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Temple of the Dog — Hunger Strike
Album: Temple Of The Dog
Avg rating:
6.7

Your rating:
Total ratings: 1830









Released: 1990
Length: 3:56
Plays (last 30 days): 0
Well I don't mind stealing bread
From the mouths of decadents
But I can't feed on the powerless
When my cup's already overfilled

Yeah
But it's on the table
The fire's cooking
And they're farming babies
The slaves are all working

Blood is on the table
The mouths are all choking
But I'm goin' hungry
Yeah

I don't mind stealing bread
From the mouths of decadents
But I can't feed on the powerless
When my cup's already overfilled

But it's on the table
The fire is cooking
And they're farming babies
The slaves are all working

And it's on the table
Their mouths are all choking
But I'm going hungry (Going hungry)
I'm going hungry (Going hungry)
I'm going hungry (Going hungry)
Comments (254)add comment
i'm glad to hear the true creators of grunge are still allowed to be played.
Worst Pearl Jam song ever, not performed by Pearl Jam. What a mess
 bam23 wrote:

OK I admit it. I have no understanding of why this song is on RP. Its merits completely escape me, no matter how many times I hear it. What is the draw? Is it the vocals? The screeching delivery? The mundane instrumental accompaniment? Music appreciation is qualitative so maybe that's where it ends. But why this piece more than every year or so?



Mundane instrumental accompaniment? How about a single note undertone from an organ in aged secular choral music? Sure, it's one note ad nauseum, but it is still important in the composers mind for the piece... 
 bam23 wrote:
OK I admit it. I have no understanding of why this song is on RP. Its merits completely escape me, no matter how many times I hear it. What is the draw? Is it the vocals? The screeching delivery? The mundane instrumental accompaniment? Music appreciation is qualitative so maybe that's where it ends. But why this piece more than every year or so?
 
You have a 'skip' button, try using it!
The 'devil' is in the details - this station is curated 'eclectically'.
You get to vote but why be soo negative?
You are allowed to suggest/promote other choons! What's missing?
 bam23 wrote:
OK I admit it. I have no understanding of why this song is on RP. Its merits completely escape me, no matter how many times I hear it. What is the draw? Is it the vocals? The screeching delivery? The mundane instrumental accompaniment? Music appreciation is qualitative so maybe that's where it ends. But why this piece more than every year or so?
 
So ... you don't like it and therefore don't think it should be played more than annually.
OK I admit it. I have no understanding of why this song is on RP. Its merits completely escape me, no matter how many times I hear it. What is the draw? Is it the vocals? The screeching delivery? The mundane instrumental accompaniment? Music appreciation is qualitative so maybe that's where it ends. But why this piece more than every year or so?
Early grunge  classic; what's not to like ?......
 skuzzfud wrote:
Just dropped it to ho-hum. Vedder sounds like a lost cow in the back paddock.
 
Mmm, indeed a lost cow could lead to a Hunger Strike.
 cavemanleong wrote:
Darn it! I miss Chris Cornell.
 
One of the best, forever!
 kevrey wrote:

No. Some songs are horrible. This is one of them.
 
 Chris Cornell's shrieking seems a half-octave too high for him on this, God rest his soul. A disturbing performance for the wrong reasons..
 surfrider4life wrote:
 kevrey wrote:
Horrible
 Are you referring to your own void  of of music history knowledge and taste ?

 
No. Some songs are horrible. This is one of them.
I like that! Pearl Jam meets Hootie & The Blowfish with awesome results!!!
Just dropped it to ho-hum. Vedder sounds like a lost cow in the back paddock.
Minus 1 on this one.
Ugh.  Please give me some Soundgarden instead.
Love the lyrics, but cannot stand the way they were put to music.  Pretty much my opinion of most grunge.  Not sure why, unless it is indeed because I'm too old.
 Chimpmeister wrote:
Garbage
 

No, Temple of the Dog. Garbage is a totally different band.
 bam23 wrote:
I don't know this band although it's been part of what gets played here for years. What strikes me is the exceedingly limited range of the singer. This is more than an issue of whether I like the voice or not; there is so little variation that it grates for me.
 
