Kurt Cobain
Kurt Cobain, born on February 20, 1967, was the influential frontman of the iconic rock band Nirvana, which played a pivotal role in the rise of grunge music. His early life was marked by familial instability, with his parents divorcing when he was seven, leading to a tumultuous childhood. Cobain developed a passion for music and art, ultimately dropping out of high school to pursue his musical ambitions. He formed Nirvana in 1987, achieving breakthrough success with their 1991 album *Nevermind*, featuring the hit single "Smells Like Teen Spirit," which became an anthem for Generation X.
Despite his success, Cobain struggled with chronic health issues and a severe heroin addiction, which contributed to his tragic demise on April 5, 1994. His music was characterized by its raw sound and emotional depth, marking a significant shift in rock music away from the polished glam rock of the previous decade. Cobain's legacy endures through Nirvana's continued influence on various music genres and the cultural landscape, highlighted by their induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2014. His life and music have been the subject of extensive analysis and documentaries, reflecting his lasting impact on both fans and musicians alike.
Subject Terms
Kurt Cobain
American rock guitarist, singer, and songwriter
- Born: February 20, 1967
- Birthplace: Hoaquiam, Washington
- Died: April 5, 1994
- Place of death: Seattle, Washington
A major figure in the alternative rock movement, Cobain was lead singer, songwriter, and guitarist for the Seattle-based grunge-rock band Nirvana. With his angst-filled lyrics, his guttural singing voice, his distorted guitar technique, and his high-energy live music performances, he became the voice for Generation X.
Member of Nirvana
The Life
Kurt Donald Cobain was born to Donald and Wendy Cobain on February 20, 1967. Cobain’s parents divorced when he was seven years old, and as a result he was shuffled among family and friends’ homes. Growing up, Cobain showed a keen interest in art and music, and he was given a guitar for his fourteenth birthday.
In high school, Cobain immersed himself in art classes and, realizing that he was short on class credits, decided to drop out of high school two weeks before graduation. In the following years Cobain held a number of part-time jobs and experienced brief periods of homelessness. Nonetheless, during this time he spent a great deal of energy writing songs and developing his guitar playing.
In 1985 Cobain formed his first band, Fecal Matter, with other local Seattle musicians. The band was short lived and self-recorded only one sixteen-song demo tape, Illiteracy Will Prevail. Upon hearing Illiteracy Will Prevail, Cobain’s friend Krist Novoselic saw promise in the budding songwriter and agreed to form a band with him. With the addition of drummer Chad Channing, the highly influential rock band Nirvana was formed.
Nirvana’s first album, Bleach, was released in 1989 on a Seattle independent record label, Sub Pop Records, and met with moderate success. The band toured on several occasions and generated a significant amount of attention among the major record labels. In 1990 drummer Channing was replaced by Dave Grohl, and the band signed with David Geffen of Geffen Records.
While recording Nirvana’s 1991 major label debut Nevermind, Cobain was introduced to singer Courtney Love, and the two developed a romantic relationship. On February 20, 1992, they were married in Hawaii; in August, Love gave birth to their daughter, Frances Bean.
Throughout much of his life, Cobain was plagued with chronic stomach ailments. Despite many attempts to solve the medical problem, he was unable to remedy the persistent pain. Because of this, Cobain turned to self-medication in the form of heroin, claiming it was the only drug that could alleviate his stomach pains. Accordingly, he developed a severe heroin addiction.
Nirvana returned to the studio in 1993 to record its third full-length album, In Utero. It was a huge success, and the band went back on tour with a significant amount of media attention, specifically focused on Cobain and Love’s personal life. Cobain became increasingly uncomfortable with the media spotlight and increased his drug abuse.
During a European tour in 1994, Cobain was hospitalized for a drug overdose, involving alcohol and insomnia medication. The tour was canceled, and Cobain returned to Seattle. Back in the United States, Love and other friends staged an intervention, and with some persuasion Cobain entered a drug-rehabilitation center in Los Angeles. After a few days, Cobain fled the rehabilitation center and, unbeknown to friends and family, returned to the Seattle area. Love and others mounted a search for the missing singer.
On April 8, 1994, Cobain’s body and suicide note were found by a local electric company field technician in Cobain’s Lake Washington home. The coroner’s report indicated that Cobain died from a self-inflicted shotgun wound to the head on April 5, 1994.
The Music
Cobain’s musical interests were diverse. Early influences were such bands as the Beatles and the Monkees. Later his interests progressed to such rock bands as Kiss, Black Sabbath, the Meat Puppets, the Sex Pistols, and the Clash. Cobain’s guitar solos at live performances consisted of extended periods of ad lib, guitar-amp feedback, and noise.
