Nirvana FAQ 5.0
Copyright (C) 1996, 1995, 1994 by Jeff McRae, all rights reserved. This FAQ may be posted to any USENET newsgroup, on-line service, or BBS as long as it is posted in its entirety and includes this copyright statement. This FAQ may NOT be distributed for financial gain. This FAQ may NOT be included in commercial collections or compilations without express permission from the author. History of FAQ: v1.0 March '94 - The original, only took a few hours to write. v1.1 April '94 - Added some small bits of info and Incesticide info v2.0 April '94 - Added Kurt's death and a few others... v3.0 June '94 - A few minor changes. v3.1 July '94 - Added Kurt vs Axl and Vanity Fair stuff v3.2 Aug '94 - Removed suicide note, added demo list v3.3 Nov '94 - Added a few minor things v4.0 Jan '95 - A few major changes, including full text of suicide note v4.1 Feb '95 - Split the FAQ into 3 parts and an index v4.2 May '95 - Added the Fecal Matter demo info v4.3 Jan '96 - Added the In Utero Symbols v5.0 Dec '96 - Major facelift. Changed things around a bit Without these people, the world would suck eggs: Rick Scaia (for the mailing list), Art Lee (for the discography), Alex Lum (for giving me comments way back when), Liz Ellison (a great source of wisdom), John Loughney (for spending the time to hunt down demo info), Jonas Blank, Leo P Caillteau III, Michael Azerrad (who writes all the pretty books) Everyone who supported alt.music.nirvana, and everyone else who I might have missed. Extra Special thanks go out to: Kurt Cobain, Krist Novoselic, and Dave Grohl
Part 1 of the FAQ I. Personnel and basic info a. The Band 1. How it all began 2. Other names/drummers/extras and where they are now 3. Current Sketch b. Important Dates In Nirvana History c. Roots, influences, and similar bands II. Discography related info a. Album list and song interpretations (where applicable) 1. Bleach 2. Nevermind 3. Incesticide 4. In Utero 5. MTV's Unplugged In New York 6. From The Muddy Banks Of The Wishkah b. Singles, EPs, Videos, and single song compilation appearances c. Information on some older non studio demos 1. Fecal Matter 2. "Mellow 4-track shit" 3. "4 quirky song demo" d. Unused studio tracks e. What's next? III. Trivia and Tidbits (stuff to wow your friends with) IV. Bootlegs, bootlegs, bootlegs V. Internet Nirvana Resources VI. A song list with songs that they've played. VII. TV and Radio Appearances VIII. Stuff that doesn't fit elsewhere
a.In Utero Symbols b. Krist's internet posts c. Tom Grant d. Mini Book Review
X. Full text of Kurt Cobain's suicide noteBACK
I. The Band
a.1 How it all began
The core of Nirvana formed when Kurt Cobain met Krist (then Chris) Novoselic through the punk band 'The Melvins'. Since then, they have gone through many different drummers and different names. The name "Nirvana" means 'absolute and total bliss'.
a.2 Who they were, and where are they now
(an '*' before the name indicates the bands final line up) Band Name Who was in it/what did he play Where now? ========= ============================== ========== Fecal Matter Kurt Cobain - Guitar/Vocals Dale Crover - Bass Guitar Greg Hokanson - Drums Mike Dillard - Drums Brown Cow Buzz Osborne - Bass Guitar The Melvins Dale Crover - Drums The Melvins Kurt Cobain - Guitar/Vocals Stiff Woodies Krist - Vocals Various Guitar and Bass Kurt - Drums The Sellouts Steve Newman - Bass Guitar (lost fingers in chainsaw accident) Kurt Cobain - Drums Krist - Guitar/Vocals ??????? Kurt - Guitar/Vocals Krist - Bass Guitar Bob McFadden - Drums Skid Row Aaron Burckhard - Drums Kurt - Guitar Krist - Bass Guitar Ted Ed Fred } Bliss } Throat Oyster }Same as Skid Row Pen Cap Chew } Windowpane } Nirvana *Kurt Cobain - Guitar Vocals Died: 4/5/94 *Krist Novoselic - Bass Band - Sweet 75 Aaron Burckhard - Drums Band - Attica Dave Foster - Drums ??? Chad Channing - Drums Band - The Fire Ants Jason Everman - Guitar Band - Mindfunk Danny Peters - Drums Band - Mudhoney *Dave Grohl - Drums Band - Foo Fighters John Duncan - Guitar Band - The Exploited *Pat Smear - Guitar Band - Foo Fighters
a.3 Current Sketch
As of right now, there is no more Nirvana, Kurt Cobain committed suicide on or around 4/5/94. Dave Grohl and Pat Smear are in the band Foo Fighters and Krist Novoselic is in the band Sweet 75
b. Important dates in Nirvana history
05-16-65 Krist Anthony Novoselic born to Krist and Maria Novoselic 01-31-67 Chad Channing born to Wayne and Burnyce Channing 02-20-67 Kurt Donald Cobain born to Wendy and Donald Cobain 01-14-69 David Eric Grohl born to James and Virginia Grohl 01-23-88 Nirvana records demo with Dale Crover 11-??-88 First single: Love Buzz/Big Cheese released 06-??-89 Bleach released 10-23-89 Nirvana plays first European show, Newcastle, England 12-30-89 Krist and Shelli get married in Tacoma 04-17-91 Nirvana first plays Smells Like Teen Spirit 04-30-91 Nirvana formally signs with Geffen Records 08-??-91 The video for Smells Like Teen Spirit is made 09-20-91 Tour for Nevermind begins in Toronto 09-24-91 Nevermind is released, debuted at #144 on Billboard 10-12-91 Nevermind goes Gold 01-11-92 Nirvana plays Saturday Night Live, Nevermind hits #1 01-??-92 Hormoaning released in Australia and Japan 02-24-92 Kurt Cobain marries Courtney Love in Waikiki, Hawaii 08-18-92 Francis Bean Cobain is born 08-30-92 Nirvana headlines Reading Festival 09-08-92 Nirvana plays Lithium at MTV music awards, wins 2 awards 12-15-92 Incesticide released 09-??-93 Nirvana wins Best Alternative Video award at MTV Video awards 09-21-93 After a week delay, In Utero released in US 11-18-93 Nirvana records Unplugged session for MTV 12-16-93 Nirvana Unplugged airs on MTV 03-01-94 The Final Nirvana show is played in Munich 03-04-94 Kurt Cobain is hospitalized comatose 03-05-94 Kurt awakens from coma, asks for milkshake 03-08-94 Kurt leaves hospital under his own power 04-07-94 Alt.music.nirvana is created 04-08-94 The body of Kurt Cobain is found,he committed suicide 3 days ago. 04-10-94 Memorial Service held in Seattle,Courtney reads from suicide note. 09-??-94 Nirvana wins Best Alternative Video for Heart-Shaped Box 11-01-94 Nirvana: Unplugged in New York is released in the US 11-15-94 Nirvana: Live! Tonite! Sold Out! is released in US 07-04-95 Dave Grohl's Foo Fighter's Album released 10-01-96 From the Muddy Banks Of The Wishkah released
c. Roots, influences, and similar bands
Here are some bands that influenced Nirvana: The Beatles, Black Sabbath, Meat Puppets, Pixies, Sonic Youth, Melvins, Vaselines, R.E.M. Artists that are similar to Nirvana include: Alice in Chains, Babes In Toyland, Breeders, Cheap Trick, Dinosaur Jr., Fastbacks, Husker Du, L7, Minutemen, Bob Mould, Mudhoney, My Bloody Valentine, Pearl Jam, Raincoats, Soundgarden, Tad, Teenage Fanclub, Throwing Muses, Fluid, Green River, Half Japanese, Hole, Daniel Johnston, Love Battery, Urge Overkill, P.J. Harvey, Frank Black, The Lemonheads
II. Album Info
a.1 Bleach
