Spoonman - Music
Spoonman by Soundgarden
Soundgarden
Artist Biography For Soundgarden
Soundgarden Was An American Rock Band Formed In Seattle Washington In 1984 By Singer And Rhythm Guitarist Chris Cornell Lead Guitarist Kim Thayil Both Of Whom Are The Only Members To Appear In Every Incarnation Of The Band And Bassist Hiro Yamamoto. Matt Cameron Became The Band's Full-Time Drummer In 1986 While Bassist Ben Shepherd Became A Permanent Replacement For Yamamoto In 1990. The Band Dissolved In 1997 And Re-Formed In 2010. Following Cornell's Death In 2017 And A Year Of Uncertainty Of The Band's Future Thayil Declared In October 2018 That The Band Was Finished They Did However Reunite In January 2019 For A One-Off Concert In Tribute To Cornell. Soundgarden Are Associated With Grunge A Style Of Alternative Rock That Developed In Seattle. After Releasing Two EPs On The Seattle-Based Label Sub-Pop In 1987 And 1988 Their Debut Album Ultramega OK Was Released On The California-Based Independent Label SST Records In 1989. While The Album Did Not Sell Well Nationally It Gained Critical Acclaim And Was Nominated For A Grammy Award In 1990. They Recorded Their Second Album Louder Than Love Independently But Had Signed With Major Label A&M Records In The Interim And Released The Album As Their Major Label Debut. Unlike Their Debut Which Had Failed To Chart Louder Than Love Peaked At Number 108 On The Billboard 200 Album Chart. Released The Same Day As Fellow Seattle Grunge Act Nirvana's Album Nevermind Their Third Album Badmotorfinger Would Bring Soundgarden To National Acclaim For The First Time Buoyed By The Popularity Of The Singles "Jesus Christ Pose" "Outshined" And "Rusty Cage" The Album Would Reach Number 39 On The Billboard 200 And Has Been Certified Double-Platinum By The RIAA. Soundgarden Was One Of The Seminal Creators Of Grunge A Style Of Alternative Rock That Developed In Seattle And Was The First Of A Number Of Grunge Bands To Sign To The Record Label Sub Pop. Soundgarden Was Also One Of The First Grunge Bands To Sign To A Major Label A&M Records In 1989 Though They Did Not Achieve Commercial Success Until They Popularized The Genre In The Early 1990s With Seattle Contemporaries Alice In Chains Pearl Jam And Nirvana. Soundgarden Achieved Its Biggest Success With The 1994 Album Superunknown Which Debuted At Number One On The Billboard 200 And Yielded The Grammy Award-Winning Singles "Spoonman" And "Black Hole Sun". In 1996 The Band Experimented With New Sonic Textures On Their Follow-Up Album Down On The Upside Which Debuted At Number 2 On The Billboard 200 And Spawned Several Hit Singles Of Its Own Including "Burden In My Hand" And "Blow Up The Outside World". In 1997 The Band Broke Up Due To Internal Strife Over Its Creative Direction And Exhaustion From Touring. After More Than A Decade Of Working On Projects And Other Bands Soundgarden Reunited In 2010 And Republic Records Released Their Sixth And Final Studio Album King Animal Two Years Later. As Of 2019 Soundgarden Sold More Than 14 Million Records In The United States And An Estimated 30 Million Worldwide. VH1 Ranked Soundgarden At Number 14 In Their Special 100 Greatest Artists Of Hard Rock. Full Wikipedia Article Https //en.Wikipedia.Org/wiki/Soundgarden Studio Albums
Ultramega OK 1988 Louder Than Love 1989 Badmotorfinger 1991 Superunknown 1994 Down On The Upside 1996 King Animal 2012
Frogtoon Music - Song Info: Spoonman
Soundgarden - Superunknown
"Spoonman" Is A Song By The American Alternative Rock Band Soundgarden. Written By Frontman Chris Cornell "Spoonman" Was Released On February 15 1994 As The First Single From The Band's Fourth Studio Album Superunknown 1994 . "Spoonman" Is Often Credited As One Of The Songs That Launched Soundgarden's Career Into The Mainstream. The Song Peaked At Number Three On The Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks Chart. A Remixed Version Of The Song By Steve Fisk Appears On The "Black Hole Sun" And "My Wave" Singles. The Song Was Included On Soundgarden's 1997 Greatest Hits Album A-Sides. "Spoonman" Was Originally Written For The Soundtrack To The 1992 Film Singles. At This Time Soundgarden Along With Fellow Grunge Band Pearl Jam Was Working On The Soundtrack For The Film. Pearl Jam Bassist Jeff Ament Had Been Put In Charge Of Creating The Name For A Fictional Band That Would Appear In The Film. Before Finally Choosing Citizen Dick For Its