How great a statement is that though. She certainly caught my attention then. She also finally seems to be understanding grunge after listening to this song. Sadness, pain, anger energy, raw emotions captured in song. It's not about technique and being technically correct. It's about being simple and real.
“Where did you Sleep Last Night” unplugged is the perfect encapsulation of the raw power and ability to evoke emotion Kurt’s voice contained. Still cry almost every time I hear it.
@@pudge_mf6763, the whole show was a protest of sorts from the band. MTV producers were adamant that they play all their hits, so instead they played predominantly b-sides and covers. It would’ve been very Kurt-esq to purposely sing off key or it could been that he’s just trying to match Bowie’s singing style (in which its not even close to his own).
@You Tube not all not even almost of it very few actually very few comes to the mainstream with no musical classes just self taught and sings with emotions like kurt who came from the underground all by himself he took no classes just all by himself singing with passion hope you got the point
Ya, Kurt took a mediocre Bowie song and launched it into it's own orbit around the sun. Great lyrics, but it took Cobain's rendition to make it legendary.
Hey. I Love your shit. The way you got an open mind and appreciate music. I was looking for any studio song by Nirvana and saw this was the only one. I'd love seein you do a special Nirvana song and fan made video of their tune "Lounge Act" and analyze the unique way in which he sings that one. Nirvana - Lounge Act th-cam.com/video/jSw_hnurmIY/w-d-xo.html And when it comes to his Scream, I'd love you did "Territorial Pissings" that'd be legit. Love your honest take on a song I can tell you really hadn't heard this song before. Lol
There are so many from this unplugged set that you could do. If you want to hear his voice raw as it ever was, check out “where did you sleep last night”
YES. It's the last song in the last performance he ever gave, and it's positively overflowing with the pain that led him to suicide soon after. A heart-stoppingly powerful performance.
"Best" is relative. Someone with a "great" voice to me is so BORING. I want to hear variations. In the end singing is about hitting notes, NOT about sounding perfect.
Yeeees! I've watched those vocal comparison videos of the big 4 grunge bands and I always feel like they miss the mark. He didn't have the best voice of the four (hi, Chris Cornell), or even my favorite voice of the four (hi, Layne Staley), but he's still The Voice of Grunge. (Eddie Vedder can take a seat, lol.)
None of the four guys was technically brilliant. But as a band they just worked really well. In the end Grunge, whatever it was anyways, wasn't a very technical genre, if it was a genre at all.
Nirvana on MTV unplugged was a seminal moment in rock and roll history. In an age before the internet and social media it broke through musical genres and barriers. I remember being 10 and annoyed because my parents let my older brother decide what to watch on Saturday night. It was this. It changed my musical life.
Somewhat similar story happened to me. My father thought it was a good idea to watch this. I still remember that i was silent the whole time and didn't need to go the bathroom. And it changed my whole perspectif on music and by that my whole life. Thank you dad!
When I was a child, me and my dad listened to the album on the half hour drive to school every morning. It really shaped my appreciation of music and this is still one of my favourite albums.
"I'm not entirely sure I really like his voice" "A voice shouldn't be perfect. A voice should be perfectly suited to the message it's trying to deliver" "Okay, it's growing on me" [Describes how his voice is suited to the message] "Oh, this is actually really appropriate" "I really like this song" "I thought we were going to get some more singing. Neeooo" It's perfect, to me. Your reaction is perfect as well. I'll suggest anything from this same performance. Bowie said this version was "very honest" and "heartfelt". I think those are two important factors that go into making it so damn good.
Need more singing? A good reason to do another nirvana song. Great reaction, he may not have been gifted with the natural vocal abilities of the other big name grunge singers like Staley and Cornell but there is something in his voice that draws you in and grabs you inside. IMO another example showing you don't have to have a great technical voice to be a great singer
First thing I noticed about Kurt's voice is that from a technical standpoint, it varies from mediocre to horrible. It takes longer to realize that those imperfections are 100% intentional, his voice doesn't do anything other than exactly what he wants it to, and his entire musical style was created around the way he uses his voice, so of course his voice suits the musical style perfectly, and can be extremely engaging even if you find his voice cringeworthy.
