Chris Cornell (born Christopher John Boyle; July 20, 1964) is an American rock musician best known as the lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist for Sound garden and as the former lead vocalist for Audioslave. He is also known for his numerous solo works and soundtrack contributions since 1998. He is known for his wide vocal range, spanning B1-G5 in full-voice, and up to E6 in falsetto,[1][2] as well as his powerful vocal belting technique. He was the founder and front man for Temple of the Dog, the one-off tribute band dedicated to his former roommate, Andrew Wood. He has released three solo studio albums, Euphoria Morning (1999), Carry On (2007), and Scream (2009). Cornell was ranked 4th in the list of "Heavy Metal's All-Time Top 100 Vocalists" by Hit Parader.[3] He performed the theme song to the James Bond film Casino Royale (2006), "You Know My Name."

Childhood and early life 

Cornell was born and raised in Seattle, Washington and attended Christ the King, Catholic elementary school[4] and Shorewood High School. His parents are Ed Boyle (a pharmacist from an Irish Catholic background) and Karen Cornell (an accountant from a Jewish background).[5][6] He has five siblings: older brothers Peter and Patrick, and younger sisters Katy, Suzy, and Maggie. Peter, Katy and Suzy all performed in the band Inflatable Soule in the 1990s. Peter is currently the frontman for the New York-based rock band Black Market Radio. Katy performs as lead vocalist for the Seattle band Happy Hour Hero.

Cornell spent a two-year period between the ages of nine and eleven solidly listening to The Beatles after finding a large collection of Beatles records abandoned in the basement of a neighbor's house. Cornell was a loner; however, he was able to deal with his anxiety around other people through rock music.[7] Before becoming a successful musician, he worked at a seafood wholesaler and was a sous-chef at a restaurant named Ray's Boathouse.[8]

In the early 1980s, Cornell was a member of a cover band called The Shemps that performed around Seattle.[9] The Shemps also featured bassist Hiro Yamamoto. Following Yamamoto's departure from The Shemps, the band recruited guitarist Kim Thayil as its new bassist.[9] Cornell and Yamamoto stayed in contact, and after The Shemps broke up Cornell and Yamamoto started jamming together, eventually bringing in Thayil to join them.