By the 3rd of August 1981, the whole team and Chris Cornell went back to Washington State and he was given a couple of days rest before the shooting began for the planned music videos that James wanted to make out of the "Ultramega OK" album.
August 4, 1981.
Inside the Howard Family's mansion in Westport City. James could be seen sitting in the living room with Joseph Kennedy Sr, Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau, James' parents, his mother Katherine Clements Howard and his father John Bradley Howard. They were all focused on what was showing in their Sony XBR Television. The Sony SL-HF1000 Betamax player was playing Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau's finalized music video of Chris Cornell's Circle of Power.
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The television flickered and the music video opened with a slow fade into grainy black and white footage of Chris Cornell walking onstage for his debut gig in December 1980. The crowd was small, mostly local Washington scene regulars. The guitar intro builds as the visuals shift into a quick cut montage of various shows over the past eight months, they were underground venues, high school auditoriums, and finally the massive Day on the Green crowd at Oakland Coliseum.
As the first verse kicks in, the editing style matches the intensity of the lyrics.
"The day will finally come in and open the door…"
Quick cuts of Chris Cornell gripping the mic, hair flying, sweat pouring, his voice raw and aggressive, a 16 year old commanding an adult crowd like a born frontman.
Each lyric line is matched with a fitting moment.
"'Cause we have conquered a kingdom and a place of rage…" a wide shot of the crowd moshing, a spotlight flaring behind Chris Cornell.
"All those assholes, they burn on their knees" a brief, brutal zoom in on a stage dive, bodies crashing and rising.
During the second verse, Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau lingers longer on Chris's stage presence, close ups of his snarling delivery, fists raised, and the guitarists behind him hammering power chords. These moments come from shows at clubs in Seattle and Portland, shot with handheld cameras. The framing feels punk, immediate, and slightly chaotic but it was a clear shot full of quality.
"Well, here we live"
"To see the fear and their trembling words of a volunteer"
"A pretty, pretty blank name on the list"
"An X for every accomplished deed"
When Chris yelled, "Ol' big badass circle of power, it's comin' to get ya!" Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau cuts to the footage of Chris Cornell at Cobo Arena, last April 7, 1981, opening for Ozzy Osbourne, and Oakland Coliseum, August 2, 1981. It was a huge crowd with fists in the air. The screen briefly overlays a spinning ring of white fire, added through analog effects in post production.
Then came the guitar solo section. Montage of high energy instrumentals, zoom ins on the hired band members wailing on their guitars, Chris Cornell pacing off amp cabinets. The footage slowed momentarily, and emphasized the physical chaos and thrill of the live shows.
The interlude followed.
"Not necessarily dumb, but just, uh…beautiful…"
This moment was quieter. Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau used slowed down film of Chris Cornell standing still between songs, lit by a single spotlight. His expression was unreadable, tired, emotional, and distant. The line was played with a tape delay effect over the footage.
Then the outro section followed. The chorus line "Circle of power, and it's all the same…" played over the footage of the crowd, people were screaming, stage diving, and waving arms. The energy was electric!
As the final line fades out, the screen cuts to a freeze-frame of Chris mid-scream, caught in a moment of pure rage and passion. Then the screen fades to black with white text:
CHRIS CORNELL "CIRCLE OF POWER"
ALBUM: ULTRAMEGA OK
A SUB POP INC. PRODUCTION
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The television was turned off after they watched the music video intended to be submitted to MTV. James asked his parents, "Well… what do you think? Dad? Mom?"
Katherine Clements Howard spoke first, "Baby… that was certainly unique but I do not know anything about music and music videos but those shots were greatly edited!"
James smiled and turned to his father. "Dad?"
John Bradley Howard closed his eyes first and then opened it after a few moments. He looked at his son, James, and said "I could not agree more with what your mother has said, although I am no film critic, I could say that the quality of that video was high. I have no objection. I bet it would create more noise than what your artist, Chris Cornell, has gotten for the past few months."
Deep inside, he was proud that his son could associate himself with a good manager like Joseph Kennedy Sr. as well as the man, Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau, who his son introduced to be a "rookie" director and hired to create the music video that they just watched.
'My son has the luck he needed to succeed, and that's also skill, I wonder how far he could go though.'
James smiled proudly when he heard his father's supportive words. He came close to them and hugged them and told them his thanks and "I love you's".
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James invited Joseph Kennedy Sr. and Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau back to his studio room, within the mansion, after the both said their pieces to his parents.
Of course, his parents knew it was about business when their son invited the two men to his own studio "office".
The two reported the current developments of Sub Pop Inc, the future plans of the label and current offers from September 1981's concert organizers. As for further music videos, James handed over everything to Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau about the production but he himself designed the scenes for the videos of "Beyond the Wheel", "Flower", "All Your Lies", and "Mood for Trouble".
Regarding the music video for "Circle of Power", it was already submitted to MTV and confirmed to be airing at exactly August 5, 1981 - 5 A.M. New York local time.