Info: *Produced by Jack Endino *Drums by Chad Channing on all tracks except Floyd the Barber, Paper Cuts, and Downer, which has Dale Crover on drums. *Album's recording cost is listed as being $606.17, which was payed for by Jason Everman, who didn't even appear on the album. *The bulk of the album was recorded on 12/24/88, 12/29/88, and 1/24/89 at Reciprocal Studios in Seattle, WA with 3 tracks being drawn from the 1/23/88 Jack Endino/Dale Crover session. *Nirvana was billed for 30 hours of studio time. *Downer appears only on the CD release. *Older vinyl versions do not contain Big Cheese. *Released in June of 1989 by Sub Pop Records (SP 34b US) and remastered and rereleased by Geffen in 4/92. The Songs and Their Meanings: DISCLAIMER: These Song Interpretations are NOT mine, they are drawn from interviews with the band. Do not email me your interpretation of the song and expect me to put them in the FAQ. There are many different ways to interpret Nirvana's songs, I truly believe that there is no one correct interpretation to any song. Blew (2:53) - The whole song conveys themes of entrapment Floyd the Barber (2:15) - A song about a small town that goes bad, the title is taken from a character on The Andy Griffith Show. Everyone turns out to be a mass-murderer. The song also shows Freudian castration fears. About A Girl (2:46) - A song written for Kurt's girlfriend Tracy, she threatened to kick him out if he didn't get a job. School (2:40) - A song about the incestous Seattle Scene. The bands seem to resemble high school cliques. Love Buzz (3:33) - A cover song from the Dutch group Shocking Blue Paper Cuts (4:04)-Part of the lyrics are based on a true story of a family that Kurt was acquainted with, who locked their children in a room. Other lyrics have to deal with parents, and neglect. Negative Creep (2:52) - the first person narrative from an antisocial person Scoff (4:07) - A song that's directed towards the people who didn't believe in Kurt's musical aspirations Swap Meet (3:00) - A battle of the sexes put in the background of a Sunday swap meet Mr. Moustache (3:21) - Speaks out against the stereotypical male macho image Sifting (5:21) - seems to take on authority figures with it's mention of preachers and teachers Big Cheese (3:40) - This song is written about Sub Pop head honcho Jonathan Poneman and the pressures he put on the band. Downer (1:42) - Kurt's attempt at a political song.
a.2 Nevermind
Info: *Produced by Butch Vig. *All drums by Dave Grohl. *Some CDs contain the hidden track Endless, Nameless after 10 minutes of silence following Something In The Way. The first 50,000 CDs pressed lack the track and some versions pressed by the CD Clubs lack it. *The album was recorded in May and June of 1991 at Sound City Studios in Van Nuys, CA. *Inside the album is a page with random lyric lines from the songs. There are 2 lines of poetry which do not appear in any of the songs. These lines were made up by Kurt. *Nevermind was released on 9/24/91 by Geffen Records (DGC-24504 US). *Has sold over 10 million copies worldwide. Smells Like Teen Spirit (5:01) - An attack on the apathy of our own generation In Bloom (4:14) - An attack on people who listen to certain music for the wrong reason. Imagine the stereotypical, macho guy who sings along to Nirvana, but has no clue what he's singing about. Come As You Are (3:38) - A song full of contradictions on how we act versus how we think society thinks we should act. Breed (3:03) - Growing up and being trapped by middle class america. Lithium (4:15) - A first person narrative of a nervous breakdown, or an update of the Marxist description of religion as 'Opiate of the masses'. An ode to disconnection. Polly (2:54) - Based on the actual kidnapping of a 14 year old girl and her torture. Territorial Pissings (2:22) - Multi-themed song that attacks macho men. Drain You (3:44) - A song about (plainly and simply) love. Highly medical theme. Lounge Act (2:36) - A song about having a certain vision and being smothered by a relationship. Stay Away (3:31) - An attack on any conformist clique. On A Plain (3:14) - Many small lines of poetry having multi themes. Something in the way (3:51) - A song about Kurt's experiences living under a bridge when he was kicked out of home. Endless, Nameless (6:45) - Previously called 'The Noise Jam'. An experimental song created when one of the takes on Lithium went bad.
a.3 Incesticide
Info: *Collection of B-sides and rarities. *Originally planned as 2 different releases by Geffen and Sub Pop (to be called Cash Cow), but they joined forces. *The band's intent was to 'beat the bootleggers' by releasing the rare songs before the bootleggers could. *The pictures in the album, from left to right are: Krist Novoselic, Kurt Cobain, Dave Grohl, Dale Crover, Chad Channing, and Danny Peters. *Released on 12/15/92 by Geffen Records (DGC-24504 US). Song Producer Drummer Studio Session + Date ==== ======== ======= ===================== Dive Butch Vig Chad Channing Smart Studios 4/90 Sliver Jack Endino Danny Peters Reciprocal 7/90 Stain Steve Fisk Chad Channing Music Source 9/89 Been A Son Miti Adhikari Dave Grohl Mark Goodier 11/91 Turnaround Dale Griffin Dave Grohl John Peel 11/90 Molly's Lips Dale Griffin Dave Grohl John Peel 11/90 Son Of A Gun Dale Griffin Dave Grohl John Peel 11/90 New Wave Polly Miti Adhikari Dave Grohl Mark Goodier 11/91 Beeswax Jack Endino Dale Crover Reciprocal 1/88 Downer Jack Endino Dale Crover Reciprocal 1/88 Mexican Seafood Jack Endino Dale Crover Reciprocal 1/88 Hairspray Queen Jack Endino Dale Crover Reciprocal 1/88 Aero Zeppelin Jack Endino Dale Crover Reciprocal 1/88 Big Long Now Jack Endino Dale Crover Reciprocal 1/88 Aneurysm Miti Adhikari Dave Grohl Mark Goodier 11/91 Dive (3:53) - "Yet Another re-write of the heavy string-bend grunge formula" Sliver (2:12) - A semi-biographical song about being deserted by your parents Stain (2:37) - "Floyd The Barber's sister" Been A Son (1:53) - Song about a girl whose parents wanted a boy, a "slower, lamer" version can be found on the Blew EP. Turnaround (2:17) - Cover of a Devo song, "The best Devo song", available as the b-side to the Whip It single (WBS-49550). Molly's Lips (1:51) - Cover of a Vaselines song, "Our favorite Vasline's song, I left out some of the lyrics because I was too lazy to write them down", appears on the Sub Pop release The Way Of The Vaselines (Sub Pop 145) Son of a Gun (2:47) - Cover of a Vaselines song, "Our second favorite Vaseline's song -- get the Knack", appears on the Sub Pop release The Way Of The Vaselines (Sub Pop 145) New Wave Polly (1:46) - Faster recording of Nevermind's Polly, "Better to do a power pop version rather than a reggae, salsa, or fox trot" Beeswax (2:47) - Downer (1:47) - See 'Bleach' Mexican Seafood (1:52) - Some people seem to believe this is about a yeast infection Hairspray Queen (4:12) - "Looking back on this first demo, I've come to realize how incredibly New Wave we once were ... Kajagoogoo" Aero Zeppelin (4:39) - "Christ! Yeah, let's just throw together some heavy metal riffs in no particular order and give it a quirky name in homage to a couple of our favorite masturbatory 70's rock acts" Big Long Now (5:01) - "Gee... a long time ago I had really long hair and was into setting a mood. I hope The Psychadelic Furs don't sue me." Aneurysm (4:36) - Possibly about shooting heroin, "A recent attempt at getting back to our New Wave roots"
a.4 In Utero
Info: *Produced by Steve Albini. *All drums by Dave Grohl. *Recorded at Pachyderm Studios in March 1993. *2 tracks (Heart-Shaped Box and All Apologies) remixed at the band's request by Scott Litt (of REM fame) in the Summer of 1993, during that session the song "Verse Chorus Verse" was recorded again. *A special version which is for sale in Wal-Mart stores labels Rape Me as "Waif Me" and features slightly altered back cover art. *There is a piece on the meanings of the symbols on the back of the album near the end of this FAQ. *On the disc itself is a picture of Kurt and Courtney's nanny dressed in drag with the word 'princess' scrawled on his stomach. *Import versions contain the track "Gallons of Rubbing Alcohol Flow Through The Strip" a 7:33 jam session as the "Devalued American Dollar Incentive Track" after 25 minutes of silence following All Apologies. *Originally titled "I Hate Myself And Want To Die", then to be titled "Verse Chorus Verse", finally "In Utero" was settled on. *"In Utero" is latin for "In The Womb". *Released 9/21/93 in the US (9/14/93 elsewhere) by Geffen Records (DGC-24607 US). *Sold 500,000 copies in it's first week (overshadowed by Pearl Jam's VS which sold 