I don't think Kurt ever wanted to be regarded as a "good" singer. All accounts I've ever heard say that he preferred his songs to sound raw and unpolished and ... for all intents and purposes, "bad." When he was set up with a professional producer who polished up all the songs, he *hated* having to admit that it sounded better.
An interesting note: Butch Vig, producer of their album Nevermind, commented that while Kurt's voice sounds uncertain and warbly and imperfect, each take during recording was exactly the same. Every imperfection and flat note was completely planned and executed flawlessly. Every time. This was all on purpose. People who heard him sing spontaneously said that he had a clear and pleasant conventional voice. These were all stylistic choices to convey vulnerability and uncertainty. His genius was humility. edit: Review Something in the Way or Territorial Pissings for contrasting styles
Good point. I think I saw the same video. He showed where Cobain doubled his vocal lines to thicken the sound, as is often done in the studio, and Cobain's takes were almost identical.
Also in Montage of Heck you can hear him doing his "comic" voices. Thats how one should see his singing as playing a role. Each song is a different character.
“I was simply blown away when I found that Kurt Cobain liked my work, and have always wanted to talk to him about his reasons for covering ‘The Man Who Sold the World’” and that it was a good straight forward rendition and sounded somehow very honest. It would have been nice to have worked with him, but just talking with him would have been real cool.” -David Bowie
It always makes me wonder about how things could have panned out had Kurt lived. Regarding things like the David Bowie quote there, I can only imagine something like- Bowies 50th Birthday Bash in New York, 1995. Inviting a host of amazing people to sing songs with him, be it Robert Smith, Billy Corgan, etc. Imagine had Kurt lived, chilled out, took time out in 1994, then came back with a more Unplugged style sound for a while, furthering what the MTV performance started. He could have joined Bowie onstage for instance, to jam, perform this song together. I know its my fan fiction monologue in my mind talking here, but Nirvana have been my favourite thing to listen to since 1992, and I still wonder about alternate timelines the 90s music scene would have taken , had he and they still rocked and raged through them. Neil Young, Michael Stipe- there were so many other musicians that wanted to reach out to him. It makes me wonder, even today after all this time, what, how and who he could have evolved and worked with , had he lived.
Hearing her say the song suite the grunge movement said to me she has concept of the history of the song and very little knowledge of Kurt. Bowie wrote the song for the Movie, The Man who Fell to Earth about an alien's experience on earth. Bowie starred as the alien in the film. It came out in like 1978 or 79. Grunge was still about ten years away.
@@jbarton1541 You realize things don't have to be born of the same time to make sense? The 90's grunge movement was about reflection, and backlash against the extreme lavishness and indulgence of the 80's. The idea of a "man who sold the world" is very much in line with those ideas. Some songs are just as good, or even better with the new rendition and time period. She has some ignorance of the genre, but she's still right that the lyrical context fit.
I seem to remember reading the reheasals had not gone well and they were all very nervous throughout. I think Kurt and Dave had some disagrements about how loud the drums should be and there was tension in the air. It's almost suprisng it came out legendary. This also seems the song they were most nervous about. Kurt is constantly reading the lyric sheet. So I guess it's nerves that made him screw up the beginning of the solo. I've also heard him do that part with his voice in a live track, and Bowie did it too. I wonder why he decided not to this time.
I agree with everyone who suggested “Where Did You Sleep Last Night?” It’s definitely the best example of raw emotion and power coming from Kurt’s voice. And it still gives me chills every time I listen to the last line of the song. But “Smells Like Teen Spirit” is probably the best example of Kurt’s vocal style overall. Most Nirvana fans agree it’s overrated and overplayed, but there is a reason it gets so much play. It’s the song that catapulted grunge into the mainstream, and still one of the best examples of grunge to this day, even though it’s most certainly not the best grunge song ever written. If you wanna understand grunge and Kurt’s contribution to it, you have to listen to “Smells Like Teen Spirit.”
100% for me as well. When I saw the thumbnail I didn't even read the title, just assumed it was gonna be that one and clicked. Also a cover, sure, but I heard a rumor they refused an encore at that performance because Kurt said there was no way they're topping that one. I completely agree, the passion rips through your heart. And watch his eyes, they're closed for the whole song until one pivotal moment.
