Saturday Evening Soundtrack -- "Call Me A Dog" by Chris Cornell

Been out all day since early this morning, so this week's entry in the Saturday Morning Soundtrack series, is going coming a little later than usual. Nonetheless, I hope you enjoy!

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"Call Me A Dog" -- Chris Cornell
(Live At Queen Elizabeth Theatre, Toronto, ON, April 20, 2011)

Ever wake up with a song stuck in your head? Silly question--of course, you have! Well, this was the song rattling around in my brain this morning. Why? No clue. But as any reader of this blog knows, I'm a longtime Chris Cornell fan. Cornell first wrote and performed this song back in 1991 as a member of the band Temple of the Dog.* However, as good as that original version of the song is, I believe the definitive version comes from Cornell's 2011 acoustic album Songbook. Stripped down to Cornell's distinctive voice and his unplugged guitar, this song becomes more intimate. It's an effective arrangement because this song is so personal at its core--one man speaking to one woman.

That said, I've never been sure how to read this song's lyrics. I can't decide exactly what the man is trying to say here. Is the main character admitting to being a dog? (You call me a dog, well, that's fair enough/'Cause it ain't no use to pretend you're wrong.) Or is he standing up for himself? (Bad luck will follow you/if you keep me on a leash/and you drag me along.) Is he taking the high road here? (But when it's my time to throw the next stone/I'll call you beautiful, if I call at all.) Or is this a form of passive-aggression? Seeking clarification, I looked online to see what other fans were saying, and it was no surprise to find that they can't come to an agreement either. Some feel that Cornell's dog character is a guy who can't control his addictions and keeps returning to them as a dog returns to vomit--a guy who realizes this about himself and takes responsibility for the consequences of his actions, the hurt feelings he's caused. Others believe that this is a song about standing up for yourself after being in a controlling relationship, after being scorned for not being "good enough." In fact, the only thing everyone can seem to agree on is that this is a moving song. Fair enough. That's probably all that really matters, anyway.

That said, Dear Reader, if you have any theories of your own, I'm all ears. Just leave them in the comments below.



*For those who don't know, Temple of the Dog formed as a one-album collaborative project between Cornell and future Pearl Jam members Stone Gossard, Mike McCready, Jeff Ament, Matt Cameron, and Eddie Vedder, as a tribute to the late Andrew Wood, Cornell's one-time roommate and lead singer for Mother Love Bone.

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Love the song? Hate it? Have thoughts to share? Please, feel free to leave a message in the comments below. And, if you would like to write a Guest Entry for the "Saturday Morning Soundtrack" series where you creatively respond to one of your favorite rock songs, don't hesitate to contact me with queries.