Listen to Chris Cornell's newly-released cover of Guns N' Roses' "Patience"

Publish Date
Tuesday, 21 July 2020, 6:35AM

While Soundgarden rarely performed material by other artists during its career, Chris Cornell frequently paid tribute to his musical heroes in his solo show.

One of the greatest rock singers of all-time, Cornell was never intimidated by taking on an iconic song with little more than his voice and an acoustic guitar.

For his latest posthumous release, Cornell's estate has revealed his achingly beautiful rendition of Guns N' Roses' 1989 hit "Patience," which you can hear via the player above.

According to a press release, Cornell recorded "Patience" in 2016 after getting the idea from his daughter Toni who had asked him to teach her how to play it.

"Listening to it again after so many years it was hauntingly beautiful; it brought it all back in a rush of bittersweet memories," Cornell's widow Vicky Cornell recalled of the song. "His birthday [July 20] seemed the perfect time to share this and celebrate Chris, his voice, music, stories and art. It is true a man is not dead while his name is still spoken...and, through his art, an artists' soul still burns just as bright as ever upon all those that look up to him and his memory. Releasing music that was special to Chris keeps a part of him here with us — his heart and his soul. His love and his legacy."

She added a special thanks to Axl Rose, Slash and Duff McKagan who continue honoring Chris during GNR's live shows.

Starkly arranged with his voice front and center, Chris's "Patience" is yet another cover of his that gets dangerously close to the power of the original recorded version.

Chris's legendary version of Prince/Sinéad O'Connor's "Nothing Compares 2 U" alone has over 83 million views on YouTube.

He also turned out titanic versions of Bob Marley's "Redemption Song," Led Zeppelin's "Thank You," The Beatles' "A Day In The Life" and John Lennon's "Imagine," among many others.

While Vicky continues to tangle with Soundgarden through lawyers over the music from the band's final album, Chris's "Patience" is a well-timed reminder of what a gift he was as an artist.

This article was first published on iheart.com and is republished here with permission

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