I was waiting for her to give into the hypnotic voice of Cobain. It's not sweet, it's not clean but it draws you in. I was a teenager in the 90s and was strait up hip hop. Nothing else, but I heard this album at a friends house and his unplugged performance changed my perception of music as a whole.
It's your imperfections that often set you apart from another. Imagine if everyone was making the same music. 👀 All the songs that wouldn't be there scary
Kurt spoke to all of us who suffer from depression, are weirdos trapped in small towns, or came from broken homes...i mean, i could keep going. There were so many things we were dealing with that were new at the time, i honestly feel like this energy was hiding all across the nation, and this sound is the sound that united all of us.
Couldn't have said it better myself or agree more. The emotions in all of this era's songs are so relatable to so many of us. All the greats suffered from depression, addiction, and the loss of someone so important to them. Clean cut across the board it was all music that had feelings we all could relate to.
Absolutely. Too much time spent alone, drawing, writing and listening to music....but this music felt like it was for us. A way out of the feelings of despair, some respite.
He didn't sing about them he wollowed in them and that's the one thing about grunge that assured it's run would be relatively short. It made for great music, but depression and sadness are not places you want to live. Weirdos are weirdos whether they are trapped in a small town or Brooklyn. Life is more complicated than that. I love many of the grunge bands, and they produced some remarkable music, but people are not intended to live like that. Focusing only on what sucks in life, and taking it serious enough to only see the pain in life rather than than allowing the great things is more than foolish it's dangerous. One needs to only add up the bodies of the front men to see something ain't right. There are more front men from the 70s living than from great grunge bands. That's not an accident. There was no more hardship in the 90s than at other times, and statisticslly there was far less things to be depressed about, but they took it to a point that depression and drugs was their lives, so it's no wonder so many of them left us before they were even 40. It all made for great songs we could relate to, but they never played songs that were just fun, which btw might have brought balance to their lives away from music and just maybe the classic rock guys who are still touring, could retire because there would be a generation of musicians alive to follow them.
@@AzznbadI can pretty much GUARANTEE you never ‘related’ to any of these songs. You might’ve thought you did, but your comment clearly demonstrates that you missed the entire point of them😞
This seemed to be the point in time where people identified with depression. The generation before this we were just becoming familiar with what we were feeling. The generation before that....one could not be seen as weak, or give in to weakness. Now, some have given in to insanity....the weak seem to be the strength in division .... it's not good. But this song is fabulous.
"where did you sleep last night" is a good example to Kurts vocal range. A must listen too. Also "come as you are" is a classic and also showcases Kurts vocal range and unique vocals. The whole show really Is great. BTW Love your vocal breakdowns and they are a pleasure always too watch. Thank you for some fun intelligent, very intriguing, analysis.
Something in the way, and heart shaped box are also good choices. The story goes the singing voice he uses on Heart Shaped box he came up with just before they recorded it.
"I just don't feel like I'm ready to hear him stop singing..." I know it wasn't meant this way, but many of us have been feeling that way for nearly 28 years. Thanks for helping make an old favorite new again to me.
That's the beauty of Kurt and Nirvana. It was never about being pretty or musically perfect. Quite the opposite, the uglier it got, the better it was. They were as real as it got, and that's why they resonated so much when they broke into the mainstream. Everything was so processed, polished and perfect by then, and they splashed mud all over everything. It was fabulous.
I can't imagine Kurt cared to be 'technically' good at anything. He embodied the origins of 'grunge' more than most, he comes from a place of dissonance and even anti-music of the early punk, post punk and noise rock of the 80s, but mixed that with very appealing song structure that bordered on pop. A cool cover and set, but not the best way to hear him I don't think.
Kurt never understood what “grunge” was. He always considered Nirvana to be a new wave band. As for caring about technical skill, he wanted people to respect him as a musician like a Bob Dylan or Tom Petty. That’s why he was going to do a solo album of Lead Belly covers (his favorite artist) after the In Utero tour. He was branching off and wanted to do more blues and Americana so people didn’t think of him as “another monkey with a guitar.”