900,000 copies), Has sold over 5 million copies to date. Serve the Servants (3:54) - An autobiographical song about the whole Nirvana experience, the 'witch hunt' on Courtney Love, and a sarcastic response to the emphasis placed on the divorce of Kurt's parents Scentless Apprentice (3:47) - Based on the novel 'Perfume' by Patrick Suskind, about a perfume maker who kills virgins for their scent. Heart Shaped Box (4:39) -(You could write a book about this song) Themes of co-dependancy and many other themes. Rape me (2:49) - In Kurt's words, the song is a sort of poetic justice. A guy rapes a girl. He ends up in jail and is raped there. Some interpret it as Kurt's feelings about being 'raped' by the media. Frances Farmer... (4:07) - A song about the story of Frances Farmer, who was declared insane and lobotomized. Dumb (2:20) - Ignorance is bliss. There is a certain care-free happiness involved in being dumb. Drug related thems dominate the song. Very Ape (1:55) - An Attack on the stereotypical macho man. Milk it (3:52) - A song about co-dependancy, it heavily carries the medical theme. Pennyroyal Tea (3:36) - A song about making a tough decision and the difficult choices around it and the guilt following it. Pennyroyal Tea is an abortive substance. Radio Friendly Unit Shifter (4:49) - According to Kurt this song is a throwaway. A bunch of random poetry lines thrown together. The title is a reference to 'Smells Like Teen Spirit' and it's slick, radio-friendly sound. tourette's (1:33) - This song has no meaning at all. Kurt just screamed alot. based on tourette's syndrome, which causes one to shout out obscenities at any time. All Apologies (3:50) - Contrary to popular belief, this song is not about Francis and Courtney. He wrote it for them, but none of the lyrics really apply. Gallons of Rubbing Alcohol Flow Through the Strip (7:33) (Import version) -More or less, a poem to music. This is an improv-style song
a.5 MTV's Unplugged in New York
Info: *Produced by: Scott Litt *Features appearances by 2 members of The Meat Puppets *Labelled as being complete, it does contain all the songs, but the entire session lasted about 15 minutes longer. Geffen cut some banter and tunings. There are complete versions floating around on video. *Originally conceived as a double album with 1 CD containing the Unplugged session and the second CD containing other live electric tracks. *Released 11/1/94 by Geffen Records (DGC-24727 US) *Has sold about 3.4 million copies as of the release of FTMB. About A Girl (3:37) - From the album 'Bleach' Come As You Are (4:13) - From the album 'Nevermind' Jesus Doesn't Want Me For A Sunbeam (4:37) - Cover of a Vaseline's song which is available on the Sub Pop release "The Way Of The Vaslines" (Sub Pop 145) The Man Who Sold The World (4:20) - Cover of a David Bowie song which is available on the album "Man Who Sold The World" (Ryko 10132) Pennyroyal Tea (3:40) - From the album 'In Utero' Dumb (2:52) - From the album 'In Utero' Polly (3:16) - From the album 'Nevermind' On A Plain (3:44) - From the album 'Nevermind' Something In The Way (4:01) - From the album 'Nevermind' Plateau (3:38) - Cover of a Meat Puppet's song which appears on the album "Meat Puppets II" (SST 19) Oh Me (2:36) - Cover of a Meat Puppet's song which appears on the album "Meat Puppets II" (SST 19) Lake Of Fire (2:55) - Cover of a Meat Puppet's song which appears on the album "Meat Puppets II" (SST 19) All Apologies (4:23) - From the album 'In Utero' Where Did You Sleep Last Night? (5:06) - Cover of a Leadbelly (Huddie Ledbetter) song (often titled "In The Pines" which appears on the album "Where Did You Sleep Last Night?" (Folkways 40044)
a.6 From The Muddy Banks Of The Wishkah
Info: *Live album originally conceived to be release with the Unplugged CD. *Contains 16 tracks which range from 1989 to 1994. *Krist Novoselic listened to over 100 hours of live shows to pick out the 16 tracks. *There is a special 2 lp vinyl release which contains 5 minutes of crowd banter on the 4th side. *The intro on the CD is the 'soundcheck' from the 12/3/89 show, On the European Bleach tour, they didn't do a full soundcheck, they just fooled around with all of the instruments and vocals before they started (most had Kurt screaming). *FTMB features the first Geffen release of Spank Thru, which appears in different forms on 2 other releases. *The Del Mar 12/28/91 show has been aired on Westwood 1 Radio Networks over the years. *The 11/19/91 and 11/25/91 were taped by TV stations in their respective countries. *Released 10/1/96 by Geffen Records (DGC 25105 US). *In it's first week, 189,000 copies were sold (reached #1 on the Billboard charts) and sold 90,000 in it's second week. Because of it's late release, sales won't pick up until Christmas time, when people who aren't huge fans pick it up. The sources for the tracks are as follows: Intro 12/03/89 (0:52) London, England Astoria School 11/25/91 (2:34) Amsterdam, Holland Paradiso Drain You 12/28/91 (3:34) Del Mar, CA O'Brien Pavillion Aneurysm 12/28/91 (4:29) Del Mar, CA O'Brien Pavillion Teen Spirit 12/28/91 (4:40) Del Mar, CA O'Brien Pavillion Been A Son 11/25/91 (2:07) Amsterdam, Holland Paradiso Lithium 11/25/91 (4:06) Amsterdam, Holland Paradiso Sliver 11/10/93 (1:56) Springfield, MA Civic Center Spank Thru 11/19/91 (3:07) Rome, Italy Castle Theater Scentless App. 12/13/93 (3:25) Seattle, WA Pier 47 HeartShaped Box 12/30/93 (4:41) Los Angeles, CA Great Western Forum Milk It 01/07/94 (3:40) Seattle, WA Seattle Center Arena Negative Creep 10/31/91 (2:43) Seattle, WA Paramount Polly 12/03/89 (2:27) London, England Astoria Breed 12/03/89 (3:12) London, England Astoria Tourette's 08/30/92 (1:55) Reading, England Reading Festival Blew 11/25/91 (3:37) Amsterdam, Holland Paradiso
b. Singles, EPs, Videos, and single song compilation
Singles ======= Love Buzz / Big Cheese *Released 10/88 by Sub Pop Records (SP 23 US) as part of the Sub Pop Singles Collection Blew / Love Buzz / Been A Son / Stain *Released 12/89 by Tupelo Records (TUP 8 UK). This contains the "Slower, Lamer" version of Been A Son Sliver / Dive *Released 9/90 by Sub Pop Records (SP 73 US). This release contains a phone conversation between Krist Novoselic and Jonathan Poneman. *Released 1991 by Tupelo Records (TUP 25 UK). This release contains About A Girl (live) and Spank Thru (live), both recorded live at the Pine Street Theater in Portland, OR in Spring of 1990. Candy (by The Fluid) / Molly's Lips (live) *Released 1/91 by Sub Pop Records (SP 97 US). Molly's Lips recorded live at the Pine Street Theater in Portland, OR in Spring of 1990. Here She Comes Now / Venus In Furst (by Melvins) *Released Summer of 1991 by Communion Records (Communion 23 US). Both of the songs on this single are cover songs originally by the Velvet Underground and they both appear on the compilation album "Heaven and Hell, Vol. 1" (Communion 20 US) which is now Out of Print. Smells Like Teen Spirit / Even In His Youth / Aneurysm *Released 9/10/91 by Geffen Records (DGC 21673 US). Some import versions also contain Drain You. Come As You Are / School (live) / Drain You <live> *Released 3/3/92 by Geffen Records (DGC 21707 US). Import versions contain Endless, Nameless. School and Drain You recorded live at the Paramount Theater, Seattle, WA on 10/31/91. Lithium / Been A Son (live) / Curmudgeon *Released 7/21/92 by Geffen Records (DGC 21815 US). Import versions contain D-7. Been A Son recorded live at the Paramount Theater, Seattle, WA on 10/31/91. The single contains the lyric sheet for the album Nevermind. In Bloom / Sliver (live) / Polly (live) *Released 11/30/92 by Geffen Records UK (GEF 34 UK). Sliver and Polly recorded live at O'Brien Pavillion, Del Mar, CA on 12/28/91. Puss (by The Jesus Lizard) / Oh, The Guilt *Released 2/22/93 by Touch and Go Records (TG 83 US). Heart-Shaped Box / Milk It / Marigold *Released 8/23/93 by Geffen Records UK (GFST 54 UK). Marigold features Dave Grohl on vocals. A 12 inch vinyl promo features Gallons of Rubbing Alcohol... on the B-side (DGC-PRO-A-4558 US). All Apologies / Rape Me / Moist Vagina (mv) *Released 11/93 by Geffen Records UK (GFST 66 UK). The UK versions labels Moist Vagina as mv, while the other imports (German and Australian) don't censor the title. 