Temple of the Dog Turns Back Time in Seattle
Walking up to the Paramount tonight and reading the display felt surreal as many of us thought this would never happen. Temple of the Dog formed shortly after Chris Cornell’s then roommate suddenly died of a heroin overdose. Andrew Wood, who was only 24, was lead singer in Seattle band Mother Love Bone who released only one record just weeks after his death.
The purpose of the band in a way was to immortalize Wood’s memory, and now 25 years later it’s safe to say they more than succeeded, something that Cornell also mentioned at the show. At the time he recruited Soundgarden bandmate Matt Cameron and Mother Love Bone’s Mike McCready, Stone Gossard, and Jeff Ament, who would become superstars for their next collaboration, Pearl Jam.
The band came onto the stage and everyone at the venue stood immediately cheering at the top of their lungs. I don’t think I’ve ever heard the place get so loud and stay that loud for so long. They kept cheering and clapping enthusiastically as the members made their way to the stage including Cornell that smiled walking towards the middle holding his hands up waving to everyone. The setup was very minimal other than their instruments and amps, they kept the floor open, and you could even see all their lucky guests sitting side stage through the night.
Hearing all these songs come alive felt more than a special treat that we were all lucky to be a part of. This was the last show of their mini 8 show tour and it was even more special that it was ending where it all started years ago. “It’s nice to be here, you all know why, no explanation required”, Cornell simply stated but everyone knew exactly what he meant.
All the members had incredible chemistry that was a recipe of clearly loving being there all together playing these songs, honoring Wood. Cornell’s voice is an emotional rollercoaster that takes you on a ride up and down, as if you were almost in the same room while he was writing them. He has such a powerful charisma to take you back to the exact moment you first heard the songs triggering all the feelings you had then.
The night unfolded almost as if we were having friends play in our living room as Cornell stopped between songs and told stories from that time and gave insight to song inspirations. When “Hunger Strike” began the crowd was hoping Eddie Vedder would jump on stage to sing his part but we had the same fate as night one unfortunately. That still didn’t stop the song from being one of the highlights of the night as Cornell asked for the audience to sing Vedder’s part which echoed through the space.
The band played the ten songs off their only record along with five Mother Love Bone covers. In addition the set included amazing covers from Mad Season’s “River of Deceit“, Free’s “I’m a Mover”, Jimmy Hendrix’s “Hey Baby”, David Bowie’s “Quicksand”, Black Sabbath’s “War Pigs”, to The Cure’s “Fascination Street“.
Cornell stepped back on the floor solo holding his guitar for the first encore and full of emotion went back to Andy Wood. “He made everyone around him happy no matter what he was feeling inside, he had the power to light up the room, and he loved music over anything else”. Probably the most heartfelt performance came after that with “Man of Golden Words”, which TOTD takes its name from, that blended into a cover of “Comfortably Numb” at the end.
No words can explain what took place tonight in Seattle but for the few fortunate fans that were able to grab tickets, it was a concert of a lifetime. Many have been waiting for it since 1991 and one thing was for sure, it was worth it. To see all those guys on stage together enjoying being there with the crowd and honoring a lost friend meant so much and it’s something none will ever forget.
Paramount Setlist November 21, 2016
- Say Hello 2 Heaven
- Wooden Jesus
- Call Me a Dog
- Your Savior
- Stardog Champion (Mother Love Bone cover)
- Stargazer (Mother Love Bone cover)
- Seasons (Chris Cornell song)
- Jump Into the Fire (Harry Nilsson cover)
- Four Walled World
- I’m a Mover (Free cover)
- Pushin Forward Back
- Hunger Strike
- Hey Baby (New Rising Sun) (Jimi Hendrix cover)
- River of Deceit (Mad Season cover)
- Heartshine (Mother Love Bone cover)
- Holy Roller (Mother Love Bone cover)
- Reach Down
Encore:
- 18.Man of Golden Words (Mother Love Bone cover)/Comfortably Numb (Pink Floyd cover)
- Times of Trouble
- Missing (Chris Cornell song)
- Achilles Last Stand (Led Zeppelin cover)
- Quicksand (David Bowie cover)
- Fascination Street (The Cure cover)
- War Pigs (Black Sabbath cover)
- All Night Thing