“Smells Like Teen Spirit.” When one of Cobain’s friends spray-painted “Kurt Smells Like Teen Spirit” on a wall, Cobain was inspired to compose the successful song “Smells Like Teen Spirit.” With only a few weeks before recording Nevermind, the band’s major-record-label debut, Cobain played the song. It was not an immediate band favorite. Cobain played the guitar part for nearly an hour and a half before someone suggested that the song be slowed down in tempo. At a slower pace, the song fell into place, and it became a hugely popular anthem for Generation X. The song sold more than a million copies, and it was nominated for two Grammy Awards. Despite the song’s success, Nirvana attempted to distance itself from“Smells Like Teen Spirit,” claiming it had become a parody.
“Come as You Are.” “Come as You Are” was the second most popular song on Nirvana’s Nevermind album, and it helped catapult the band to the top of rock charts again. After Cobain died in 1994, “Come as You Are” was the subject of speculation and controversy. Eerily, the original music video for the song depicted a gun being fired at Cobain, followed by him dying in slow motion. In 1994 Nirvana released an acoustic version of the song on the album MTV Unplugged in New York. Cobain’s hometown of Aberdeen, Washington, elected to use the title as the town’s motto: Aberdeen, Washington: Come as You Are.
“Heart Shaped Box.” “Heart Shaped Box” was the first single from Nirvana’s third album, In Utero, written between 1992 and 1993. The song was inspired by American writer and feminist social critic Camille Paglia, who explored the role of female sex organs and their depiction in society. In addition, Love had sent Cobain a heart-shaped box during the early stages of their courtship, and Cobain and Love collected numerous heart-shaped boxes, displaying them prominently in their Seattle home. “Heart Shaped Box” spent three weeks at number one on the Billboard modern rock charts. Its music video garnered Nirvana two MTV Music Video Awards for Best Art Direction and Best Alternative Video. The awards ceremony was conducted after Cobain’s death, and the awards were accepted by the remaining members of Nirvana.
Musical Legacy
Cobain’s music, with its simplified melodic and harmonic compositional styling, was noted for its raw, unpolished sound. His unique styling marked a dramatic shift in mainstream musical taste away from the highly complex, aurally perfect sound of glam rock and dance music of the late 1980s to the simplicity of alternative rock. Despite having a short life, Cobain influenced mainstream rock music and various subgenres, such as punk, grunge, and independent rock. Cobain’s music was labeled the music of Generation X, his contemporaries born in the 1960s and 1970s, and they helped make him one of the highest-grossing musicians of all time. Decades after his suicide, his influence continued to be felt and books continued to be published about him. In 2014, Nirvana was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, with Cobain's family attending in the absence of the singer. In 2015, filmmaker Brett Morgen released a documentary about Cobain using film from the Cobains' personal archives titled Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck. His daughter, Frances Bean, served as an executive producer on the film. Further indicating the lasting extent of his musical legacy, in 2020 and 2022 two of his guitars sold at auctions for millions of dollars, with the first historically purchased for over $6 million. In early 2023, it was announced that Nirvana, among others, had been selected as a recipient of the Recording Academy's award recognizing lifetime achievement at that year's Special Merit Awards.
Principal Recordings
albums (solo): Collector’s Box, 2006.
albums (with Nirvana): Bleach, 1989; Nevermind, 1991; In Utero, 1993; MTV Unplugged in New York, 1994; The Classic Interviews, 2005; A Golden Legacy, 2006.
singles (with Nirvana): “Smells Like Teen Spirit,” 1991; “Come as You Are,” 1992; “In Bloom,” 1992; “Lithium,” 1992; “All Apologies,” 1993; “Heart Shaped Box,” 1993.
writings of interest:Journals, 2003.
Bibliography
Azerrad, Michael. Come as You Are: The Story of Nirvana. New York: Main Street Books, 1993.
Cobain, Kurt. Journals. New York: Riverhead Books, 2003.
Crisafulli, Chuck. Nirvana: The Stories Behind Every Song. New York: Thunder’s Mouth Press, 2006.
Cross, Charles C. Heavier than Heaven: A Biography of Kurt Cobain. New York: Hyperion, 2002.
Garcia, Thania. "Kurt Cobain's 'Smells Like Teen Spirit' Guitar Auctions for Nearly $5 Million." Variety, 22 May 2022, variety.com/2022/music/news/kurt-cobain-guitar-auction-smells-like-teen-spirit-1235274844/. Accessed 4 Jan. 2023.
Peterson, Charles. Screaming Life: A Chronicle of the Seattle Music Scene. New York: HarperCollins, 1995.