Nirvana (band)

:This article is about the 1980s-1990s grunge band Nirvana. See Nirvana (1960s band) for the British psychedelic rock band of the 1960s of the same name, or Nirvana (disambiguation) for other meanings.

After Cobain's death

Several Nirvana albums have been released since Cobain's death. The first came in November of 1994 with the release of the band's subdued and eerily morbid performance for MTV Unplugged, Unplugged in New York. This album included guest appearances by members of the Meat Puppets, as well as cover versions of songs by the Meat Puppets, Leadbelly, The Vaselines, and David Bowie.

Related Topics:
MTV - Unplugged in New York - Meat Puppets - Leadbelly - The Vaselines - David Bowie

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Two weeks after the release of Unplugged in New York, a video compilation of Nirvana performances, titled Live! Tonight! Sold Out!!, was released. Cobain himself had compiled a significant part of the video, which documented much of the Nevermind tour. Memorable footage from the video included an infamous incident with a bouncer at a Texas club in October of 1991, as well as the band's performance of "Aneurysm" donned in dresses at the Hollywood Rock Festival in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in January of 1993.

Related Topics:
Live! Tonight! Sold Out!! - October - 1991 - Rio de Janeiro - Brazil - January - 1993

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The original intention was to release the MTV Unplugged set in a double-disc package, along with a second disc of live electric material to balance the acoustic set. However, for the two surviving band members, sorting through the treasure trove of Nirvana recordings so soon after Kurt's passing became too emotionally overwhelming.{{ref|overwhelm}} The live disc, a compilation of Nirvana concert recordings, finally saw release in October of 1996, titled

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

From the Muddy Banks of the Wishkah.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In August of 1997, online music news website Wall of Sound reported that Grohl and Novoselic were organizing a box set of Nirvana rarities.{{ref|boxannounce}} Four years later, the band's label announced that the box set was complete and would see release in September to coincide with the 10th anniversary of the release of Nevermind. However, shortly before the release date, Courtney Love filed an injunction to stop the box set's release and sued Grohl and Novoselic, claiming that Cobain's former bandmates were hijacking Nirvana's legacy for their own personal interests. What followed was a protracted legal battle over the ownership of Nirvana's music that lasted for more than a year.{{ref|lawsuit}}

Related Topics:
August - 1997

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Much of the legal wrangling centered on a single unreleased song, "You Know You're Right", the band's final studio recording. Grohl and Novoselic wanted to include the song on the box set, essentially releasing all of the rarities at one time. Love, however, argued that the song was more important than just a generic "rarity", and should be included on a single-disc greatest hits compilation. After more than a year of often public and sometimes bizarre legal maneuvering, the parties settled, agreeing on the immediate release of the greatest hits package including "You Know You're Right", titled simply Nirvana. In turn, Love agreed to donate cassette demos recorded by Cobain for use on the box set.

Related Topics:
You Know You're Right - Nirvana

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Nirvana fans' first taste of "You Know You're Right" came in early 1995 when Courtney Love played a version of the song with her band Hole on MTV Unplugged under the title "You've Got No Right". A live rough draft version of the song performed by Nirvana at their October 23, 1993 concert at the Aragon Ballroom in Chicago surfaced in Nirvana tape-trading circles a few months later. In the years that followed, rumors of the existence of a studio version of the song perpetuated through Nirvana's fanbase and grew to almost mythic proportions. For fans, the first real confirmation of the studio version's existence came in November 2001 when Access Hollywood aired a ten second clip of the song as part of an interview with Courtney Love. In May of 2002, several longer clips surfaced on the Internet via an unknown source, who claimed he was planning to release the entire song. However, the source backed down, fearing legal action. As the court case neared completion in September of 2002, the entire song unexpectedly leaked, days before the announcement of the release of Nirvana. Even though the studio version turned out itself to be a rough draft with unfinished lyrics, fans and non-fans alike adored the song, leading it to become one of the most-played songs on alternative radio in both 2002 and 2003.

Related Topics:
Hole - October 23 - 1993 - Access Hollywood

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Nirvana was released on October 29, 2002. On top of "You Know You're Right", the album contained hit singles from their three studio albums as well as several alternate mixes and recordings of familiar Nirvana songs. Following its release, many long-time fans complained about the song selection, noting that the alternate version of "Been a Son" (from the Blew EP) was not the band's preferred version, and that the disc lacked songs such as "Sappy" (released as "Verse Chorus Verse") that had received significant radio airplay following Kurt's death.

Related Topics:
October 29 - 2002 - Been a Son - Blew

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

It was revealed in the liner notes of the Nirvana album that Cobain was concerned that he had not been able to write anything substantial during their last tour and had little material with which to go into the studio. He had always made a point of working on new material during the tour and playing it differently every night so that by the time the tour ended they would have the songs worked out, ready to be recorded. For example, a 1989 performance of the song "Breed" (then titled "Immodium") was included on Wishkah, recorded a full two years before the song's release on Nevermind. Additionally, several songs on In Utero were written as early as 1990. Many who believe Cobain committed suicide cite his feeling of being "written-out" as one possible explanation.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

November of 2004 finally saw the release of the Nirvana box set, titled With the Lights Out. The box set contained a vast array of early Cobain demos, rough rehearsal recordings, and live tracks recorded throughout the band's history. Of note to serious Nirvana fans were unfinished studio recordings of "Old Age" and "Verse Chorus Verse" (different from "Sappy") recorded during the Nevermind sessions. Another notable track on the box set was a solo acoustic demo of a song called "Do Re Mi", recorded by Cobain in his bedroom just a few short weeks before his death. The song showed that even in the turmoil of his final days, Kurt still had the gift for melody that he had demonstrated so many years earlier in songs like "About a Girl".

Related Topics:
With the Lights Out - Do Re Mi - About a Girl

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In an interview with Jim DeRogatis,{{ref|doremi}} Courtney Love described the countless rehearsal tapes, demos, and bedroom recordings that were left behind after Cobain's death. For example, a four-track version of "Do Re Mi" was apparently recorded with Kurt on drums, Pat Smear on guitar, and Eric Erlandson on bass.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

A best-of-the-box compilation titled Sliver - The Best of the Box will be released on October 31, 2005 in Europe and November 1, 2005 in the US. The CD will consist of nineteen tracks from the box set With the Lights Out plus three previously unreleased tracks (including the song Spank Thru from the fabled 1985 demo tape Fecal Matter). According to Rolling Stone, Cobain's daughter Frances Bean aided in the selection of the title and cover art. {{ref|sliver}}

Related Topics:
Sliver - The Best of the Box - With the Lights Out

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~