6 CD Single Box Set *Released 11/95 by Geffen Germany (GED 24901) containing the singles to Smells Like Teen Spirit, Come As You Are, Lithium, In Bloom, Heart-Shaped Box, and All Apologies. This was done in an attempt to defeat a bootleg companies attempt to release pirated copies of the singles in their own box set. Pennyroyal Tea (remix)/I Hate Myself And Want To Die/Where Did You Sleep Last Night (In The Pines - Unplugged Version) *Released 5/94 by Geffen Records UK (GED 21907 UK) in LIMITED QUANTITIES shortly after the death of Kurt Cobain. This has become quite the collectors item, but it can be found at record shows occasionally. Recently it has been fetching around $50 per copy. About A Girl (Unplugged) / Something In The Way (Unplugged) *Released ??? by Geffen Records UK (???). EPs === Hormoaning *Released 1/92 on Geffen Records in Japan and Australia (MVCG 17002) to coincide with Nirvana's '92 Pacific Rim tour. *Geffen Japan did not have authorization to press the CD, but they did so anyways (in mass quantities). *Contains: Turnaround / Aneurysm / D-7 / Son Of A Gun / Even In His Youth / Molly's Lips *Aneurysm is the version that is found on the Teen Spirit single. *Turnaround, Son Of A Gun, and Molly's Lips are the same as on Incesticide. *Even In His Youth is the same as on the Teen Spirit Single. *D-7 is the same as the Lithium single version. Videos ====== Short Play ---------- Sometime in mid 1990, Nirvana did a video shoot with some film students at Evergreen College in Washington. Videos for the following songs were made: School, Lithium (2 versions), Big Cheese, Floyd The Barber. MTV has played part of the Big Cheese video in their Tribute to Nirvana. These videos are circulating amongst bootleggers. In Bloom (original) *Shot in New York City sometime around 4/25/90 over 2 days. *Krist shaved his head after the New York City show, so there are some scenes where he has hair and some where he's bald. *This video appears on Sub Pop Video Network 1 (SPV1 US). Smells Like Teen Spirit *Filmed on 8/17/91 at GMT Studios in Culver City, CA *Directed by Samuel Bayer *People who attended the 8/15/91 show at the Roxy were invited to the video shoot and it was announced on a radio station. *The video took about 8 hours to shoot. *The janitor in the video was the janitor in Sam Bayer's apartment building. *The video was originally conceived to be "The Pep Rally From Hell" with the kids leaving the gym at the end of the video and turning over cars and burning effigies. Come As You Are *Filmed on 1/21/92 at ??? *Directed by Kevin Kerslake *The background footage was shot by the band in a park in Hollywood Hills Lithium *Directed by Kevin Kerslake *A montage of live performances from 8/23/91, 9/1/91, and 10/31/91. *The video was originally conceptualized as being an animated film about a young girl who finds eggs and brings them to a king, but it would have taken too long to animate. In Bloom *Directed by Kevin Kerslake *Features the band on an Ed Sullivan type show in the '60s. *Authentic cameras from that time period were used. *The video was originally conceptualized as being about a girl who is born into a KKK family and eventually realizes that her family is evil. *There are 3 different versions of this video: the first is the one that MTV plays regularly, with half the video done in suits, half in dresses; The second was played one, when 120 Minutes on MTV premeired the video, it features the band in all dresses; the third, unaired version features the band in all suits. Sliver *Directed by Kevin Kerslake *Shot in late March 1993 in Kurt's garage at his house. *Francis Bean Cobain is featured in the video. *MTVs rules on product placement caused parts of the video to be blurred. Heart-Shaped Box *Directed by Anton Corbjin *Shot in late summer 1993, *Kevin Kerslake attempted to sue the band for trying to steal his idea. Long Play --------- 1991: The Year Punk Broke *Directed by Dave Markey as a document of the 8/91 European tour. *Approximate running time is 90 minutes. *Features tracks by Sonic Youth, Nirvana, Dinosaur Jr, The Ramones, and other bands that toured. *Released 1992 by Geffen Video (R-2677) *Nirvana songs featured: Negative Creep (from ???), School (from 9/1/91), Endless, Nameless (from 8/23/91), Smells Like Teen Spirit (from 8/20/91), and Polly (from ???). Live! Tonite! Sold Out!! *Released 11/15/94 by Geffen on video and laserdisc (DGCV 39541 US). *Approximate Running Time is 83 minutes. *Contains live songs, interviews, and backstage footage from the Nevermind tour days. Songs and their sources are: Aneurysm Amsterdam, Holland 11/25/91 + Rio 1/23/93 About A Girl Seattle, WA 10/31/91 Dive Rio 1/23/93 Love Buzz Dallas, TX 10/19/91 Breed Seattle, WA 10/31/91 Smells Like Teen Spirit London, UK "Top o' The Pops" TV show Negative Creep Honolulu, HI 2/22/92 Come As You Are Amsterdam, Holland 11/25/91 Territorial Pissings London TV 12/6/91 + Amsterdam 11/25/91 Something In The Way Nagoya, Japan 2/16/91 Lithium Reading, England 8/30/92 Drain You Amsterdam, Holland 11/25/91 Polly Seattle, WA 10/31/91 Sliver Amsterdam, Holland 11/25/91 On A Plain Roskilde, Denmark 6/26/92 Endless, Namelss Seattle, WA 10/31/91 Single Songs on Compilations ============================ "Spank Thru" appears on Sub Pop 200 on Sub Pop Records (SP 25b US) *Released 12/88. "Mexican Seafood" appears on Teriyaki Asthma on C/Z records (C/Z 037 US). *Released 8/89, Released 11/92. "Do You Love Me" appears on Hard To Believe on C/Z records (C/Z 024 US). *This is a KISS Tribute Compliation *Released 10/90 *Features the only recorded appearance of Jason Everman "Here She Comes Now" appears on Heaven and Hell vol. 1 on Communion Records (Communion 20 US) *This is a Velvet Underground Tribute Compilation *Released in 1991 "Dive" appears on The Grunge Years on Sub Pop Records (SP 112 US) *Released 6/91 "Beeswax" appears on Kill Rock Stars on K Records (KRS 201 US) *Released 8/21/91 "Return of the Rat" appears on 8/14 Songs for Greg Sage and the Wipers on Tim/Kerr records (T/K 917010 TRIB 2 US). *This is a Wipers Tribute Compilation *Released 6/20/92 "The Priest They Called Him" appears on the album of the same name on Tim/Kerr records (T/K 9210044/92CD044) *This is a story told by William S. Burroughs. *Kurt plays the noise background. *Krist appears on the cover in the priest outfit. *Released Summer 1993 "Verse Chorus Verse" appears on No Alternative on Arista Records (07822-18737-2 US) *This is an AIDS Benefit album *Nirvana has the final, uncredited track *Released late '93 "I Hate Myself and Want To Die" appears on The Beavis and Butthead Experience on Geffen Records (GEFD 24613 US). *Released 1994 "Pay To Play" appears on DGC Rarities Vol 1 on Geffen Records (DGC 24901 US) *Pay to Play is a demo verison of Stay Away recorded at Smart Studios by Butch Vig in April of 1990. *Released 1994 "Radio Friendly Unit Shifter" (live) appears on Home Alive on Sony Records (Sony 67486 US) *Released 2/20/96 *This version recorded live in Grenoble, France at Le Summens 2/19/94. "Negative Creep" appears on the Hype soundtrack on Sub Pop Records (SP 371 US). *Released 10/1/96 *The soundtrack features live tracks by Seattle area artists. *Nirvana is featured in the movie with a live clip of the first performance of Smells Like Teen Spirit.
