photo by stephen cohen - see more here

Yogi continues to impress the crowds with his solo on Sunshower - Jasons's drum solo gets bette and better - and it seems that the band easily outshone the competition at this small scale open-air festival.

Spoonman - Outshined - Show me how to live - Hunger Strike - No Such Thing - You Know My Name - Like a stone - What You Are - Rusty Cage - Sunshower - I Am The Highway - Wide Awake - Scar On the Sky - Doesn't Remind Me - Doesn't Remind Me - Cochise - She'll Never Be Your Man - Black Hole Sun - Jesus Christ Pose - Say Hello To Heaven - Be Yourself - Slaves and Bulldozers

thanks to ekovacs for the photo

By ekovacs

"Another fine performance by Chris and his wonderful band. He headlined at the May Day Fest in Noblesville, Indiana. I didn't think he could top the Chicago show this past April but I was dead wrong. His voice sounds amazing! The band was tight and was having a blast. Yogi definitely showed his personality. I was blown away by Yogi's guitar solo on "Sunshower"! I was so happy to hear Chris sing "Say Hello 2 Heaven", "Sunshower" and "Slaves and Bulldozers". He didn't play any of those songs in Chicago. My wish came true.. Well, almost. I had hoped for "Zero Chance". Maybe next time.

Chris also played a few new songs. "Scar on the Sky" on acoustic sounded amazing! I was pleasantly surprised to hear "She'll Never Be Your Man". The crowd was very receptive.

I have two favorite moments where Chris connected with the fans. First: He gave the okay for fans to come closer to the stage. I never saw people move so fast in my life. The fans in the lawn seats were literally rushing to the pavilion. Organized chaos. lol What a sight to see. I'm sure my mouth was hanging open at that moment.

Second: Chris told the stage crew to turn on the lights so he could see all the faces in the crowd. Chris walked across the stage and was looking at all our faces. He looked at me too! I was kind of nervous. I was counting my lucky stars. I could not believe that he did this. It was as if time had stopped for a moment. I will never forget it. You could actually see his eyes looking around and focusing on each face. What a beautiful tribute! It was well worth the 500 mile (roundtrip) drive to see him.

Thank you Chris for another memorable show. How can you top this one? I'll find out in July when you play the Congress Theater in Chicago."

thanks to ekovacs for the photo

by markinwanamaker

"Wow, what a performance from the legend himself. St Louis, Cinci, Louisville...get ready and brace yourselves for the ride of your life. Chris's voice hasn't sounded this good in ages. I even saw him with Slave a couple of years ago and he topped that. What a professional in person as well. A real down to earth guy who appreciates you. Great show with the exception of the various thugs that got liquored up and wanted to fight everyone that looked at them wrong. Thanks Chris... Best song of the night???? Slaves & Bulldozers and Jesus Christ Pose. You nailed bro."

thanks to ekovacs for the photo

Chris Cornell Above The Rest

Onetime Soundgarden frontman outshines other acts and even his own band at times

by David Lindquist, Indystar

Chris Cornell found a comfort zone during Saturday's May Day concert presented by radio station WRZX-FM (103.3) at Verizon Wireless Music Center.

Following his arranged marriage with Rage Against the Machine players in the band Audioslave and the psychedelic folk of 1999 solo album "Euphoria Morning," the former voice of Soundgarden is embracing the role of rock 'n' roll crooner.

It's no coincidence that Cornell paired recent James Bond theme "You Know My Name" and current single "No Such Thing" early in Saturday's performance.

He's a detached narrator within each song, providing contrast to agitated music swirling around his voice.

Cornell's voice, of course, has kept him in the spotlight for nearly 20 years. Once billed as the new Robert Plant, Cornell still opens the sky with his blast-furnace tenor, which is sounding smoother than it did during the Audioslave era.

One of his band members mustered an effects-laden guitar solo in the same ballpark as Tom Morello during "Like a Stone." Unfortunately, the four instrumentalists were adrift in a tin-can sound mix when tackling Soundgarden material.

Cornell, however, radiated smiles and gratitude throughout.

Soundgarden standard "Outshined" pushed a run-of-the-mill bummer into a primal-scream meltdown. Few rock songwriters in the past decade or so have matched Cornell's succinct self-summary of "looking California, feeling Minnesota."

photo by stephen cohen - see more here

Spoonman (thanks dtoms1970)

Jason's drum solo from Slaves & Bulldozers (thanks handsofdoom)

Chris at the meet & greet - thanks to Nanci for the photo

Chris Cornell Fan Page © Clare O'Brien 2007