Chris Cornell's isolated vocals to 'Black Hole Sun' are out of this world

The music world lost a true icon when Chris Cornell passed away on Wednesday evening after performing in Detroit with his band Soundgarden.

And tributes from fellow legends of the game have been pouring in since the news emerged, with the likes of Nile Rodgers, Jimmy Page, Alice Cooper and former bandmate Tom Morello all sharing touching tributes.

Alice Cooper also stated: "Chris Cornell, in our circle, was known as The Voice because he had the best voice in rock and roll. I was lucky enough to write and record two songs with him. His death comes as a total shock to all of us. ‘Black Hole Sun’ will live on as a classic, and his is a true legacy of rock and roll."

Cooper is not wrong on any of this, particularly the status of ‘Black Hole Sun’ as one of the all-time great rock tracks, complete with one of the most iconic videos ever made – it was on almost permanent rotation in the glory days of MTV2 and the Kerrang! video channel, and it’s no less trippy watching it today. The track featured on their 1994 breakthrough album Superunknown, which remains an essential listen today.

And, of course – that vocal – and, handily a YouTuber managed to isolate Cornell’s vocal back in 2012 to let us hear all the subtleties of the performance and really revel in its brilliance.

Turn this on, listen to ‘The Voice’ and pay tribute to a fallen great – and allow yourself to feel sad that, as the lyrics say: “No one sings like you anymore”.