Name Ament Had Compiled A List Of Potential Names Which Included The Name "Spoonman". The Name Was Inspired By Artis The Spoonman A Street Performer From Santa Cruz California And Later Seattle Washington Who Plays Music With A Set Of Spoons. Soundgarden Vocalist And Songwriter Chris Cornell Eventually Used The Names On The List To Create Songs For The Film. "Spoonman" Was Among These And An Acoustic Version Was Created From It. This Early Version Of The Song Can Be Heard In The Background During A Scene Of The Film. Rather Than Just Leave The Song On The Film's Soundtrack Soundgarden Began Working On An Electric Version Of "Spoonman". The Song's Inspiration Artis The Spoonman Played A Prominent Role In The Song Itself. The Final Version Of The Song Featured Artis The Spoonman Playing His Spoons As Part Of The Song's Instrumental. Drummer Matt Cameron Also Plays Pots And Pans On The Song. Bassist Ben Shepherd Performs Backing Vocals On The Song. "Spoonman" Was Performed In Drop D Tuning. The Main Riff Used In The Verse Has 14 Beats Which Is Unusual Because Most Songs Are Written In 4/4 Or 3/4 Time. Guitarist Kim Thayil Has Said That Soundgarden Usually Did Not Consider The Time Signature Of A Song Until After The Band Had Written It And Said That The Use Of Odd Meters Was "a Total Accident." Cornell On "Spoonman" It's More About The Paradox Of Who Is And What People Perceive Him As. He's A Street Musician But When He's Playing On The Street He Is Given A Value And Judged Completely Wrong By Someone Else. They Think He's A Street Person Or He's Doing This Because He Can't Hold Down A Regular Job. They Put Him A Few Pegs Down On The Social Ladder Because Of How They Perceive Someone Who Dresses Differently. The Lyrics Express The Sentiment That I Much More Easily Identify With Someone Like Artis Than I Would Watch Him Play. The Band Would Play "Spoonman" While On Its 1993 Tour With Neil Young. With Hype Building Around The Band's Upcoming Album Superunknown Soundgarden Released The Single A Month Before The Album's Release. The Song Was Released As A Single In 1994 With A Previously Unreleased B-Side Titled "Exit Stonehenge". On The Choice Of "Spoonman" As The Album's First Single Shepherd Called It A "great First Choice " Adding That "it Just Jumps Out At You Instantly." Shepherd Said "You Know How You Listen To A Record And There Is One Song That Literally Seems To Leap Out Of The Speakers—well "Spoonman" Did That To Me." Shortly After The Single's Release The Song Became Widely Popular Reaching High Positions On Rock Charts. The Song Peaked At Number Three On The Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks Chart And Number Nine On The Billboard Modern Rock Tracks Chart. At The 1995 Grammy Awards "Spoonman" Received The Award For Best Metal Performance. Outside The United States The Single Was Released Commercially In Australia Canada Germany And The United Kingdom. In Canada The Song Reached Number 12 On The Canadian Singles Chart. "Spoonman" Reached The UK Top 20 And Would Peak At Number 23 On The Australian Singles Chart. "Spoonman" Reached The Top 30 In Australia And Ireland And Was A Top Ten Success In New Zealand. "Spoonman" Appears In The 2001 Video Game ATV Offroad Fury For The PlayStation 2. The Song Is Also Featured In The 2008 Video Games Battle Of The Bands Rock Band 2 And Rock Revolution. The Music Video For "Spoonman" Was Directed By Jeffrey Plansker Under The Alias John Smithey . The Video Also Features Artis Prominently Making Him The Focus Of The Video Instead Of The Band. The Band Members Are Shown Only In Black-And-White Still Photographs. The Video Was Released In February 1994. Cornell On The Music Video I Think We Were Fairly Smart With "Spoonman" In That You Really Don't See Us That Much In The Video. You See Various Pictures Of Us But It's Not Quite The Same As Having Us In Your Living Room All The Time. We're Trying To Maintain Some Degree Of Mystique About Soundgarden I Guess. I Remember Back When I Was A Kid Long Before MTV And The Only Way To See My Favorite Bands Was To Go To Their Concerts. It Was An Incredible Experience. MTV Has Helped A Lot Of Bands But They've Also Helped Rob A Lot Of Groups Of That Special Mystique. It's Tough When You Can See A Great Rock Band On TV One Second Then Hit The Clicker And Be Watching A Soap Opera Or A Sit Com The Next. That's What Rock And Roll Has Become For Some People.