c. Information on older non-studio demos
c.1 The Fecal Matter demo
This is information I've compiled about the infamous Fecal Matter demo. Kurt on Vocals and Guitar Greg Hokanson on Drums (actually a drum pad he borrowed from Dale Crover). Dale Crover on Bass It has 7 songs... Here are some titles that I've gotten... 1. Sound of Dentage 2. Bambi Slaughter 3. Laminated Effect 4. Buffy's Pregnant 5. Spank Thru 6. Downer (insturmental) 7. Suicide Samurai Lyric info: There is a heavy metal-type song w/lyrics like "You said you changed.... Like to do experiments Why are you so mean to me" Buffy's Pregnant goes: "Buffy's pregnant, you'll fit the class/we'll all debate who's got the nicest ass\spreading mindgames etc..... Chorus "Clone(times 5) It has some funny spoken word parts where Kurt impersonates a cheerleader and talks about beating up "punk rock faggots" This demo is hard to come by. Some bootleggers have it, but they don't circulate it.
c.2 "Mellow 4-track Shit"
This demo features 3 songs: 1. Sad ("Miserly Loves Company" - Never rerecorded) 2. Seed ("Verse Chorus Verse") 3. Cracker ("Polly") This demo was recorded in early 1988 and is readily available through bootleggers.
c.3 The "4 quirky song demo"
These demos were recorded to be included on Bleach, but Sub Pop thought the songs were retarded. The songs on it are: 1. Untitled (called Bambi Kill/Slaughter by bootleggers) 2. Clean Up Before She Comes 3. Beans 4. Black and White Lace (an instrumental) These demos appear on a bootleg disc called "Dressed for Success" along with an old boombox version of About A Girl and a version of Drain You recorded in 1990 with the Melvins.
d. Unused Studio Tracks
Songs that were recorded in the studio but have yet to appear on any official releases: If You Must 1/23/88 by Jack Endino - Available on bootlegs Pen Cap Chew 1/23/88 by Jack Endino - Available on bootlegs Blandest 6/11/88 by Jack Endino - Available on bootlegs Token Eastern Song 9/??/89 by Steve Fisk - Not Available Yet There are also alternate versions (w/different lyrics in some cases) of Blew, Even In His Youth, Polly, Siftings, Mr Moustache, and many others. There were reportedly 4 songs recorded for Nevermind that were never used but they were completed. Speculation says they could have included Dumb and Pennyroyal Tea (which were written in late '90). Rape Me was also conceived at the Nevermind recording, but it was deemed too harsh. In late January 1994, Nirvana went into the studio with Barret Jones and came out with 5 completed songs (4 originals and 1 cover). One song is known to be On A Mountain (played live once 10/23/93). On A Mountain was performed by Courtney Love on Hole Unplugged as You've Got No Right. Speculation says that the cover could be The Man Who Sold The World or Jesus Wants Me For A Sunbeam. Another title kicked around for one of the originals is "Fountain Soda".
e. What's Next?
With the release of From the Muddy Banks, we face the uncertainty of another Nirvana album. I personally feel that the odds are in our favor for more albums. As you can see from the list above, there are plenty of unreleased tracks that Geffen could release. Another possibility would be a sequel to Incesticide, another B-side collection with a few new tracks. Geffen kept pushing the fact that Live! Tonite! Sold Out!! was from the Nevermind days, I feel a sequel with footage from the In Utero tour is possible. One thing is certain, anything is possible. Look at the Beatle's Anthology series, which is being released some 30 years after some of the songs were recorded. I hope we don't have to wait that long.
III. Trivia
*Two other bands have been called Nirvana. The first had a minor hit in the late 60s titled Chasing Rainbows. They released several albums, one titled The Story of Simon Simeopath. The Other is a Christian-Rock band from th early 80s. They attempted to sue our Nirvana for stealing their name. In early '92, the Christian Nirvana played a show in California and it was attended by many angry fans expecting our Nirvana to play. *Courtney was married in an old dress of Francis Farmer's *Frances was not named after Francis Farmer, but after a member of the Vaselines. Kurt says he'd wished he'd thought of naming her after Farmer. Frances's middle name comes from the shape she appeared in a sonogram (bean). A picture of the sonogram appears on the cover of the Lithium single on the left side. *Breed was originally called 'Immodium' based on the medicine that the lead singer of Tad used on one of their European tours. *The morning of the New Music Seminar 7/23/93, Kurt od'd on heroin, Courtney injected him with an illegal drug used to wake people who've od'd on heroin. He went onstage and performed. No one knew the difference. *Where did the title for Smells Like Teen Spirit come from? the deodorant? One day Kurt and a friend were having a discussion about teenage revolution, they later got drunk and his friend wrote on the wall 'Kurt smells like teen spirit', Kurt was inspired, he thought she meant he would be the type of person who could incite a teen rebellion. He went and wrote the song. She thought that he just smelled like the deodorant. Kurt hadn't heard of the deodorant at the time, he claims to have rarely used it himself. *Is Rape me about Poetic Justice for a rapist, or is it about the media? Kurt always insisted that it wasn't aimed at the media, but one line of the song is directed toward the Vanity Fair article and it's author, Lynn Hirschberg. 'My favorite inside source', Lynn claimed to have gotten the info that Courtney did heroin the whole time of her pregnance from 'an inside source'. The song itself is a song of justice (as Kurt put it), A guy rapes a girl, goes to prison, and is raped there. *What is the correct spelling of Kurt's name? It is spelled Kurt, the odd spelling Kurdt came from when they recorded 'Mexican Seafood' for the Teriyaki Asthma compilation. When it came time to make the album, they realized that they didn't know Kurt's name so they got someone who 'thought they knew' and it went from there. Incidentally, the people at Caroline records (who put out the Teriyaki Asthma compilation) received no money for the appearance of 'Mexican Seafood' on Incesticide because they didn't bother with a contract cuz they didn't didn't make contracts for any bands. He later used the misspelling to give him self some anonyminity. The "monkey photo" credit on Nevermind is to Kurdt Kobain. *What's the deal between Kurt and Axl? Axl had asked Kurt to join them on their huge tour. Kurt declined. Later Axl asked Kurt to play at his 30th birthday party. Kurt declined.
