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Ty Cobb (song)

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Wikipedia article




"'Ty Cobb'" is a song by the American rock band Soundgarden. Featuring lyrics written by frontman Chris Cornell and music written by bassist Ben Shepherd, "Ty Cobb" was released in April 1997 as the fourth single from the band's fifth studio album, 'Down on the Upside' (1996). The song was included on Soundgarden's 1997 greatest hits album, 'A-Sides'.

Origin and recording



"Ty Cobb" features lyrics written by frontman Chris Cornell and music written by bassist Ben Shepherd. Cornell and Shepherd play mandolin and mandola on the track.[http://web.stargate.net/soundgarden/articles/mm_3-23-96.shtml "Soundgarden Sound Off"]. 'Melody Maker'. March 23, 1996. Cornell on the song:

Well, Ben actually had the idea that he wanted to hear mandolin on that song, and so we called some people and they brought like, these older mandolins down for us to try, 'cause they thought they were really great, and then we picked them up and just played 'em, and that was about it, the first time we ever played them.Cornell, Chris. "Soundgarden Radio Interview". ABC Radio. May 14, 1996.


Composition



"Ty Cobb" begins with a quiet, 22-second intro before acquiring a frenetic pace throughout the rest of the song. Guitarist Kim Thayil said, "'Ty Cobb' sounds like it may fall apart at any second but it remains intact. That is an element that a lot of rock bands neglected. But punk rock has always had that element of barely being able to hold on to the steering wheel."Cecolini, Vinny. "Soundgarden: To the Limit". 'Hit Parader'. March 1997.

Lyrics



"Ty Cobb" was originally titled "Hot Rod Death Toll", but the lyrics reminded Shepherd of the infamous baseball player Ty Cobb.Cross, Charles R. [http://web.stargate.net/soundgarden/articles/rs_2-8-96.shtml "The Joys of Noise: Soundgarden Throw a High-Frequency Sludgefest"]. 'Rolling Stone'. February 8, 1996. He broke many records and still holds the all-time career batting average record (.367), but acquired a reputation for racism, violence and alcoholism, largely due to now-discredited books and articles by controversial writer Al Stump.

Songwriter Chris Cornell said to 'Kerrang!', about the writing of "Ty Cobb",

It was basically coming from the frame of mind of some sort of hardcore pissed-off idiot, and that's why we titled it that. We weren't writing the song about Ty Cobb at allI didn't even know anything about him. I was just thinking of a character who was a combination of a lot of people I've met and didn't like."Gardener's Question Time". 'Kerrang!'. March 1, 1997.


Release and reception



Although "Ty Cobb" did not chart on the 'Billboard' Hot 100, the 'Billboard' Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, or the 'Billboard' Modern Rock Tracks chart as the first three singles from 'Down on the Upside' did, its B-side, "Rhinosaur", also from the album, did chart on the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart at number 19. Outside the United States, the single was released commercially in Australia. It also contained a remix of "Rhinosaur" called "The Straw That Broke the Rhino's Back" which was created by Bill Rieflin. David Browne of 'Entertainment Weekly' said, "With its frenetic mandolin, "Ty Cobb" ... is something like metal bluegrass."Browne, David. [http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,292725,00.html "Down on the Upside"]. 'Entertainment Weekly'. May 24, 1996.

Track listing



All songs written by Matt Cameron and Chris Cornell, except where noted:

#"Ty Cobb" (Cornell, Ben Shepherd)  3:05

#"Rhinosaur"  3:14

#"Big Dumb Sex" (Cornell)  4:11

#"Rhinosaur" (The Straw That Broke the Rhino's Back remix)  3:43

References



Category:Songs about baseball players

Category:1997 singles

Category:Soundgarden songs

Category:Song recordings produced by Adam Kasper

Category:Song recordings produced by Chris Cornell

Category:Song recordings produced by Matt Cameron

Category:Songs written by Chris Cornell

Category:Songs written by Ben Shepherd

Category:1996 songs

Category:A&M Records singles

Category:American punk rock songs

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