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Biography - Soundgarden
Soundgarden Was An American Rock Band Formed In Seattle Washington In 1984 By Singer And Rhythm Guitarist Chris Cornell Lead Guitarist Kim Thayil Both Of Whom Are The Only Members To Appear In Every Incarnation Of The Band And Bassist Hiro Yamamoto. Matt Cameron Became The Band's Full-Time Drummer In 1986 While Bassist Ben Shepherd Became A Permanent Replacement For Yamamoto In 1990. The Band Dissolved In 1997 And Re-Formed In 2010. Following Cornell's Death In 2017 And A Year Of Uncertainty Of The Band's Future Thayil Declared In October 2018 That The Band Was Finished They Did However Reunite In January 2019 For A One-Off Concert In Tribute To Cornell. Soundgarden Are Associated With Grunge A Style Of Alternative Rock That Developed In Seattle. After Releasing Two EPs On The Seattle-Based Label Sub-Pop In 1987 And 1988 Their Debut Album Ultramega OK Was Released On The California-Based Independent Label SST Records In 1989. While The Album Did Not Sell Well Nationally It Gained Critical Acclaim And Was Nominated For A Grammy Award In 1990. They Recorded Their Second Album Louder Than Love Independently But Had Signed With Major Label A&M Records In The Interim And Released The Album As Their Major Label Debut. Unlike Their Debut Which Had Failed To Chart Louder Than Love Peaked At Number 108 On The Billboard 200 Album Chart. Released The Same Day As Fellow Seattle Grunge Act Nirvana's Album Nevermind Their Third Album Badmotorfinger Would Bring Soundgarden To National Acclaim For The First Time Buoyed By The Popularity Of The Singles "Jesus Christ Pose" "Outshined" And "Rusty Cage" The Album Would Reach Number 39 On The Billboard 200 And Has Been Certified Double-Platinum By The RIAA. Soundgarden Was One Of The Seminal Creators Of Grunge A Style Of Alternative Rock That Developed In Seattle And Was The First Of A Number Of Grunge Bands To Sign To The Record Label Sub Pop. Soundgarden Was Also One Of The First Grunge Bands To Sign To A Major Label A&M Records In 1989 Though They Did Not Achieve Commercial Success Until They Popularized The Genre In The Early 1990s With Seattle Contemporaries Alice In Chains Pearl Jam And Nirvana. Soundgarden Achieved Its Biggest Success With The 1994 Album Superunknown Which Debuted At Number One On The Billboard 200 And Yielded The Grammy Award-Winning Singles "Spoonman" And "Black Hole Sun". In 1996 The Band Experimented With New Sonic Textures On Their Follow-Up Album Down On The Upside Which Debuted At Number 2 On The Billboard 200 And Spawned Several Hit Singles Of Its Own Including "Burden In My Hand" And "Blow Up The Outside World". In 1997 The Band Broke Up Due To Internal Strife Over Its Creative Direction And Exhaustion From Touring. After More Than A Decade Of Working On Projects And Other Bands Soundgarden Reunited In 2010 And Republic Records Released Their Sixth And Final Studio Album King Animal Two Years Later. As Of 2019 Soundgarden Sold More Than 14 Million Records In The United States And An Estimated 30 Million Worldwide. VH1 Ranked Soundgarden At Number 14 In Their Special 100 Greatest Artists Of Hard Rock. Full Wikipedia Article Https //en.Wikipedia.Org/wiki/Soundgarden Studio Albums
Ultramega OK 1988 Louder Than Love 1989 Badmotorfinger 1991 Superunknown 1994 Down On The Upside 1996 King Animal 2012 read less
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Ultramega OK 1988 Louder Than Love 1989 Badmotorfinger 1991 Superunknown 1994 Down On The Upside 1996 King Animal 2012 read less
16 Similar Artists To Soundgarden - Frogtoon Music
Temple Of The Dog Chris Cornell Alice In Chains Audioslave Stone Temple Pilots Mad Season Jerry Cantrell Pearl Jam Mother Love Bone Screaming Trees Green River Mudhoney Nirvana Tad Skin Yard Days Of The New.