This is from 'The Advocate' Feb 03 1993. Kurt was asked 2 questions about Guns and Roses.
Q: Is there anything about Guns N' Roses' music you like? A: I can't think of a damn thing.I can't even waste my time on that band, because they're so obviously pathetic and untalentedI used to think that everything in the mainstrteam pop world was crap, but now that some underground bands have been signed with majors, I take Guns N' Roses as more of an offense.I have to look into it more: They're really talentless people, and they write crap music, and they're the most popular rock band on the earth right now.I can't believe it. Q: Didn't Axl Rose say something nasty to you at the MTV Video Music Awards in September? A: They actually tried to beat us up. Courtney and I were with the baby in the eating area backstage, and Axl walked by. So Courtney yelled, "Axl! Axl, come over here!" We just wanted to say hi to him--we think he's a joke, but we just wanted to say something to him. So I said, "Will you be the godfather of our child?" I don't know what had happened before that to piss him off, but he took his aggressions out on us and began screaming bloody murder. These were his words: "You shut your bitch up, or I'm taking you down to the pavement." [laughs] Everyone around us just burst out into tears of laughter. She wasn't even saying anything mean, you know? So I turned to Courtney and said, "Shut up, bitch!" And everyone laughed and he left. So I guess I did what he wanted me to do--be a man. [laughs] Kurt told this story to the crowd at the Portland OR 9/10/92 concert, try to get it if you can.
*What went on with the Vanity Fair article? Vanity Fair wrote an article about Courtney and her drug use. They twisted the facts and got the Cobains into a lot of trouble. Kurt was asked 2 questions about it.
Kurt: I've never read an article that was more convincing yet more ridiculous in my life. Everybody from our record label to our management to our closest friends believed that shit. She [Hirschberg] did a really good job of taking a piece of what Courtney had said and turning it into something completely different. I've seen that happen before it's happened with me alot of times but this was such an extreme and done so well that I have to give her credit. She's a master at being catty. Q: What about the drug use? A: Courtney was honest about the heroin excursion we went on for a few months. Then Courtney found herself pregnant, realized she was pregnant and had a drug problem, and got off drugs. It's as simple as that. But it made it look like eight months after the fact, Courtney was still nine months pregnant and still doing drugs and everyone was really concerned. Like there was some awful den of iniquity going on in our apartment. I looked really skinny. Well, I am a skinny person, and I gain ten pounds every time I'm photographed, so peopel assume I'm this chunky, normal weight person. I'm just so tired of talking about this.We have to live with the resuslts of this one article every fucking day.It's something we have to deal with all the time. The results of thie article were that there was an investigation into the Cobains that resulted in Francis being taken away for some time (Courtney's sister took care of her). They finally got custody back after being able to prove they were good parents.
IV. BOOTLEGS, BOOTLEGS, BOOTLEGS
*What's the deal with Nirvana bootlegs? Well, obviously, Nirvana is not touring anymore. The only way to truly experience what Nirvana was is to listen to live tapes. There are currently over 220 'surfaced' Nirvana shows (Surfaced means that they are circulating amongst the traders and not being hoarded by a small group). The earliest show available is from Tacoma, WA on 12/14/87. The last available show is a TV broadcast of the final Nirvana concert in Munich, Germany on 3/1/94. *Aren't bootlegs illegal? We use the word bootleg freely in this FAQ. What we are trading are live concert tapes, which most bands don't have a problem with. The problem lies with bootleg and pirate CDs, which can cut into a band's profits. For more info on this, read the alt.music.bootlegs FAQ. *What is the band's view? I know that Kurt owned a few bootlegs (by other bands). In fact, he was introduced to the Meat Puppets music by a bootleg. Dave now collects some Nirvana bootlegs. There was a newspaper article where he talked about going to Europe and buying bootleg CDs. I have an older interview with Krist where he describes bootlegging as 'stealing music'. I don't know if he's changed his view. *How do I get started? There are several ways to start collecting bootlegs of Nirvana. One of several is to get in touch with someone who will do a "trade for blanks"
It's been my experience that most Nirvana fans are fairly generous with live recordings because they realize that now that the band is gone, the bootlegs are a great way to spread the music. Another way is to visit your local import "hole-in-the-wall" record store. More often than not, these deal in bootlegs. Yet another way, to get CD bootlegs, is to visit the KTS Records web site. They are a Bootleg CD company in the country of San Marino who put out soundboard FM concerts. They have several Nirvana titles.
V. Internet Nirvana Resources
WWW Fan Pages: A note: Most of the Nirvana pages out there are mindless clones of the few original pages. I'm going to list a few of the better pages that I feel are original (maybe not in design). If you are considering starting a page, don't do it unless you have an original idea. Don't just copy the documents off of someone elses page (they are probably outdated to begin with) and put them up on your own. *http://pw1.netcom.com/~dperle/nirvana/nirvlinks.html David Perle's complete Nirvana links. This page is an index with all of the links he knows about. A good place to start looking. *http://seds.lpl.arizona.edu/~smiley/nirvana/home.html *http://www2.ecst.csuchico.edu/~jedi/nirvana.html *http://www.oswego.edu/~jmcrae/nindex.html MY WWW Site! Contains the most updated version fo the FAQ, Concert Chronology, Interactive Concert Chronology, etc... FAQ: Kept by me (jmcrae@oswego.oswego.edu) posted irregularly to alt.music.nirvana Can be found on my web page at any time. Concert Chronology: Maintained by me (jmcrae@oswego.oswego.edu) posted occasionally to alt.music.nirvana Can be found on my web page too. Mailing lists: Check out Dave Perle's mailing list links. I'm currently subscribed to Territorial Pissings, The Heart-Shaped Mail Box, and The Laundry Room. There are many other mailing lists too. Guitar Tab: Check out http://www.olga.net This is an online guitar archive and has most songs.
