career and 20 years musical years behind you, you're bound to cross a lot of musical bridges.

Chris Cornell - Fan Q&A Part One: Nissan Live Sets On Yahoo! Music

Chris Cornell - Fan Q&A Part Two: Nissan Live Sets On Yahoo! Music

Cornell said very plainly said that he's not interested in a SG reunion. Yogi (lead guitarist) showed us that he can do the moonwalk. Michael Jackson and Madonna were the last artists that he'd ever expected to cover. EVER.

I stood in the back on some steps which afforded me a fantastic view of the stage and all who were on it. I think it's safe to say that there's a distinct difference in Cornell's stage manner when the music he's performing is wholly his own. The entire thing lasted approximately 1 1/2 hours and we were on our way home by 7:45; but by the end, we were all a very happy, feeling blessed by greatness. And damned if it wasn't a fantastic way to spend a Wednesday eve. (thanks Trina G.)

pro reviews

Feelin' Minnesota At The Chris Cornell Live Sets

by Lyndsey Parker, Yahoo! Music

All I want to know is, what's Chris Cornell's secret? Some special Gunnar Peterson-helmed fitness regime? Caviar facials? Antioxidants? Macrobiotics? Wheat grass? The blood of virgins? What? Because even though he's considerably less hirsute and, regrettably, he tends to keep his shirt on most of the time these days, the man still looks like he hasn't aged a day since he had his badmotorfinger on the pulse in the grungy early '90s. And, as evidenced by his Live Sets performance, he still rawks.

Believe it or not, it's been almost 10 years since the release of the ageless Chris's one and only solo album, Euphoria Morning, and all I can say is. what took him so long" Oh yeah, that whole Audioslave thing. I certainly had a feeling that wouldn't last after I watched Audioslave's "Original Fire" video last year, as it was painfully obvious that Chris's scenes had been shot on a separate soundstage far, far away.

And then Chris did that James Bond theme song, further indicating that he was about to break off on his own. Then came that much-ballyhooed Rage Against The Machine reunion. (Yawn--sorry, I don't care. I don't even plan to watch them at Coachella. That's how much I don't care.) Anyhoo, I say, forget Audioslave and RATM. After this Live Sets performance, I am sooooo Team Chris.

So, when I arrived at Team Chris's Live Sets dress rehearsal, it was pretty apparent that Mr. Cornell was quite thrilled to be playing with his new backing band. They certainly looked like a solid band--a gang of slick, sexy rockerboys with matching shag haircuts and black rockstar attire--and they had a natural rapport with each other (joking around in that endearingly in-jokey band-guy sorta way, attempting to do the running-man dance, basically acting like old chums). One notable Chris bandmate was lanky Buckcherry axeman Yogi (who, I later learned from bassist Cory, actually does do yoga--maybe that is how he stretched himself so tall and lean). Yogi's a true rock star if I ever saw one. Remember Spike from the Peanuts comic strip--Snoopy's mustachioed, fedora-hatted, jazz-musician brother? Well, Yogi is sort of the human embodiment of Spike. Which means he looks pretty damn cool. Anyway, I digress.

Again. This Live Sets show was to be Chris's his first public performance with Yogi/Spike, Cory, et al, and apparently he was so chomping at the proverbial bit to play with them that he pretty much performed an entire private set for the Yahoo! Music crew, from beginning to end, song by song. Now, this was unusual: Most artists usually just do a cursory run-through, just to check sound levels and get used to the stage setup, but they don't play for 30 or 40 minutes straight. Of course, many artists hold back during the rehearsal in order to save their voices for the main event, but Chris clearly didn't need to save his voice, because there was plenty where that came from....

Damn, that VOICE! You know, there was a time when I greatly admired Chris's his pro-Ann Wilson comments on the Behind The Music about fellow Seattle rockers Heart, and Chris has got just as much lung power as that woman. Seriously, he is blessed with one of the best voices in rock (his came in at #12 in MTV's "22 Greatest Voices In Music" list, but I think that ranking is a little low), and watching Chris power his way through "Outshined" rapidly reminded me of this indisputable factoid. He stepped up to the mic, all nonchalant and shiz, opened his mouth, and it was like, "Yep, that's Chris Cornell, all right." You could pick his voice out of any lineup of random Nickelbackian posers. He's just got unmistakable, incredible, pure talent--no ProTools required. The dude can out-sing any Idol; some people simply have that "X-factor," as Simon Cowell would say.

Anyway, the crew (myself included) couldn't help but stare in amazement, and at the end of the set the show's director pretty much spoke for everyone when he declared, "That was f**king awesome!" Sheesh, if the REHEARSAL was this good...