You do know there are two vocalists? right?  Eddie Vedder and Chris Cornell; the first is the low voice, the latter the high pitched one. Maybe they limited themselves to that arrangement, I don't know.
I don't know this band although it's been part of what gets played here for years. What strikes me is the exceedingly limited range of the singer. This is more than an issue of whether I like the voice or not; there is so little variation that it grates for me.
Garbage
 surfrider4life wrote:

LOL ...and you have not been wrong !
that's a voice that is a bit easy to discern!
 
ie, at some points he's trying to sing through a decidedly persistent lump of phlegm that's located behind his left tonsil...
 obankenobi wrote:
whoops, 29 years of thinking this was Eddie Vedder
 
LOL ...and you have not been wrong !
that's a voice that is a bit easy to discern!
Hail, HAIL R.P for recognizing

2 iconic vocalists, and a great era in ROCK!
 kevrey wrote:
Horrible
 Are you referring to your own void  of of music history knowledge and taste ?

Horrible
whoops, 29 years of thinking this was Eddie Vedder
Takes me be to early college, when Grunge hit the scene and demolished Madonna, Milli Vanilla and such.  I was so stoked.  All manner of alt rock and independent music was on the radio and in the charts for a decade.  Has the Millennial generation brought us a wave of music like this?
Darn it! I miss Chris Cornell.
Has a whole new meaning, hearing Cornell's wail on this one. 
 sfyi2001 wrote:

 Kind of liked this 27 years ago.
Grunge was big here in Seattle.
Think I gave my brother the CD at Christmas that year.
Listening to it now and laffing at myself.
Utter garbage.



 
That's a bit of an overstatement.  Not my favorite, but far from garbage.  Lots of early 90s selections on RP this evening. 
 sfyi2001 wrote:

 Kind of liked this 27 years ago.
Grunge was big here in Seattle.
Think I gave my brother the CD at Christmas that year.
Listening to it now and laffing at myself.
Utter garbage.



 
Laffable.
Channeling all the grunge 'gods' {#Bananajam}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Notworthy}
From the same album, I would love to see "Wooden Jesus" added to the list.
 sfyi2001 wrote:

 Kind of liked this 27 years ago.
Grunge was big here in Seattle.
Think I gave my brother the CD at Christmas that year.
Listening to it now and laffing at myself.
Utter garbage.



 
Do you ever say that about Soundgarden?{#Sunny}
Were all over this one..{#Dancingbanana_2}
Thank you for playing this song. It gives me shivers every single time, and even more now after what Chris Cornell did... This goes back to an era in which rock music was being amazing again after the 80s, thank goodness.Two incredible voices mixed forever in one of the best tunes ever written!



 Kind of liked this 27 years ago.
Grunge was big here in Seattle.
Think I gave my brother the CD at Christmas that year.
Listening to it now and laffing at myself.
Utter garbage.


Can I please never hear this again. THANK YOU for the PSD button.
 dpvest wrote:
saw eddie & chris do an acoustic version of this song last fall at neil young's bridge school benefit.  nice to get the back story on this from some of the other comments.

 
{#Yes}
Creed all growed up?
This song...26 years later and it still taps into the same vein. Anyone else going to the November shows in SF?
Somebody please feed this guy!
Today's PJ lineup plus the incomparable vocals of Chris Cornell.

Rattles my bones on record, and when done live with Chris, it is a spiritual experience. 
♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥
 ppopp wrote:
lol @ the screaming in this song.

 
Exactly..  The screaming just kills it for me.
lol @ the screaming in this song.
 kingart wrote:
I'm going bonkers!
Temple of the Stone Dog Temple Pilots.
How does one spell m-o-n-o-t-o-n-o-u-s? 

 

 
just off the top of my head I can't think of any song from any genre that isn't monotous
mahlzeit
I love this song! Thanks Bill!! {#Guitarist}
Powerfull Rock! The singing, lyrics and musicians...great composition that compels me to crank up my amp loud enough for a neighbors call.. "really Jim".
saw eddie & chris do an acoustic version of this song last fall at neil young's bridge school benefit.  nice to get the back story on this from some of the other comments.
So true on so many levels...BRILLIANT!!?
 
