Kurt Cobain, one of the most talented, misunderstood, tragic and idolized musicians in the pantheon of American music, would have turned 44 on Feb. 20 2011. His death, ruled by a Seattle coroner to have come from a self-inflicted shotgun wound, came in April of 1994 at the age of 27.
Since Cobain's death there have been commemorations of his life on his birth date. In Seattle fans gather at Viretta Park, near Cobain's home, and this year it's low key; the Associated Press reports they'll be removing invasive plants and laying down mulch in preparation for plantings. A film called Kurt Cobain: About a Son will make its debut on the Documentary Channel on his birthday at 8 p.m..
Kurt Cobain and Talk of His Own Death
There is some dispute about his death being a suicide but it is generally accepted it was. He had tried to take his life previously and spoke of doing so. He once said that he hated himself and that he wanted to die and had actually described how his death would go down:
"I'm gonna be a superstar musician, kill myself and go out in a flame of glory, just like Jimi Hendrix." He'd also suggested that death was not so unwelcome.
Kurt Cobain and Seattle Grunge Rock
Cobain, from Aberdeen, Washington, not far from Seattle where Hendrix was from, had a troubled childhood. At one point the moody child was shuffled around between the homes of different family members, his father unable to handle him on his own after Cobain's parents had divorced.
Cobain met a punk rocker - a bassist - named Krist Novoselic in his teens. The two became friends and eventually began playing music together. They went through many drummers and names and recorded their first album, Bleach as 'Nirvana' with Chad Channing on drums. But when they came across grunge drummer Dave Grohl, who had been playing in a band called 'Scream', 'Nirvana' had its line-up.
Success did not take long to find them after that, they became huge in Seattle and toured with the new drummer before recording 'Nevermind', a major-label release on DGC Records. The album has gone on to sell more than 25 million copies in the nearly two decades since its release and is heralded as one of the great rock records of all-time.
Smells Like Teen Spirit Puts Nirvana on Map
While overall the album was strong, the song Smells Like Teen Spirit quickly transcended being a mere song and was heralded by media as an anthem for Nirvana's generation. While credited to all three it was mostly Cobain responsible for writing it. Many recall where they were the first time they saw the video, a loud, darkly lit rendering that had Nirvana moving constantly, almost unaware of the audience they played in front of.
Cobain became the spokesman for a generation but it was not a title he sought nor relished. Being catapulted to stardom did not for work for Cobain, who said he felt imprisoned by his success. However he, and the band, did not rest upon the laurels they'd created for themselves with 'Nevermind' but continued making music that stood out from other grunge and rock bands.
They made only one more album, their third; it was called In Utero and released months before their frontman's death. The band ceased to exist when Kurt Cobain died. Grohl went on to found 'The Foo Fighters' while Novoselic founded 'Sweet 75' and other bands; they did not stay together because they worried that whatever they created would simply be seen as 'Nirvana' without Cobain.
Personal Life of Kurt Cobain
While Cobain said drugs were a waste of time and destroyers of self-respect, his own heroin addiction wasted his time and destroyed his self-respect. He and wife, Courtney Love, who had a daughter, Frances Bean, born in 1992, struggled with substance abuse and while it may have fueled some of his music, it clearly got into the way of it, too. He also struggled with depression.
Jim Morrison, Janis Joplin and Jimi Hendrix all died, like Kurt Cobain, at the age of 27. What music they all might have made had they lived is debatable, but certainly like the others Cobain would have had something to say to us all. If he had wanted to.
"If you die you're completely happy and your soul somewhere lives on," Cobain said. "I'm not afraid of dying. Total peace after death, becoming someone else is the best hope I've got."
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