Black Hole Sun

Black Hole Sun was the first song I remember being “mine.”  I was probably 10 or 11 when the song came out.  It wasn’t something I heard when my parents were driving or anything like that, it was all mine mine mine.  Super Unknown was the first album I ever bought.  It was a cassette tape.

I felt cool listening to it.

That Chris Cornell died at the age of 52 shouldn’t be a surprise.  The 90s scene was just like every other era of music: everyone did drugs and partied hard and that shit catches up to you.  I didn’t mourn or anything like that, though I do feel for his family because that’s pretty damn young to die, even if it’s old by rock and roll standards.

Life happens and then you die.

Black Hole Sun

Black Hold Sun Lyrics

In my eyes, indisposed
In disguises no one knows
Hides the face, lies the snake
The sun in my disgrace
Boiling heat, summer stench
‘Neath the black the sky looks dead
Call my name through the cream
And I’ll hear you scream again

Black hole sun
Won’t you come
And wash away the rain
Black hole sun
Won’t you come
Won’t you come (won’t you come)

Stuttering, cold and damp
Steal the warm wind tired friend
Times are gone for honest men
And sometimes far too long for snakes
In my shoes, a walking sleep
And my youth I pray to keep
Heaven sent hell away
No one sings like you anymore

Black hole sun
Won’t you come
And wash away the rain
Black hole sun
Won’t you come
Won’t you come
Black hole sun
Won’t you come
And wash away the rain
Black hole sun
Won’t you come
Won’t you come (black hole sun, black hole sun)
Won’t you come (black hole sun, black hole sun)
Won’t you come (black hole sun, black hole sun)
Won’t you come (black hole sun, black hole sun)

Hang my head, drown my fear
Till you all just disappear

Black hole sun
Won’t you come
And wash away the rain
Black hole sun
Won’t you come
Won’t you come
Black hole sun
Won’t you come
And wash away the rain
Black hole sun
Won’t you come
Won’t you come (black hole sun, black hole sun)
Won’t you come (black hole sun, black hole sun)
Won’t you come (black hole sun, black hole sun)
Won’t you come (black hole sun, black hole sun)
Won’t you come (black hole sun, black hole sun)
Won’t you come (black hole sun, black hole sun)
Won’t you come
Won’t you come

“And I’ll hear you scream again.”  I legit thought the lyric was “hear you scream gay.”

Cornell said this, according to Wikipedia, about the lyrics.  I found it interesting, do you?

Regarding “Black Hole Sun”, Cornell stated, “It’s just sort of a surreal dreamscape, a weird, play-with-the-title kind of song.”^[5] He also said that “lyrically it’s probably the closest to me just playing with words for words’ sake, of anything I’ve written. I guess it worked for a lot of people who heard it, but I have no idea how you’d begin to take that one literally.”^[6] In another interview he elaborated further, stating, “It’s funny because hits are usually sort of congruent, sort of an identifiable lyric idea, and that song pretty much had none. The chorus lyric is kind of beautiful and easy to remember. Other than that, I sure didn’t have an understanding of it after I wrote it. I was just sucked in by the music and I was painting a picture with the lyrics. There was no real idea to get across.”^[7] Commenting upon how the song was misinterpreted as being positive, Cornell said, “No one seems to get this, but ‘Black Hole Sun’ is sad. But because the melody is really pretty, everyone thinks it’s almost chipper, which is ridiculous.”^[8]