Badmotorfinger by Soundgarden is beyond a classic album. Dare to even say better than Superunknown in various ways, especially the recording. But that’s for another day. There is a song on the album that sits at track eight that, for the last few years has been the magnet when the album is picked to play. “Room A Thousand Years Wide” was actually released in 1990 with a previously unreleased B-side titled “H.I.V. Baby,” part of a Sub Pop Records single. When it came to the recording of Badmotorfinger, the band re-recorded it for the album. It’s also one of the few songs in the Soundgarden catalog to have no writing credit to Chris Cornell. The music was written by drummer Matt Cameron and lyrics by guitarist Kim Thayil. Another fun tidbit is this was the first song recorded and released with bassist Ben Shepherd. Chris Cornell took the words and wholeheartedly breathed exquisite life and emotion into them. Then you add in his signature screams and it’s spine tingling. The end of the song had a really great The Stooges album Fun House moment too.
Throughout the bands career, the song was played 134 times live with the majority in 1992 and 1994 respectively. On the bands Motorvision home video, there is a live version that is quite excellent from The Paramount Theatre in Seattle, Washington. A DVD version is on the super deluxe 25th anniversary edition of Badmotorfinger.
On a personal level, this is definitely one of those songs I wish I could’ve heard live. “Room A Thousand Years Wide” is one of those great moments where each member steps into a new role and the end result is something special!
Room A Thousand Years Wide (Album Version):
Room A Thousand Years Wide (Live Version 1992/Motorvision Home Video):