"Spoonman" is a song by the American alternative rock band Soundgarden. Written by frontman Chris Cornell, "Spoonman" was released on February 15, 1994 as the first single from the band's fourth studio album, Superunknown (1994). "Spoonman" is often credited as one of the songs that launched Soundgarden's career into the mainstream. The song peaked at number three on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart. A remixed version of the song by Steve Fisk appears on the "Black Hole Sun" and "My Wave" singles. The song was included on Soundgarden's 1997 greatest hits album, A-Sides.
"Spoonman" was originally written for the soundtrack to the 1992 film, Singles. At this time, Soundgarden, along with fellow grunge band Pearl Jam, was working on the soundtrack for the film. Pearl Jam bassist Jeff Ament had been put in charge of creating the name for a fictional band that would appear in the film. Before finally choosing Citizen Dick for its name, Ament had compiled a list of potential names which included the name "Spoonman". The name was inspired by Artis the Spoonman, a street performer from Santa Cruz, California and later Seattle, Washington, who plays music with a set of spoons. Soundgarden vocalist and songwriter Chris Cornell eventually used the names on the list to create songs for the film. "Spoonman" was among these, and an acoustic version was created from it. This early version of the song can be heard in the background during a scene of the film.
Rather than just leave the song on the film's soundtrack, Soundgarden began working on an electric version of "Spoonman". The song's inspiration, Artis the Spoonman, played a prominent role in the song itself. The final version of the song featured Artis the Spoonman playing his spoons as part of the song's instrumental. Drummer Matt Cameron also plays pots and pans on the song. Bassist Ben Shepherd performs backing vocals on the song.
"Spoonman" was performed in drop D tuning. The main riff used in the verse has 14 beats, which is unusual because most songs are written in 4/4 or 3/4 time. Guitarist Kim Thayil has said that Soundgarden usually did not consider the time signature of a song until after the band had written it, and said that the use of odd meters was "a total accident."
Cornell on "Spoonman":
It's more about the paradox of who is and what people perceive him as. He's a street musician, but when he's playing on the street, he is given a value and judged completely wrong by someone else. They think he's a street person, or he's doing this because he can't hold down a regular job. They put him a few pegs down on the social ladder because of how they perceive someone who dresses differently. The lyrics express the sentiment that I much more easily identify with someone like Artis than I would watch him play.
The band would play "Spoonman" while on its 1993 tour with Neil Young. With hype building around the band's upcoming album Superunknown, Soundgarden released the single a month before the album's release. The song was released as a single in 1994 with a previously unreleased B-side titled "Exit Stonehenge". On the choice of "Spoonman" as the album's first single, Shepherd called it a "great first choice," adding that "it just jumps out at you instantly." Shepherd said, "You know how you listen to a record and there is one song that literally seems to leap out of the speakers—well, "Spoonman" did that to me." Shortly after the single's release, the song became widely popular, reaching high positions on rock charts. The song peaked at number three on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart and number nine on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart. At the 1995 Grammy Awards, "Spoonman" received the award for Best Metal Performance.
Outside the United States, the single was released commercially in Australia, Canada, Germany, and the United Kingdom. In Canada, the song reached number 12 on the Canadian Singles Chart. "Spoonman" reached the UK Top 20 and would peak at number 23 on the Australian Singles Chart. "Spoonman" reached the top 30 in Australia and Ireland and was a top ten success in New Zealand.
"Spoonman" appears in the 2001 video game, ATV Offroad Fury, for the PlayStation 2. The song is also featured in the 2008 video games, Battle of the Bands,Rock Band 2, and Rock Revolution.
The music video for "Spoonman" was directed by Jeffrey Plansker (under the alias John Smithey). The video also features Artis prominently, making him the focus of the video instead of the band. The band members are shown only in black-and-white still photographs. The video was released in February 1994.
Cornell on the music video:
I think we were fairly smart with "Spoonman" in that you really don't see us that much in the video. You see various pictures of us, but it's not quite the same as having us in your living room all the time. We're trying to maintain some degree of mystique about Soundgarden, I guess. I remember back when I was a kid, long before MTV, and the only way to see my favorite bands was to go to their concerts. It was an incredible experience. MTV has helped a lot of bands, but they've also helped rob a lot of groups of that special mystique. It's tough when you can see a great rock band on TV one second, then hit the clicker and be watching a soap opera or a sit com the next. That's what rock and roll has become for some people. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.