Peter Cornell

By Robert Westerman

A man and his guitar. Stripped down to the essence of his craft, Peter Cornell is a force to be reckoned with. With nary a fancy stomp box, or thundering rhythm section to get in the way, Cornell can deliver a song with the kind of intensity that sends chills up and down your spine. If you think you know what you're getting into, you're wrong.

I was fortunate enough to attend a recent show which Peter headlined. There were a few bands before him...rocking out for all they were worth...and then there was Peter... calmly changing the strings on his acoustic guitar. I walked over to introduce myself, and explain that I'd done my homework, and looked forward to hearing a few of the songs that I'd downloaded from MP3.com.

   
We proceeded to have an excellent conversation about music, that was at once overwhelming and disarming. Peter then confided... "I didn't bring the band out tonight...it's just me." At that point, I knew something special was about to happen.
 
Peter took the stage in an almost subliminal fashion. One moment a band had been rushing around to break down their gear, The next...Peter was there, greeting the audience. With a few minor adjustments to his acoustic amp, Peter strummed the first chord of "Who Am I Talking To". As he began to sing, I was floored. With a soulful, bluesy vibe, Peter Cornell set about the task of silencing the few onlookers who were mumbling something about his strong resemblence to his brother (Chris Cornell...former frontman of Soundgarden). Admittedly, I was a bit annoyed by those chatterers...they obviously just didn't get it at first. But Peter quickly dispatched the notion that he was anything but a formidible artist, and a match for ANY talent. Quite honestly, I can think of many artists that could get a serious education from watching Peter perform.
 
As Peter worked through his songs, I noticed a common thread...solid songwriting. There is a joy that comes from watching Peter reach into his soul to deliver his music. From "Bitter Taste", to "No One Likes You", Peter made the listener a part of his experience. Highlights for me came in hearing the stripped down versions of "Falling" and "Grace", both of which would make great singles...and improve the quality of radio immensely. Of the material that I was not familiar with, "Funny Thing", and "Acapulco's Waiting" held specific interest. It became obvious that his music is as honest and genuine as Peter is himself.
 
Peter's set was over long before anyone in the room had wanted it to end. But he had delivered in a big way...as only a man and his guitar can. We shook hands, he thanked me yet again for coming out, and was on the road, as he had to make a studio engagement. As strange as it may sound, I miss him. He's an original...and you just don't see that enough anymore.
 

I encourage you to discover him in much the same way I did,
by visiting http://artists.mp3s.com/info/93/peter_cornell.html,
and coming soon... http://www.petercornell.com/.

It's only a matter of time before the world takes notice of Peter's remarkable talent. And if you ask me, that recognition cannot come a moment too soon.