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On This Day: Kurt Cobain Found Dead
April 08, 2009 02:00 AM
by
findingDulcinea Staff
On April 8, 1994, the body of the 27-year-old Nirvana frontman was discovered in his home, a few days after his suicide. Nirvana epitomized early 1990s post-punk.
Cobain's Suicide Shocks Music World
The suicide followed months of mounting troubles for Cobain, including health problems, two heroin overdoses, a stint in a drug rehab center and a previous attempt to take his own life.
He had been missing for a week when authorities found his body in the greenhouse adjacent to his Seattle home. He was holding a shotgun and had left a suicide note.
Cobain was survived by his wife Courtney Love, a founder of the alternative rock band Hole, and their baby daughter, Frances Bean.
Shortly after the death of Kurt Cobain, Bruce Handy at Time magazine reflected on the singer’s last weeks and the widespread shock that followed his suicide. He suggested that it was Nirvana’s success that had eaten away at Cobain. “In all the years I knew him, he had very mixed feelings about being on this planet,” says Danny Goldberg, the former head of Nirvana’s management company.
Cobain and bass player Chris Novoselic formed Nirvana in the late 1980s in the rural town of Aberdeen, Wa.
Fueled by college radio and enjoying an avid fan base, Nirvana quickly rose to fame and became the first punk group to sell a triple-platinum record, straddling punk, post-punk and indie rock genres, according to MTV.com.
Paradoxically, some say it was Nirvana’s runaway success that tormented Cobain.
In a 1992 Rolling Stone cover story, Cobain denied rumors of drug use, but admitted suffering from stress. “Just to survive lately, I’ve become a lot more withdrawn from the band,” he said. “I don’t go party after the show; I go straight to my hotel room and go to sleep and concentrate on eating in the morning.”
“This tour has definitely taken some years off of our lives,” Cobain added. ”I plan to make changes.”
He had been missing for a week when authorities found his body in the greenhouse adjacent to his Seattle home. He was holding a shotgun and had left a suicide note.
Cobain was survived by his wife Courtney Love, a founder of the alternative rock band Hole, and their baby daughter, Frances Bean.
Shortly after the death of Kurt Cobain, Bruce Handy at Time magazine reflected on the singer’s last weeks and the widespread shock that followed his suicide. He suggested that it was Nirvana’s success that had eaten away at Cobain. “In all the years I knew him, he had very mixed feelings about being on this planet,” says Danny Goldberg, the former head of Nirvana’s management company.
Cobain and bass player Chris Novoselic formed Nirvana in the late 1980s in the rural town of Aberdeen, Wa.
Fueled by college radio and enjoying an avid fan base, Nirvana quickly rose to fame and became the first punk group to sell a triple-platinum record, straddling punk, post-punk and indie rock genres, according to MTV.com.
Paradoxically, some say it was Nirvana’s runaway success that tormented Cobain.
In a 1992 Rolling Stone cover story, Cobain denied rumors of drug use, but admitted suffering from stress. “Just to survive lately, I’ve become a lot more withdrawn from the band,” he said. “I don’t go party after the show; I go straight to my hotel room and go to sleep and concentrate on eating in the morning.”
“This tour has definitely taken some years off of our lives,” Cobain added. ”I plan to make changes.”
Later Developments: Cobain’s legacy and Courtney Love
"Nevermind" After 10 Years
Ten years after its release, the album “Nevermind” had sold more than 10 million copies and is widely acknowledged as one of the most important in the history of pop music. Anthony Curtis of Rolling Stone magazine says that the band’s music will always conjure a mixture of grief and other emotions in its fans. “Every anniversary, good or bad, will be, at least in part, a memorial service,” Curtis wrote. “And every celebration of a triumph will also be haunted by an event that everyone knows occurred and that, in its anger and absolute conviction, just can’t be put to rest.”
Courtney Love Sells Rights
Cobain widow Courtney Love made a deal in 2006 to sell 25 percent of her share of Nirvana’s publishing rights, according to her spokesperson. The singer had been looking for an investor to work with her to develop more awareness and value for the band’s song catalog, planning to work with Larry Mestel, a former Virgin Records executive, accoridng to MTV.com.
Cobain Shoe Line
In 2008, Courtney Love and the Converse company announced plans to issue a signature shoe line in memory of Cobain, using artwork and scribbles from his personal notebooks. They said the collection would include three Converse models that the singer often wore, including Chuck Taylor All Star, Jack Purcell and One Star. The line is the first branded product that the Cobain family has approved since his death, according to Spinner.
Cobain Documentary
“About a Son,” a new documentary about Cobain, was released in 2008 and provides new insight into the life of the singer and the development of Nirvana, through Cobain’s own words, wrote The Independent. It contains footage from previously unheard interviews conducted by journalist Michael Azerrad in the early 1990s. In the film, Cobain talks about his childhood, his relationship with Courtney Love and tensions between him and bandmates.
Ten years after its release, the album “Nevermind” had sold more than 10 million copies and is widely acknowledged as one of the most important in the history of pop music. Anthony Curtis of Rolling Stone magazine says that the band’s music will always conjure a mixture of grief and other emotions in its fans. “Every anniversary, good or bad, will be, at least in part, a memorial service,” Curtis wrote. “And every celebration of a triumph will also be haunted by an event that everyone knows occurred and that, in its anger and absolute conviction, just can’t be put to rest.”
Courtney Love Sells Rights
Cobain widow Courtney Love made a deal in 2006 to sell 25 percent of her share of Nirvana’s publishing rights, according to her spokesperson. The singer had been looking for an investor to work with her to develop more awareness and value for the band’s song catalog, planning to work with Larry Mestel, a former Virgin Records executive, accoridng to MTV.com.
Cobain Shoe Line
In 2008, Courtney Love and the Converse company announced plans to issue a signature shoe line in memory of Cobain, using artwork and scribbles from his personal notebooks. They said the collection would include three Converse models that the singer often wore, including Chuck Taylor All Star, Jack Purcell and One Star. The line is the first branded product that the Cobain family has approved since his death, according to Spinner.
Cobain Documentary
“About a Son,” a new documentary about Cobain, was released in 2008 and provides new insight into the life of the singer and the development of Nirvana, through Cobain’s own words, wrote The Independent. It contains footage from previously unheard interviews conducted by journalist Michael Azerrad in the early 1990s. In the film, Cobain talks about his childhood, his relationship with Courtney Love and tensions between him and bandmates.
Reference: Nirvana discography; Courtney Love and Hole
Discogs provides a full discography of Nirvana, which many consider the most influential band of generations X and Y.
Source: Discogs
Courtney Love’s tumultuous career and marriage to Cobain are surveyed on this MTV Web site. Hole began as one of the noisiest, most abrasive alternative bands performing in the early 1990s. The Web site surveys the band’s evolution and influence, Love’s struggles with drug use, and her raw style as a vocalist, songwriter and guitarist.
Source: MTV
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