Well, this may be an odd and off-topic post, but I feel compelled to write about it anyway. We’re having some typical Gunks weather right now – on-and-off rain that makes clients skeptical that they should come climbing. I’m clearly not at the cliff right now. Two days of work this past week have been canceled only to have dry daytime weather. As a climbing guide on the East Coast this type of weather makes you realize that your career, while being fun and rewarding, is a paltry way of making a living.

Enough of that though. Do you ever rediscover music you used to love? On occasion this happens to me and it’s almost always (always is a strong word) pleasantly surprising. For me, Pandora has made this a much more frequent occurrence.

Temple of the Dog is a band that I have rediscovered recently. I was an impressionable young teenager when this album was popularized by the release and subsequent success of Pearl Jam’s Ten album. Temple‘s a one record collaboration between members of Soundgardern and the band now known as Pearl Jam. It was written as a tribute to Andy Wood (Chris Cornell’s housemate in Seattle) of Mother Love Bone, who died in 1990 of a heroin overdose. The remaining members of Mother Love Bone teamed up with Eddie Vedder to become Pearl Jam. The album I thought, as a teenager, was awesome.

I owned the album as a cassette and haven’t had a cassette player in a decade. Hearing a few Temple of the Dog tracks on Pandora has convinced me to get an digital copy of the record. Giving it a listen, it’s nothing short of exceptional, and much better than I ever realized as a teenager. If, like me, you were a teenager when the Seattle grunge rock scene put mainstream heavy metal to bed for a while you’ll definitely enjoy revisiting this album too.

So, if you’re sitting inside on a rainy day instead of climbing, like me, cruise through some of your old music. You’ll probably be pleasantly surprised too.