Forever and always. {#Hearteyes}
3 • Ho Hum implies I'm indifferent to the caterwauling. I am not. I do not like it at all. But it's a shade better than 2 • Marginal but certainly not 4 • Acceptable. So Ho Hum it is, then.
Hootie!
 Nadine wrote:

totally. 

"Temple of the Dog was started by Soundgarden frontman Chris Cornell, who had been a roommate of Andrew Wood, the lead singer of Malfunkshun and Mother Love Bone. Wood died on March 19, 1990 of a heroin overdose, the day Cornell got back from a tour. As he went on to tour Europe a few days later, he started writing songs in tribute to his late friend. The result was two songs, "Reach Down" and "Say Hello 2 Heaven," which he recorded as soon as he got back from touring."

"Temple of the Dog was an American rock band that formed in Seattle, Washington in 1990. It was conceived by vocalist Chris Cornell of Soundgarden as a tribute to his friend, the late Andrew Wood, lead singer of Malfunkshun and Mother Love Bone. The line-up included Stone Gossard on rhythm guitar, Jeff Ament on bass guitar (both ex-members of Mother Love Bone), Mike McCready on lead guitar, Matt Cameron on drums and Eddie Vedder providing lead and backing vocals."

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temple_of_the_Dog

I'd love to hear -every now and then- "say hello to heaven" here & the "hits" mother love bone had. not only because of the "historical"/"tribute" value (I like some of mother love bone's songs a big deal...still). unfortunately the aforementioned songs didn't make it on rp's playlist. 



 
Thanks...answer to my question.   Awesome song.  I don't mind stealing bread.
Mother Love Bone singer memorial?  Somebody enlighten me.  Awesome song.
 ziakut wrote:
At first I thought this was Eddie Vedder or Pearl Jam with someone guest singing...I stand corrected.

 
Well, you're half right.  The lineup is Pearl Jam + Chris Cornell.  Though I think at the time it would have been seen more like "the lead singer of that new Soundgarden band + this band who is going to be tremendous shortly, just you watch."
A few more than 3 notes would be nice, just for a bit of variety, like. Nice band name, but this number is snoozeville {#Sleep}
Nice song :)


It's lunch time and this song makes me hungry...
Hunger strike is over for me.
hate this song, and it sounds like Pearl Jam... PSD
 paradisepig wrote:
Is it me or does this sound a tad like "Hootie and the Blowfish" well the lead singer anyway?

 

 

I don't think I have ever heard anyone compare the vocal stylings of Chris Cornell with Darius Rucker!{#Lol}{#Eek}{#No} Not a huge fan of either, but they really don't sound anything alike.  I think you must be referring to the Eddie Vedder parts, yea I can see that though I actually think Darius has a better voice.
At first I thought this was Eddie Vedder or Pearl Jam with someone guest singing...I stand corrected.
What's worse than Pearl Jam? That would be a PJ wannabe.
 
{#Arghhh}
 paradisepig wrote:
Is it me or does this sound a tad like "Hootie and the Blowfish" well the lead singer anyway?

 

 
you mean, Eddie Vedder sounds like Darius Rucker of Hootie and the Blowfish?  Really?
Sorry all, this song really sucks and should be pulled from rotation FOREVER! 
Where's the PSD button.  Ouch.......
Is it me or does this sound a tad like "Hootie and the Blowfish" well the lead singer anyway?

 
 kingart wrote:
I'm going bonkers!
Temple of the Stone Dog Temple Pilots.
How does one spell m-o-n-o-t-o-n-o-u-s? 

 

 

Go look in the mirror. It's written on your forehead.


Are you dumb to rate it less than 10??
I'm going bonkers!
Temple of the Stone Dog Temple Pilots.
How does one spell m-o-n-o-t-o-n-o-u-s? 

 
{#Bananapiano}Cracking tune,thanks RP
 I beg to differ  Boy_Wonder wrote:
Awful!

 


Awful!
Someone please give this man a sandwich! 
 
Well, young man, you're NOT going to getting any grub by simply yelling all the time. 
 Euskadita wrote:
It's more the historical value of this band than its quality...
 

totally. 