V. The Song List
The Almost Complete Nirvana song list Names in parenthesis indicate alternate names of the songs. Cover songs are listed with the true authors in brackets An asterix immediately after the title indicates true title is not known. (KC) after the title means that it is a Kurt only tune (or a duet w/CL) (FM) denotes a song from the Fecal Matter demo About a Girl Aero Zeppelin All Apologies Aneurysm Bambi Slaughter (FM) Beans Been A Son Beeswax Big Cheese Big Long Now Blandest Blew Born In A Junkyard * Breed (Immodium) Buffy's Pregnant (FM) Come As You Are Clean Up Before She Comes (KC) Crisco Curmudgeon D - 7 {The Wipers} Dive Downer Do You Love Me? {Kiss} Dough, Ray and Me (KC) Drain You Drunk In Rio (KC) Dumb Endless, Nameless Even In His Youth Floyd The Barber Fountain Soda Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge On Seattle Frizzle (Frazzle) (KC) Gallons of Rubbing Alcohol Flow Through The Strip Hairspray Queen Heart-Shaped Box Help me I'm hungry * Here She Comes Now {Velvet Underground} High On The Hog {TAD} I Hate Myself And Want To Die If You Must In Bloom In His Room (In His Hands)* It's Closing Soon (KC) Jesus Didn't Want Me For A Sunbeam {The Vaselines} Lake Of Fire {The Meat Puppets} Laminated Effect (FM) Lithium Lounge Act Love Buzz {Shocking Blue} Man Who Sold The World {David Bowie} Marigold Mexican Seafood Milk It Molly's Lips {The Vaselines} Money Will Roll Right In {Fang} Montage of Heck Mr. Moustache Mv (Moise Vagina) Negative Creep Oh Me {The Meat Puppets} Oh, The Guilt On A Plain On A Mountain (You Got No Right) Opinion (KC) Paper Cuts Pen Cap Chew Pennyroyal Tea Plateau {The Meat Puppets} Polly Radio Friendly Unit Shifter Rape Me Return Of The Rat {The Wipers} Scentless Apprentice School Scoff Serve The Servants Sifting Sliver Smells Like Teen Spirit Spank Thru Spectre * Something In The Way Son of a Gun {The Vaselines} Stain Stay Away Swap Meet Talk To Me * Territorial Pissings Token Eastern Song tourette's Turnaround {Devo} Where Did You Sleep Last Night {Leadbelly} Verse-Chorus-Verse Very Ape
VII. TV And Radio Appearances
4/87 - Olympia, WA - KAOS Radio Love Buzz / Floyd The Barber / Downer / Mexican Seafood / Spank Thru / Hairspray Queen / ??? / ??? / ??? 10/26/89 - London, England - John Peel Session About A Girl / Love Buzz / Polly / Spank Thru 11/1/89 - Hilversum, Holland - VPRO Radio About A Girl / Dive 9/15/90 - Olympia, WA - KAOS Radio - "Boy Meets Girl Radio" Opinion / Lithium / Dumb 11/3/90 - London, England - John Peel Session D-7 / Molly's Lips / Son Of A Gun / Turnaround 9/3/91 - London, England - John Peel Session Dumb / Drain You / Endless, Nameless 11/5/91 - London, England - Mark Goodier Radio 1 Session Been A Son / New Wave Polly / Aneurysm / Something In The Way 11/8/91 - London, England - "The Word" - TV Smells Like Teen Spirit 11/24/91 - Hilversum, Holland - VARA-FM "2 Meter Sessie" Here She Comes Now / Where Did You Sleep Last Night / Love Buzz 11/28/91 - London, England - "Top Of The Pops" - TV Smells Like Teen Spirit (lip-synced goth version) 12/6/91 - England - "Joonathan Ross Show" - TV Territorial Pissings 1/10/92 - New York City - MTV Studios - TV Drain You / Polly / Smells Like Teen Spirit / Territorial Pissings / On A Plain / Dive / Molly's Lips / Aneurysm / Stain *(Total playing time: about an hour, these tracks NOT IN ORDER) 1/11/92 - New York City - "Saturday Night Live" - TV Smells Like Teen Spirit / Territorial Pissings 9/8/92 - Los Angeles, CA - "MTV Video Music Awards" - TV Rape Me (intro) / Lithium 9/25/93 - New York City - "Saturday Night Live" - TV Heart Shaped Box / Rape Me 11/18/93 - New York City - Sony Studios - MTV Unplugged About A Girl / Come As You Are / Jesus Wants Me For A Sumbeam / Dumb / The Man Who Sold The World / Pennyroyal Tea / Polly / On A Plain / Plateau / Lake Of Fire / All Apologies / Where Did You Sleep Last Night *(Aired 12/16/93 in this order above, true order and song list is reflected on the Unplugged CD) 2/4/94 - Paris France - "Nulle Part A" - TV Rape Me / Pennyroyal Tea / Drain You 2/23/94 - Rome, Italy - "RAI Tunnel" - TV Serve The Servants / Dumb
VII. Stuff that really doesn't fit elsewhere
a. In Utero Symbols
SYMBOLS FROM TOP LEFT CORNER TO TOP RIGHT CORNER: 1: sow - most popular animal form of the Goddess -- Demeter often appeared as one 2: jar sprouting a stream of water - symbol for fertility & fertility gods 3: honeycomb - see "bee" 4: dolphin - totem of Demeter as Mistress of the Sea - word "dolphin" comes from Greek word for "womb" 5: triangle - represented female + trinity of Goddess (Virgin, Mother, Crone) - also represented fire 6: mare - symbolizes Goddess Epona + daytime aspect of Mareheaded Demeter - Scandinavian witches turned themselves into mares SYMBOLS FROM TOP RIGHT TO BOTTOM RIGHT: 1: Alchemical Rose - symbol of sacred womb - symbol of virgin daughter within mother - applied to images like Kore/Demeter and Mary/Eve 2: Baubo - [I think you could easily read this as Baubo representing Courtney and Demeter representing Kurt] - female clown who managed to draw laughter from Demeter in the midst of her grief. Baubo induced the Great Mother to forget her anger long enough to take a little nourishment. 3: diameter - symbol for water, salt, and sea - related to the primordial Mother Goddess, who mingled all elements to create life from flesh (earth), blood (water), breath (air), and fire (vital heat) 4: ??? (wasn't in the 1988 printing) 5: symbol for planet Pluto - female Pluto deity who was despised and discredited by Greeks + was combined w. Demeter in a triple form (Virgin, Mother, and Crone) 6: poppy - "since opium and its derivatives--morphine, heroin--are extracted from the opium poppy, it is hardly surprising to find the flower associated w. sleep, inertia, numbness, and death. Demeter as a death Goddess was often shown with poppies [like the Heart-Shaped Box video]....Thebaine yields an important narcotic antagonist, naloxone, which is given to infants born of heroin addicts, to help soften the sock of withdrawl that such infants must go through" SYMBOLS FROM BOTTOM RIGHT TO BOTTOM LEFT 1: Sub Pop logo 2: Geffen logo 3: oops - forgot to look this one up 4: bee - greatly prized because they gave valuable honey - Demeter addressed as "the pure mother bee" - identified w. mortality in folklore - "bee was symbol of feminine potency of nature" 5: infinity sign - [another interesting one] - sexual union and sense of perfection - two becoming one (two uniting circles, one representing man and the other woman) SYMBOLS FROM BOTTOM LEFT TO TOP LEFT 1: ???? - not in the 1988 edition 2: sulfer - sacred to Athene - associated w. purification - also symbolized angry aspect of Athene (Goddess Brimo), which was also identified w. Demeter 3: labrys (axe) - stood for Amazons and their Goddess (Demeter / Artemis / etc.) - has been adopted by lesbians as their amuletic symbol 4: corn dolly - embodiment of the harvest - one of its many alternate names was the Demeter 5: symbol for Ceres, Roman title of Great Goddess as Mother of the Harvest and ruler of all grains-indicated planting of male seed in earth's womb 6: sistrum - used to worship Egyptian Great Goddess - sacred rattle - its sound dispelled evil spirits taken from: erase.me@nashville.com
b. Krist Novoselic's internet posts
From: Krist Novoselic <[email address deleted]> Newsgroups: alt.music.nirvana Date: 24 Sep 94 21:34 PDT Subject: Steve Tyler is cool. Kurt respected Steven tyler and Aerosmith very much. He met Steven once and Steven laid a NA trip on him & Courtney and Mike Starr from Alice in Chains. Not preaching about NA , just relating about his trips with drugs and all. They would all have been good to listen to Mr. TR Tyler. Steve knew hiss shit and just wanted to relate to them. Youthful cynicism or what ever, we shall see.