@@dr.floridamanphd I used grunge in quotations purposefully. No one understood what grunge was at the time as it was a term used by journalists and mtv. But his music was still influenced from specific scenes in the 80s that I mentioned above. Regardless as to what Kurt said one time in an interview, Nirvana's music always shared more in common with bands like Wipers, Pixies and Melvins, not 'new wave'. I'm also not suggesting he didn't have technical ability, but I'd say it's pretty obvious it had very little impact on how he wrote songs. Cadence and feel was far more important to him, which again is an attitude derived from punk/noise bands from the 80s.
I still like his voice better than Grohl's. Grohl sounds especially horrible an hour or so into a live performance, just ragged tired screaming. So if she likes his voice better than Kurt's, I won't know what to think ;)
I have to chime in that I agree with everyone on here who has suggested “Where Did You Sleep Last Night”. Kurt ended up giving his all on that rendition, and its impact remains very powerful.
I know this video is older so the odds of seeing this comment are low but I genuinely thing the reason Kurt’s voice is loved so much is because you can hear so much expression with so little. Not only does his voice sound like there’s something he’s yearning for but there is clear sadness,hurt,and frustration in every word he speaks.
Can’t wait for this one , if you’re interested then there’s at least one more must do reaction from the same concert, that song is called “where did you sleep last night!”
@@arrecchartruese7206 When I went through the entire discography from start to finish of Nirvana, there's not much I really liked if I'm gonna be honest, but his sound is unmistakable, and some of the covers definitely made me wanna hear more covers from him. He's a guy where even if you don't like him he's got that aura that you can get behind.
@@jaretnegron6809 he's definitely not everyone's cup of tea and I totally respect that. I feel that many could relate to him, then and now. He was such a tortured soul. And he was not expecting, wanting, or ready for the level of fame he got in such a short amount of time. That didn't help him at all. 😕
He's very understated in this song, you'll get a better feel of the emotional power he brings to a performance if you listen to Where Did You Sleep Last Night from this same concert. Then you can go back and listen to his studio work to appreciate his his song-writing skills, the immediacy of his vocals, and the emotional force Nirvana put out.
It’s like he carried the weight of everyone’s sadness, depression and hurt by himself and hearing that in his voice made us all realize we weren’t battling it alone. That’s why we love(d) him.
Can we all just take a moment and appreciate how multi-rock-n-roll-hall-of-famer Dave Grohl looks like a huge dork in this video? Cracks me up every time.
Poor Dave is gutted. Never played for 2 years or anything to do about music after Kurt died. Taylor Hawkins 26 years…Foos are done and Dave is going to take a while to reassemble his broken and crushed heart. 🥲…don’t forget Germs 🦠 dude in this appearance …. Pat Smear!
@Long Legged Larry go back to listening to Taylor swift then if you don't like it? I didnt even say anything about Kurt but ya know...you seem to know everything
@Long Legged Larry lol Your synopsis of Cobain is hilarious. He was an untalented musician who wrote geniusly catchy songs that a generation latched on to. Read your comment out loud and see if it still makes sense to you.
@@Cautionary_Tale_Harris the succes is due to the instrumentation and the lyrics. Let's be honest: KC was not an amazing vocalist. If you don't hear that, there's something wrong with your ears. This doesn't mean I don't enjoy sometimes listening to Nirvana.
@@prody666 Who said Cobain was an amazing vocalist? 'Long Legged Larry' said he was a bad singer with bad technique like he was Yoko Ono or something. For example, as far as vocals, Stevie Ray Vaughn fits the same bill as Cobain in my book. His voice wasn't perfect but it did complement the songs. A musical component doesn't have to be perfect to be enjoyable.
Please I’m begging you nirvana fans as nicely as I can to stop pretending he’s better than he is. Chris Cornell, for example, shows that an amazing singer can sing grunge.
My child used this as an audition piece for their high school musical today. Not your typical audition piece, but if you knew the struggles my kiddo has been through and the ABSOLUTE strength it took for him to find joy, again, after the anxiety and severe depression, to sing, this song would absolutely be appropriate and heartfelt for him. It's an extremely emotional piece and extremely important for anyone to know. Period!
