Howard Stern has revealed video for the first time of Chris Cornell‘s final performance on his show, an “Imagine” performance from 2011. This was the second and final time Cornell was interviewed and performed on the Stern show. Alternative Nation transcribed Howard and Chris’ comments about John Lennon from the video. Howard Stern revealed if Foo Fighters are ‘finished’ yesterday.
Howard Stern: One of the songs that you perform is John Lennon’s Imagine. I think this is one of the most beautiful songs ever written.
Chris Cornell: Me too.
Howard: The message is incredible. Imagine a world where all of the things that divide us no longer exist. John Lennon was the greatest songwriter ever, right?
Chris: Yeah, probably my favorite. I actually looked to him as a father figure when I was a kid. Because I sat in a room as a kid at 9 and 10 years old and listened to Beatles records and John Lennon records over and over and over. He was an intense guy with an intense attitude, musically and literally, and as a person.
Howard: I remember writing a paper in high school about how the rock stars, especially John Lennon, was a prophet really. I bought into that he was more popular than Jesus Christ. His music meant more than any religious figure. Would you do a little bit of Imagine?
Chris: Sure.
Chris Cornell died by suicide in May 2017, and since then Howard Stern has paid frequent tribute to Cornell, with references to him and his songs played just about every week on his show. Stern was invited to the Los Angeles ‘I Am The Highway’ Chris Cornell tribute show in January, but he was unable to attend as he does his show live in New York. Cornell’s surviving Soundgarden bandmates recently recorded with Taylor Momsen.
