Written by frontman Chris Cornell, "Burden in My Hand" was released on September 18, 1996, as the second single from the band's fifth studio album, Down on the Upside (1996).

The song topped the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, where it spent five weeks at number one.

The lyrics of "Burden in My Hand" suggest the song is about a man who murders a woman he is in a relationship with and leaves her in the desert, not without regret.

[2]"Burden in My Hand" was released as a single in 1996 in various versions with the previously unreleased B-sides "Karaoke" and "Bleed Together", the latter of which can also be found on the band's greatest hits compilation, A-Sides (1997).

"Burden in My Hand" appeared on Billboard magazine's Hot 100 Airplay chart, reaching the top 40.

"Burden in My Hand" also reached number one on the Canadian Year End Alternative Top 50.