Cobain has been on record many times explaining that his style is intentionally sloppy and unpolished. It was his way of boycotting/criticizing the current state of pop/rock music of his time. What does it say that millions of people flocked to his style and caused a musical revolution. He was on to something
Everyone is saying “Where Did You Sleep Last Night”, and the ending to that song is very stunning, but if you want to hear a better presentation of the “dynamics” of his voice I would say the Unplugged version of “Pennyroyal Tea” is a better choice. You get all the breaks and grit and disillusionment that everyone really connected to. And it’s his own words.
Responding without researching as any good you tube content, lol, but I'd question Love's contribution to Pennyroyal Tea just because of the massive amount of Cobain and Billy Corgan contribution to Live Through This makes me doubt she returned the favor. Then again, my bias towards Love as a person might be influencing my opinion there. I just don't think she's capable of it.
Anyone who saw this live, must have had a transformative experience. You can't say you saw this performance live, and that it didn't affect you. I watched it live, on TV... and it still had an impact on my life.
I was in the audience... Kurt was in a spiritually good frame of mind... Best humor during the entire taping by far kept the mood and feel of the entire performance one of the greatest times of my life. ...well, so far....✌️
Wow ..if i could time travel this show would be on the top of my list. Good job showing up. I was in New York at that time but unfortunately wasn’t paying attention.
@@thor498 That might be so, who knows for sure? How many other godfathers of rock-n-roll do think had some issue they dealt with at their heights of fame? RIP KURT
Kurt was very good at challenging what was expected musically, the dissonance in his vocals and guitar are very deliberate and well placed. He was a one of a kind and is very missed.
another vote here for "Where Did You Sleep Last Night" from this concert. EDIT: If you're looking for non-acoustic Nirvana song that is just chilling and full of power and raw emotion, do "You Know You're Right". It wasn't released until long after Kurt passed away (Rest in Peace, you brilliant man); it is an eerie insight into his personal state right before he died.
You talk about the little effort he's using to sing and you're spot on. When a person is in the throes of a deep depression, effort is very hard to come by. The couple flattened notes you mentioned, the voice cracking.... imagine constantly feeling like there's a brick on your chest. It's the not-so-subtle nuances like this that help me feel like I'm not alone when I listen to Nirvana.
“I never wanted to sing,” Cobain insists now. “I just wanted to play rhythm guitar - hide in the back and just play." 'Where did you sleep last night' MTV unplugged is a good example of his his entire range, from mumbling to screaming.
"...I just don't feel like I'm ready to hear him stop singing..." - Truer words have never been spoken about the surprising beauty found in Grunge music when you finally turn off your "analyzer / intellectualizer" and start really listening with your whole human being. Thank you for including this review. I look forward to more of Kurt Cobain if you're willing to go there. :)
That was my response too, Ryan... that's always the best thing about listening to a new album by someone you don't know.. i will admit I do look for reviews on albums.
This is a very stylized vocal for this song. Check out Bowie's version for reference, he does interesting stuff on his too. "Where Did You Sleep Last Night" gets tons of reactions, but it's really one of the best displays of Kurt's vocal talent in this set. You should watch this entire Unplugged performance. There's also a particular thing that I know you will comment on, so I'm interested to see what you say. It's ranked as the Best or 2nd Best of all time.
I wanted to say that this is him doing a "voice" for the song because I didn't know the right term for it. You nailed it with "stylized". I also agree that on this set, WDYSLN is a powerful and moving cover, and worth the listen and review.
This whole MTV Unplugged album from Nirvana has to be one of the best albums ever. It's so raw, and real, and Kurt absolutely did a great job conveying the emotions through the music. Rest in peace, Kurt Edit: I was not aware she also called it "raw and real" when I commented, but glad to see she can hear it too
"The antithesis of classical" is spot on for his "technique". He sang in an anti-traditional fashion, consciously rejecting and performing the opposite of what was considered pretty or correct. My first introduction to Nirvana was through their album In Utero, where you can hear many showcase examples of his vocal distortions and harshness. "Scentless Apprentice" and "All Apologies" live rent free in my head forever.
I really like “Lake of Fire” and/or “Where did you sleep last night?” on this Live Set. If you want to really hear some emotion, “You know you’re right” has become one of my favourite Nirvana Tracks. “Polly”, and “On a Plain” are also really good. Aaaaaaaaah! You need to do this whole Set 😝 hard to pick favorites.