"Temple of the Dog was started by Soundgarden frontman Chris Cornell, who had been a roommate of Andrew Wood, the lead singer of Malfunkshun and Mother Love Bone. Wood died on March 19, 1990 of a heroin overdose, the day Cornell got back from a tour. As he went on to tour Europe a few days later, he started writing songs in tribute to his late friend. The result was two songs, "Reach Down" and "Say Hello 2 Heaven," which he recorded as soon as he got back from touring."

"Temple of the Dog was an American rock band that formed in Seattle, Washington in 1990. It was conceived by vocalist Chris Cornell of Soundgarden as a tribute to his friend, the late Andrew Wood, lead singer of Malfunkshun and Mother Love Bone. The line-up included Stone Gossard on rhythm guitar, Jeff Ament on bass guitar (both ex-members of Mother Love Bone), Mike McCready on lead guitar, Matt Cameron on drums and Eddie Vedder providing lead and backing vocals."

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temple_of_the_Dog

I'd love to hear -every now and then- "say hello to heaven" here & the "hits" mother love bone had. not only because of the "historical"/"tribute" value (I like some of mother love bone's songs a big deal...still). unfortunately the aforementioned songs didn't make it on rp's playlist. 


Wawo Radio Paradise THANK YOU!!! for all the good music!
 
It's more the historical value of this band than its quality...
 dwlangham wrote:
Insufferable crap.
 
go crawl back under your rock
 randyblew wrote:
I always thought this song pretty good, though don't need to hear it often. However, watching Cameron Crowe's excellent recent doc PJ20, and listening to Eddie, Cornell et al talk about the song and that period of time - gave me anew appreciation for the music and the period and where I was at then as well, as music is always about the personal in the end, I think. Watch PJ20 when you can - outstanding.
 


Outdtanding documental!
I love PJ, and Cameron did just and amazing job. Agree, everyone should watch it.

Insufferable crap.
Makes the foot tap and the leg twitch, guess I like it.
 
God what trivial, repetitive tripe... and love the wailer repeating repeating repeating... mute
I always thought this song pretty good, though don't need to hear it often. However, watching Cameron Crowe's excellent recent doc PJ20, and listening to Eddie, Cornell et al talk about the song and that period of time - gave me anew appreciation for the music and the period and where I was at then as well, as music is always about the personal in the end, I think. Watch PJ20 when you can - outstanding.
{#Puke}and my ears hurt now...
This disc was in my player for 2 years after it came out. Good stuff, Maynard! {#Wave}
The greatest 2 voices of rock music
Just doesn't do it for me...sorry
Remember the 90s? Lots of fun..
7:55 am, just got into work, first song of the day - painfully brilliant! perfect 10. how can some of you guys not like it? {#Stupid}
click OFF now ...
Indulgent nauseating reminder of the great poverty of the 90's  Cynaera wrote:
 omersegev wrote:
Ohhhhh Come on,
Vedder and Corrnell are the best voices in the rock industry!

GREAT Song
I disagree. While I've recently started loving Pearl Jam and Eddie's solo work, and Chris Cornell can carry a tune and hit some amazingly high notes, I wouldn't class either of them as the BEST voices in the rock industry.  Talented, yes.

I simply can't seem to love this song as ardently as other people.  The shrill caterwauling grates on my nerves, much like Geddy Lee's voice does.  If someone's going hungry, they don't have the pipes to scream out (repeatedly) that they're going hungry. 

I guess I just have to be in the right mood for it. Coming right after one of my favorite John Hiatt songs probably stacked the deck against "Hunger Strike" for me.  Sorry.  Perhaps in a different set, it might smack me in the forehead with a revelation.  For now, it just makes my temples throb as if they'd been smacked with a baseball bat...{#Rolleyes}
 


 omersegev wrote:
Ohhhhh Come on,
Vedder and Corrnell are the best voices in the rock industry!

GREAT Song
I disagree. While I've recently started loving Pearl Jam and Eddie's solo work, and Chris Cornell can carry a tune and hit some amazingly high notes, I wouldn't class either of them as the BEST voices in the rock industry.  Talented, yes.

I simply can't seem to love this song as ardently as other people.  The shrill caterwauling grates on my nerves, much like Geddy Lee's voice does.  If someone's going hungry, they don't have the pipes to scream out (repeatedly) that they're going hungry. 

