Soundgarden\u2019s 1994 grunge anthem, \u201cSpoonman\u201d, may be about a real-life street musician, but for Chris Cornell, it first arrived from a place of invention.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Pearl Jam\u2019s Jeff Ament was designing artwork for Cameron Crowe\u2019s 1992 rom-com, Singles<\/em>, which included a fictitious album featuring the name \u201cSpoonman\u201d on the cover. Although Cornell was aware of Artis the Spoonman, a kitchen utensil-rocking Seattle street performer, the Soundgarden hit was based solely on Ament\u2019s made-up album title.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI had known there was this guy Spoonman\u2014his business card was these little disposable wooden spoons you would get with ice cream, but it was an ode to an imaginary person in my head, because I didn’t know him yet,\u201d Cornell said<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Spoonman is indeed a real person. Artis performed spoons on the track and also appears in the music video. The song was released as the first single from Soundgarden\u2019s colossal<\/a> fourth LP, Superunknown<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n