You know you’re right is probably their most emotional track. Curt was really at the end of his line when that song was recorded, its almost as if he knew when and where.
I'm echoing Len and Julian in regards to "You know you're right." If that song doesn't raise hairs on the back of your neck, then you're emotionally dead inside.
I think Lake of Fire is not in his natural singing key, what makes it very interesting to listen to, but it was hard for him to sing that song. All songs mentioned are great. Very emotional. Where did you sleep last night is like a good by, a last big effort. Kurt never saw himself as a singer or guitar player. He was a songwriter and he had a punk attitude or approach to pop music. You know you're right is the posthumous ... I don't know ... revenge?
my favourite Nirvana song: Lithium. The most popular choice is clearly Smells Like Teen Spirit. In any case, Kurt´s voice will be dramatically different from this song´s performance.
The best part of high end grunge is that they go out of the way to show you they have the talent to do what is expected musically, but they won’t give it to you.
I's say "Where did you sleep lat night" is the most vocally impressive on this album. OTher than the songs with the Meat Puppets but on those it's not only him singing.
"Come as you are" is one of the best. It's unbelievably hard to sing any Nirvana songs, because if you sing them with perfect voice and in pitch - they become plain and boring and the magic is gone.
“Where Did You Sleep Last Night” is the real treasure from the Unplugged concert. You hear all of Kurt’s emotion and his full vocal capacity is on display. Hope you give it a shot!
This song along with "where did you sleep last night", "lake of fire", off the unplugged are just a few of my all time fav's of Kurt's and this album. So glad you have "reacted" to it.
Lake of Fire and Plateau are my favorites from the album. Because of this performance, I started listening to Meat Puppets. I can't believe this aired in 93'. I was 16, ugh time flies!
From the same concert: "About a Girl" and "On a Plain". Also "Lake of Fire" and "Where Did You Sleep Last Night". The latter two are also covers but they're brilliant and have become legendary. The whole concert is required listening in my opinion. It should be part of everyone's cultural education. For an altogether different experience with Nirvana watch the "Live and Loud" concert, Seattle 1993, also here on TH-cam. My highlights are probably "Rape Me", "Lithium" and "Come As You Are". Beware though, this is how they performed when NOT unplugged. It's mostly raw and noisy, there's little artifice or sophistication about it. Turn the volume up though. None of Nirvana's and Cobain's stuff was ever easy to digest for people who were looking for pretty melodic music and pleasant singing. And that was absolutely intentional. Kurt would have had some choice words for you if you had tried to correct his singing. It's how he expressed himself, and that's part of why we loved him and why we keep coming back to his music.
"Or will it become addictive?" yes, yes it will. This whole Unplugged album is one of the most addictive albums I have ever listened to. Apart from few exceptions, I am not a huge Nirvana fan, but this album sits at my number one spot as the album of all time, and by a pretty clear margin at that
@@rustyferrell2118 I'm assuming you mean her reaction, and the whole video leads to it. She has very classic training and it trains your hear towards disliking a lot of sounds and voices that Kurt has. When I first started to listen to Jazz I HATED the sounds it felt so wrong, and now I play it, sing it and love it. Anything grunge is similar in a way, because it's not aiming for pretty and perfect and flowy. It's one of my favorite genre, but when I was getting classical training and not listening to much else other than radio pop and musicals it was MUCH different
Kurt said in a interview he realized that most of their songs wouldn't work very well acoustically so he picked a bunch of songs he liked that were out of his range because he wanted to struggle and be flat. I think the interview might have been in the 20 year anniversary of Nirvana Unplugged documentary.
@@peggynunez391 There was a time when I read or watched every interview with Nirvana that I could. I remember him saying he specifically picked the three Meat Puppets songs because he liked the struggle of having to sing out of his range. Unfortunately I haven't been able to find a video of him saying it yet. The documentary/ special I was thinking of was called "Bare Witness: Nirvana Unplugged" which turns out aired in 1999 so I was way off on the year. It's still a decent watch and only about 15 minutes without commercials. th-cam.com/video/1a5TtD-vSSk/w-d-xo.html
Agreeing with others that “Where Did You Sleep Last Night” from the same show would be a good song to analyze. Also, because I’m not sure where to make general suggestions, I’d be so curious to hear you react to Coheed and Cambria. The lead singer Claudio Sanchez has one of the most distinctive voices/singing styles I’ve ever heard.