...Then the actual show would be even awesome-er, right? Right, indeed. An hour or so later the fanatics started filing in, and I have to tell you, it sure was a different crowd than the last couple of Live Sets shows we'd filmed. For instance, the Avril Lavigne shoot was filled with little itty-bitty toddlers in fairy-princess frocks and Hot Topic-attired 'tween girls, while the Maroon 5 taping was chock-full o' twentysomething club chicks with the hots for Adam Levine. But tonight? There was a whole lotta testosterone in the room. It looked like the audience for an Ultimate Fighting Championship match or something.

However, the vibe was all peace 'n' love. They were feelin' Minnesota (true, Soundgarden inspired a straight-to-video Cameron/Keanu film by that title, but hey, "Outshined" is still a killer song) and were in as good spirits as Chris himself, so eager and excitable that when the show director half-jokingly asked them to sing the famous Yahoo! yodel, they readily (perhaps too readily) complied. In unison. Yep, that's Yahoo! branding at its best. One of the fans (a rare female one) had even played hooky from work and flown FIVE hours from another state to attend (I promised her I would not reveal her name/home state/place of employment in order to protect the not-so-innocent), and I have to say, she yodeled quite well. Nice job, Miss Mystery Fan.

Anyhoo, whether they came from near or far, this was perhaps the most grateful flock of fans to grace the Live Sets auditorium yet. The minute Chris bounded onstage, they were expressing their loud love (even for new, unfamiliar tunes like "Poison Eye" and "Arms Around Your Love," which were extremely well-received), and during the Q&A they repeatedly, sincerely thanked Chris for his time and for the opportunity to see him so up-close and personal.

The Q&A was a total reciprocal lovefest, too, with Chris thanking the diehards for their undying support, sharing an unexpected touching moment with cancer survivor, and basically handling all questions with honestly and kindness (even the ones about possible Temple Of The Dog and Soundgarden reunions, though oddly no Audioslave-centric questions were asked). The fans hung on his every word--grateful, respectful, worshipful--and Chris came across as an all-around good guy, a real salt-of-the-earth type. You know, the kind of guy who'd invite everyone in the crowd to go have a beer later. Sadly, that didn't happen, but the fans seemed to enjoy their time with Chris nonetheless.

And now, please excuse me, but I must interject in the middle of this heartwarming lovefest recap to mention, at length, one of the songs from Chris's Live Sets gig: "Billie Jean." Yes, that "Billie Jean." The Michael Jackson classic. Now, it was seemingly silly song choice at first. Chris revealed the amusing motives behind it in his Q&A--it was either that or a Madonna song, and while "Papa Don't Preach" would've been a nice baby-out-of-wedlock choice as well, it turned out to be a good idea that Chris went with the Jacko tune. Yes, I admit that when I learned that Chris was planning to tackle this cover song, my jury was out, but after watching the performance, my verdict is officially in: It ruled! As they say on American Idol, he truly made the tune his own. (Wow, that's my second Idol reference in this blog. Am I lame or what?)

See, whenever I listen to the Jacko original, I think, "Michael, you don't really need to try so hard to convince me that you didn't father Billie Jean's bastard baby. It's all right--I believe you when you say you didn't sleep with her!" But when the testosterone-soaked Chris intoned the same words of parental protest at Live Sets, all dark and evil, he turned the tune into a murder ballad, an ode to a sinister stalker, and in this context it wasn't too hard to suspect him of some wrongdoing. It just totally changed the vibe of the song--and it worked. The only thing that would've made it better would be if the stage floor tiles had lit up underneath Chris's feet, but hey, at least Yogi attempted to moonwalk during some between-song downtime.

So, after Chris blew everyone's mind with that cover tune and ended things with a splendid rendition of "Black Hole Sun" (a CLASSIC! Soundgarden songs have aged very well, I have to say), the show was supposedly over. But it was unfortunately time to do some pickups. For those of you who don't know what a "pickup" is, it's when the camera crew needs to reshoot a few bits and pieces because they didn't get a sufficient shot, or the audio didn't sound 100 percent perfect, or there was some other technical difficulty to boring or complicated to explain here. The fans have to stick around, try not to act deflated, and pretend that the show is still going on full-force for the sake of the cameras. In this case, the aforementioned grateful fans didn't seem to mind whatsoever, so the reciprocal lovefest continued anew: Chris rewarded their patience with a surprise bonus song not on the setlist: "Spoonman"! The fans subsequently went nuts while the caught-off-guard camera crew comically scrambled to catch the remnants of the performance for posterity. Wow, a real, unplanned encore--a Live Sets first!

And thus concluded my all-day crash course in Cornell University, so to speak. I learned a lot, like the fact that Chris can cover Michael Jackson way, waaaay better than Alien Ant Farm ever did, and, as I mentioned in my opening paragraph, that's he's aged a whole lot better than Michael Jackson, too. (No surgery required for this guy!) But mostly, I just got a refresher on what I already knew: That Chris Cornell pretty much rules.

Louder than love,

Lyndsey Parker

Lyndsey's original blog first published here

See the Chris Cornell Concerts site for an audio recording of this show