10 Best Hard Rock Songs Over 10 Minutes Long
4. Reach Down - Temple Of The Dog - 11:11
There are certain subgenres of music that you expect longer track times more from than others; power metal, prog rock, anything psychedelic… It's fair to say that the dirty, downtrodden, snotty end of the spectrum with grunge isn’t the first thing that comes to mind.
In 1991, Temple of the Dog released their one and only record; a supergroup of sorts made up of Soundgarden’s Chris Cornell on vocals and several members of the future Pearl Jam. Reach Down, which clocks in at a perfect 11:11, is a strange fusion of grunge rock and funk with something of a gospel flair to it. This is in thanks to the late Cornell’s soulful, multi-layered vocal takes which provide a raw, real and yet somewhat flamboyant flavour to the track’s otherwise mid-tempo lurch. With Mike McCreedy and Steve Gossard both on guitar you can certainly hear early Pearl Jam littered throughout Reach Down. The track rides a sludgy, almost lackadaisical main riff and has the kind of underpinning rock-funk vibe of the Seattle area.
What’s remarkable about Reach Down in particular is it’s midsection jam and how it provides every member a chance to shine; from McCreedy’s outrageous and shockingly virtuoso lead guitar performance, Matt Cameron’s constantly shifting drum groove and an acapella moment from Cornell that could give anyone the chills. Temple of the Dog, and Reach Down especially, really shows us in hindsight the potential of the early 1990’s DIY grunge rock scene.