From [email address deleted] Wed Nov 9 18:12:43 EST 1994 Thank you all for the messages. I cannot answer n any of them. I am sorry. I don't have the time or the energy and frankly, I can't dwell on Nirvana. I can't spill my guts. It's too personal and again, I can't dwell on it. I guess I'm the little bass player who can't. Chugga, chugga, choo, choo. Wow that was a rush. I'm embarassed! There is too much pain. I'm over the daily "grief waves" but still go through feelings of confusion, anger, regrets, missing him and alot of times a feeling of beautiful loving feelings for my friend. Fuck this is enough. Next time I'll upload so my software can tell me when i am repeating words too often. It's late and I'm kinda tired. Nothing matters anymore anyway. The christians are going to baptise us before we're marched up to the wall. I'm talking about the mid term elections. When the Christian coalition comes a knocken, both house's are gonna have to heed. If that's the case, God help us all! (sic) True Christains want to emulate Jesus. You know, to be right on and not judge, be forgiving bring wine to weddings and have long hair and a beard. The suede denim secret police are gonna get me for that one, fer sure. Wow, by the way I've been rambling, you'd think that I was Courtney or some thing. I could never match that prose though, shre(Whoops) she should get her degree. So many people are gonna read this because Krist Novoselic wrote it but let me tell you this, I am a man of the proletariat! This is quite a boast comming from my tax bracket. Remember, socialism is an ethic not an ideology! I write this under the gase of an actual portrait, not a print, of Lenin. I scored this at the Pike Place Market and it came from some soviet beu bureau in Vladivostok. Newt Gingrich has his St Paul I have no one. You don't think that I'm some le bolshevik. Who needs Lenin when you have Mao? I'm gonna start a shining path sattelite up here in the northwest. I want a Satellite with a 383 and a four speed pistol grip shifter. Super Bee. Coronet. Charger. The whole of this silly rant is that I really don't have much to say, right now. Sure if I were to be in the seat next to you on a plane and we struck up a conversation, we'd pass the time by discussing the topics of the day or what ever. I cannot answe5r Nirvana questions. The mail I got was sweet and I apreaciate it by hey, as the Flav says, "Can't do nothing for you man!" To be truthful, I'll read your messages but won't reply. Who am I any way. I'm the guy next in line at Safeway. I'm the person in the left lane of traffic who gets uptight when people won't get over. I was in an e imencly popular rock band. Did I spell immense right? What ever. I understand the power of music so i understand you all. Sometimes I can't understand jack asses who talk shit about dear old Kurt but as a true democrat,NO party affiliation, I'll respect the fact that they have a right to thier opinion, no matter how shallow and misinformed it is. We need more respect in this world. Remember that the music biz and the rock press have a symbiotic relationship. Remember that Nirvana was about music, first and foremost. Remeber Leon Trotsky. THe Fugs, "Dirty Old Man". Remember not to e mail me. I will not answer. You are all good. good bye and god blesss!
From: NOVOSELIC ON RS#748 <none@none.none> Newsgroups: alt.music.nirvana Subject: NOVOSELIC ON RS#748 Date: Wed, 13 Nov 1996 15:13:50 -0800 I've just finished reading the Rolling Stone Article on Pearl Jam and Eddie Vedder. It breaks my heart the way they tear apart Eddie. I really don't think Rolling Stone has the authority to carry out such a thrashing. There are many points in the article that I take issue with. First off, on a personal note, it was painful that those writers had to exhume Kurt to build up their case against Pearl Jam. R.S. opened up a can of worms. No one was above or below receiving a negative perspective from Kurt. No one. Some were printed, some weren't. I'll assure Rolling Stone that a quickly penned message on a T-shirt was the least of it. I'll tell you this though, if Kurt knew someone was personally hurt by his words, he truly felt bad. God bless Kurt. It seems like the magazine believes it has license to use Kurt's name to illustrate any point it wants to make. A few months ago it was a reefer madness, anti-drug hysteria article against Seattle. Now they dig up Kurt to slam one of our exemplary community leaders. This belligerence and disrespect annoys me. What standard is R.S. basing its scrutiny on? For R.S. to judge Pearl Jam or Eddies credibility, in regards to the revolution, is a complete ruse. If not the revolution, then what are they holding him up to? I have original copies of the earliest R.S. magazines. I love them. 30 years ago they had something to say. Printed on newsprint it was like a fanzine, the music and politics covered were truly revolutionary. Today, the magazine is pop culture and political status quo. Why did R.S. move away from it's original mission? It did so to keep up with it's demographic. R.S. may be successful but is it real? I'd like to quote a true revolutionary, Jesus Christ, who said, "It is better to have not known me than to have known me and turned away". R.S. turned away long ago. Rolling Stone magazine doesn't have the authority or credibility to judge anyone. Krist Novoselic
c. Tom Grant
*Who is Tom Grant? Tom Grant is an investigator in California. He was originally hired by Courtney to find Kurt. He has formulated theories that Kurt was murdered. He has accumulated quite the online following and has just as many people who think he's crazy. Tom Grant has his own web site where he updates his theories
d. Mini book reviews
This is a list of the books out there dealing with Nirvana that I've read, and my opinion on them. Come As You Are: The Story of Nirvana - by Michael Azerrad Virgin Books - Released 10/21/93. Rereleased late '94 with new final chapter. -A necessity. If you like Nirvana and don't have this book, go out and buy it. Referred to on alt.music.nirvana as "CAYA". Route 666: On the Road to Nirvana - by Gina Arnold -I skimmed this book in the bookstore one day, and it only appeared to briefly mention the band. The main focus is on the music scene. Never Fade Away: The Kurt Cobain Story - by Dave Thompson -This book reads like a tabloid newspaper does. Filled with inaccuracies. Cobain - The Editors of Rolling Stone -This is a great collection of articles and interviews about Nirvana from the archives of Rolling Stone. The pictures are great and so are the articles. It's hardcover and will run you about $30, but it's well worth it.
X. Kurt Cobain's complete suicide note
To Boddah Speaking from the tongue of an experienced simpleton who obviously would rather be an emasculated, infantile complain-ee. This note should be pretty easy to understand. All the warnings from the punk rock 101 courses over the years, since my first introduction to the, shall we say, ethics involved with independence and the embracement of your community has proven to be very true. I haven't felt the excitement of listening to as well as creating music along with reading and writing for too many years now. I feel guilty beyond words about these things. For example when we're backstage and the lights go out and the manic roar of the crowd begins, it doesn't affect me the way in which it did for Freddy Mercury, who seemed to love, relish in the love and adoration from the crowd, which is something I totally admire and envy. The fact is, I can't fool you, any one of you. It simply isn't fair to you or me. The worst crime I can think of would be to rip people off by faking it and pretending as if I'm having 100% fun. Sometimes I feel as if I should have a punch-in time clock before I walk out on stage. I've tried everything within my power to appreciate it (and I do, God, believe me I do, but it's not enough). I appreciate the fact that I and we have affected and entertained a lot of people. I must be one of those narcissists who only appreciate things when they're gone. I'm too sensitive. I need to be slightly numb in order to regain the enthusiasm I once had as a child. On our last 3 tours, I've had a much better appreciation for all the people I've known personally and as fans of our music, but I still can't get over the frustration, the guilt and empathy I have for everyone. There's good in all of us and I think I simply love people too much, so much that it makes me feel too fucking sad. The sad little, sensitive, unappreciative, Pisces, Jesus man! Why don't you just enjoy it? I don't know! I have a goddess of a wife who sweats ambition and empathy and a daughter who reminds me too much of what I used to be, full of love and joy, kissing every person she meets because everyone is good and will do her no harm. And that terrifies me to the point to where I can barely function. I can't stand the thought of Frances becoming the miserable, self-destructive, death rocker that I've become. I have it good, very good, and I'm grateful, but since the age of seven, I've become hateful towards all humans in general. Only because it seems so easy for people to get along and have empathy. Only because I love and feel sorry for people too much I guess. Thank you all from the pit of my burning, nauseous stomach for your letters and concern during the past years. I'm too much of an erratic, moody, baby! I don't have the passion anymore, and so remember, it's better to burn out than to fade away. Peace, Love, Empathy. Kurt Cobain Frances and Courtney, I'll be at your altar. Please keep going Courtney, for Frances. For her life, which will be so much happier without me. I LOVE YOU, I LOVE YOU! (In the book 'Cobain' they mention that Boddah was one of Kurt's imaginary friends as a child)
This page was created by Jeff McRae 1997