Call Me A Dog

Album: Temple Of The Dog (1991)
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Songfacts®:

  • Temple Of The Dog lead singer Chris Cornell wrote this song as an ode to his then-wife Susan Silver, who managed fellow grungers Alice In Chains as well as Cornell's band Soundgarden. This song probably represents the problems they had in their relationship before they finally got married:

    You call me a dog
    And that's fair enough


    When it's time for his retort, Cornell won't resort to calling her names, but he might not call at all, which is arguably worse:

    I'll call you beautiful
    If I call at all


    Cornell and Silver divorced in march 2004.
  • Temple Of The Dog formed after Chris Cornell learned of the March 19, 1990 death of Andrew Wood, his good friend and former roommate. Cornell wrote two songs in tribute to Wood: "Say Hello 2 Heaven" and "Reach Down." They weren't right for Soundgarden, so Cornell reached out to Jeff Ament and Stone Gossard, who were in the band that Wood fronted, Mother Love Bone. They added Matt Cameron and Mike McCready to the project, and put together eight more songs to form a complete album, one of which was "Call Me A Dog." The album, which includes the Eddie Vedder-assisted "Hunger Strike," is a grunge landmark and an early indication of what to expect from Pearl Jam, which Vedder, McCready, Ament and Gossard formed.

Comments: 3

  • CanopyyI love this song! It reminds me of my dad, he'd play this in the car all the time when I was young; brings back a lot of good memories.
  • Abe from La Crosse, WiI also believe that this songs is in the background in the movie Wayne's World when they enter the television producer's apartment.
  • Jonathon from Clermont, FlCool song!
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