While Chris Cornell’s brother Peter has been fairly visible to fans in recent years due to his own solo music and his tributes to Chris following his death in the last month, fans don’t know much about Chris’ sisters Suzy, Katy, and Maggie. Below is a rare photo that recently surfaced of Chris, Peter, Suzy, Katy, and Maggie from 1995, followed by some background on Katy and Suzy’s music along with a rare video.
Below is an excerpt from a July 1992 Seattle Times article, followed by a video. The article is about Inflatable Soule, Peter Cornell’s 90’s band that featured his sisters Katy and Suzy as vocalists.
He knew his sisters Katy and Suzy Cornell. He recruited them as vocalists with Katy doubling on flute.
He ran into Jon Hedges, drummer, then Scott Elnes, bass, and Joel Tipket, guitar.
They worked together for three months before they showed anyone anything, and then they worked some more.
“So far the material we’re using are things I’ve written,” says Cornell, “but the arranging is all of us. It’s a group effort. Everybody has songs.”
“What we’re looking for,” says Elnes, “is more time to work them out.”
Cornell, sister Katy and Elnes are finishing up lunch at a sunny Lake Union eatery. The brother and sister have already had a sibling go-around on furniture-moving responsibilities – they live next door to each other. Elnes looks on, smiling at what seems to be a familiar sight. They are half of a band that is finding its way and starting to feel pretty good about it. Hard work pays off.
“We have, like, 40 songs,” says Cornell, “but we don’t do all of them.
“Just the ones we feel are truly completed,” Elnes adds.
“Some we bail out on,” tags Cornell.
“But we come back to them,” interjects Elnes.
“There’s always five or six in the oven,” Cornell finishes.”When we get one to where we like it we take it to the stage, and it bites the big one every time. But we stay at it.”
The band has been together a year and a half, but because of what Cornell calls his and his sisters’ “greenness” he’s been hesitant to headline. “After all, we had never been in a band.”
“Yeah,” says Katy, “I’d never really thought about a career in music until Peter came to me. I like it. Maybe I always had this dream and didn’t know it. I think to some degree everybody does. It’s nice to have a plan.”
Tonight’s show at the Crocodile will be the first time the band has officially headlined in Seattle, but the time has come. For an admittedly fledgling band, Inflatable Soule has acquired a large fan base and a lot of press, most of it favorable.
It’s well-earned. The band has worked diligently on not only crystalizing their music, but firming up their onstage performance as well. Peter is the centerpiece, flanked by Katy and Suzy, the rest of the band fanning out. Their presence is strong and forceful, even if the dress is casual: Katy, with her Vassar looks, Suzy right off the beach, and Peter – always in short pants – a mad mountaineer. The interplay with the rest of the band is simply exhuberant rock ‘n’ roll.
“Hype (the newspaper) said Peter sounds like Country Joe MacDonald,” chides Katy.