I guess I just have to be in the right mood for it. Coming right after one of my favorite John Hiatt songs probably stacked the deck against "Hunger Strike" for me.  Sorry.  Perhaps in a different set, it might smack me in the forehead with a revelation.  For now, it just makes my temples throb as if they'd been smacked with a baseball bat...{#Rolleyes}


If this song were the only food in the world i'd rather be GROWING HUNGRYYYYYY YEAAAAAAAAHHHHHH
Great story of how all this came together in the wake of a tragedy - Look for the book about 1990 at https://www.twofeetthick.com/


Ahh this song instantly transports me to my youth! Happy times :)
Thank you Bill! 

This is such a fantastic song. Thanks, Bill, for dragging it out of the basement.  It just never gets old. 
 lemmoth wrote:


That howling background singer???
The brilliant Chris Cornell — This is rock and roll people  - give me a break
  
 
Bosami wrote:


I'm with you on this one, brother. Sometimes these comments pages are baffling.
 

Hope I don't baffle you more, but Chris Cornell is the best thing this song has to offer. Way, way overplayed in my neck of the woods. 

Not quite as bad as Alice in Chains' "Rooster", but pretty close.  

 choderama wrote:
He's not howling, Cornell is great. However, although this isn't bad (it's actually pretty good), I don't think this is his best work at all. There are some pretty amazing Soundgarden songs that show off Cornell's talent alot better.
 
Hear hear!
clink


Oh, somebody, please offer the man a sandwich or a bag of potato chips!  He's hungry.  {#Mrgreen}
very very nice!!!!!!!!!! to hear it now...
He's not howling, Cornell is great. However, although this isn't bad (it's actually pretty good), I don't think this is his best work at all. There are some pretty amazing Soundgarden songs that show off Cornell's talent alot better.
 lemmoth wrote:


That howling background singer???
The brilliant Chris Cornell — This is rock and roll people  - give me a break
 
Your right, this song ROCKS!

 lemmoth wrote:


That howling background singer???
The brilliant Chris Cornell — This is rock and roll people  - give me a break
 

I'm with you on this one, brother. Sometimes these comments pages are baffling.

 lemmoth wrote:


That howling background singer???
The brilliant Chris Cornell — This is rock and roll people  - give me a break
 

Led Zeppelin and the Rolling Stones are what I call rock and roll. This? not so much....
the singer is just so grating. not powerful, grating......
but oh well, different strokes.
fortunately RP plays enough good music to make up for this and a couple other clunkers.


 Cruzan wrote:


Me too
just awful..........

you could get past that howling background singer if he didn't repeat that howl/yowl so many times........
the rest of it is passable.
 

That howling background singer???
The brilliant Chris Cornell — This is rock and roll people  - give me a break
 sirdroseph wrote:
I like this song, even though they let Eddie sing, the song is otherwise so good it overcomes this deficit.
 
You are truly from Outer Mongolia.

Eddie is one of the finest vocalists in the history of rock and roll.

I like this song, even though they let Eddie sing, the song is otherwise so good it overcomes this deficit.
Ohhhhh Come on,
Vedder and Corrnell are the best voices in the rock industry!

GREAT Song
 handyrae wrote:

I'll chip in.

 

Me too
just awful..........

you could get past that howling background singer if he didn't repeat that howl/yowl so many times........
the rest of it is passable.
Please, somebody feed him!
Don't care what anybody says. When it came to the 90s, these two guys were just killing it. Great collab.
 lemmoth wrote:
When they performed this in LA recently (check out You Tube) 20,000 were shouting.

This is fantastic, classic, brilliant, amazing.....wonderful
 
I checked it out and I saw they were shouting with glee! {#Good-vibes}

Lyric is drivel none of the group bothered to think about during the writing process, or since.  Performance attempts to pass off caterwaulling as passion, or art, or — most likely— "Sumpin' me and the boys is working on."  Really, really bad.



 jagdriver wrote:
Ugh! It might be OK save for the shouting being passed off as singing.
  When they performed this in LA recently (check out You Tube) 20,000 were shouting.

This is fantastic, classic, brilliant, amazing.....wonderful