Euphoria Morning

1	Can't Change Me 3:23
2	Flutter Girl 4:25
3	Preaching the End of the World 4:41
4	Follow My Way 5:10
5	When I'm Down 4:20
6	Mission 4:05
7	Wave Goodbye 3:43
8	Moonchild 4:02
9	Sweet Euphoria 3:08
10	Disappearing One 3:48
11	Pillow of Your Bones 4:29
12	Steel Rain 5:41

Barnes & Noble

As Soundgarden fades into the dustbin of rock 'n' roll history, its singer sheds shackles of the grunge grind for a varied sound that will satisfy Cornell boosters and open the ears of doubters. On EUPHORIA MORNING the man whose scabrous screech will remain as key to the Seattle experience as Nirvana's chunky, punky riffs and Eddie Vedder's angst leaves the loose, live-feeling of his band's swan song DOWN ON THE UPSIDE behind for a restrained, folksier sound that range's from wistful pop ("Can't Change Me") to brooding, post-grunge ("Mission"). Yet, despite a vestigial relationship to his old band's dirgier moments, this music rarely rocks out. And this is by no means a bad thing. Blessed with an effortlessly strong, surprisingly versatile voice that evokes classic rock legends like Joe Cocker, Cornell can curl his craggy larynx around the soulful bar-rock of "Wave Goodbye" as well as the 3 a.m. ballad "When I'm Down," and the relaxed mood of his backing players on EUPHORIA's woodsier acoustic stuff sheds a light on that voice we rarely saw back in the day. Jon Dolan

All Music Guide

With Down on the Upside, it was clear that Soundgarden, while still strong, was no longer the ideal vehicle for its frontman Chris Cornell. He sounded much more comfortable on Superunknown, the first Soundgarden album that broke free from the Sab-Zep restraints, allowing him to indulge in psychedelia. That, along with his stellar contribution to the Singles soundtrack, suggested that Cornell had aspirations of being a singer/songwriter, so it's not a surprise at all that he decided to tie those two loose ends together to provide the foundation for his solo debut album, Euphoria Morning. Those expecting a slab of metal from Euphoria Morning will be disappointed, but it's hard to feel sorry for them, since they were evidently not really listening to the last few Soundgarden records. There's no question that it's a rock album, but it's a shaded, textured rock album, lacking the grinding sludge and furious rock that were his previous band's stock-in-trade, yet it's undeniably of a piece with Superunknown. Thankfully, Euphoria Morning doesn't have the shiny arena rock gloss that Michael Beinhorn gave Soundgarden's masterpiece. True, it is a clean, big production, but it's organic, which means that it doesn't sound unnatural when Cornell dives into blues ("When I'm Down") or when he suggests Radiohead with the beginning of "Preaching the End of the World." That kind of flexibility is what was missing from Down on the Upside, and it keeps Euphoria Morning fascinating, since it's unclear what's coming next, even if it all sounds of a piece. It's a mature album without being overly somber. It could be argued that it sounds a little too mature and possibly a little self-conscious, but that just emphasizes the real craft behind Euphoria Morning. Cornell knew exactly where he wanted to go as a solo artist, and he's achieved it. If it doesn't satisfy some dyed-in-the-wool Soundgarden fans, that's too bad, since it will undoubtedly win the affections of open-minded listeners who haven't before considered him a serious songwriter or musician. Stephen Thomas Erlewine