Chris Cornell (Soundgarden): Carry On (2LP) [HIP-O RECORDS]

Why you'll love it

A 2LP set of Carry On with two bonus tracks, "Today" and "Roads We Choose." It includes the first album appearance of "You Know My Name," his theme for the 2006 James Bond film Casino Royale, and a slow-burn cover of Michael Jackson's "Billie Jean."

This edition

• 2LP set
• Bonus tracks "Today" and "Roads We Choose"
• Sixteen tracks across four sides

About the album

Carry On was Chris Cornell's first record after leaving Audioslave and his first solo album since Euphoria Mourning in 1999. He made it with producer Steve Lillywhite, the man behind early U2, and a band that included guitarist Gary Lucas, and it arrived in June 2007, debuting at No. 17 on the Billboard 200. He kept recording through a motorcycle accident in Studio City, apparently walking away and heading back to the studio later that day.

AllMusic called it "a hard rock maturation," which is about right. "No Such Thing" and "Poison Eye" have the heft fans expected, but the album also reaches for Southern soul horns on "Safe and Sound," and a reworking of "Billie Jean" that turns the dance-floor classic into something dark and brooding. Then there is "You Know My Name," which makes the cut here at last. That voice could carry a Bond theme; we suspect it could carry a sofa up three flights of stairs.

Tracklist

Listen

Out June 26, 2026 on Hip-O Records (cat# 5733795), a reissue of the 2007 album.