The irony of this is that Kurt probably wouldn't give a shit what a vocal coach thought of his voice. But, SO glad to see him make the channel!! Pennyroyal Tea is one the greatest songs every written in my opinion - certainly within the Nirvana catalogue. It treats abdominal cramps which I have heard were what pushed Kurt over the edge (assuming Courtney wasn't it). Lots of crazy foreshadowing in his songs at times.
Kurt almost certainly had cannabinoid hyper-emesis, without the emesis, which is well known now, but not then, and can be tricky to diagnose. I have helped numerous patients with this.
Pennyroyal tea was also used for under-the-radar abortions. If you listen closely to the lyrics, I think that's the more likely thing he was thinking of.
Kurt even said before starting this song ''I'm probably gonna mess up on the guitar'' or something like that, and he did on that final part. This is raw and very real. Glad they didn't correct it for the final release!
I wasn't a Nirvana fan, but my younger brother was. When this album came out, my brother got it, and I had to get it myself. I love this song. The emotion he put into this album just screams out. Another of my favorites of this album is Where did you sleep last night. A soul lost way too soon.
I love your comment about how he seems to put so little effort into his voice and yet he makes the perfect sounds for what he is trying to convey. He was so full of emotions they just oozed out of him.
You were hearing actual pain and depression he was experiencing. He was going through withdrawals during this performance. Where did you sleep last night is by far the most raw and powerful song/representation of Kurt’s voice from the Unplugged session. It’s the raw emotional power, imperfection, and no bull simplicity that raises Kurt and Nirvana to a higher level. Despite such a terrible choice in song for a first impression evaluation, you still seemed to nail the larger scope of what made them so incredible. You also have an amazing way with words. Such a lovely way of saying Krist Novoselic is a mouth breather 😂
@@abigailslade3824 Nothing is terrible about the song itself at all. I love that song. It’s just not a great choice out of all the songs from their catalog or live performances to represent Nirvana or Kurt to get a good sense of their sound as a whole, especially as a first impression. If she’s trying to get a grasp of Nirvana’s flavor of grunge, I would have probably chosen Breed (Live at the Paramont/1991) or Smells Like Teen Spirit from the same concert, or from Reading 1992. Neither are necessarily my favorite song, but for an initial intro to the band, and Kurt’s voice, I feel like those are better suited as a more accurate representation. One would really need to listen to multiple performances of the same song to grasp their intention with their music. It wasn’t about the musical ability, it was more about expressing pure unfiltered chaotic angst and emotion. The less attention to technicalities and perfect sound, the better. Kurt didn’t like the Nevermind album because it was too polished and pop sounding compared to what he was trying to convey as an artist. I love Chris Cornell, Eddie Vedder, Layne Staley, and the rest of the Grunge all-stars, but I feel like they were playing a completely different sport in the same arena compared to Nirvana, and it’s hard to get a sense of that out of just one or two songs, and even harder to pick which song should convey that to someone new to them. Anyway, thanks for coming to my TedTalk.
@@finding7 ah I see where you are coming from yes Breed would have been a perfect start or about a girl from Bleach which is a rawer version than on unplugged.
@@gabbut7110 And? Leadbelly wrote Where Did You Sleep Last Night. Doesn’t mean it’s not the best representation of his vocal capabilities on the Unplugged album. Who wrote a song has nothing to do with how they chose to perform it, nor does it have any bearing on Kurt’s vocal capabilities. If she was trying to dissect his lyrical writing style then, yeah, who wrote it would matter. But she isn’t. And it doesn’t. And just for random knowledge sake, lyrics were the last thing on Kurt’s mind anyway, sometimes up until the day of recording, until In Utero where he was more intentional with his lyrics to try and navigate all the overanalyzing critics. But none of that matters in a voice analysis. But 10 points for Bowie anyway, because Bowie is legend.
From this live performance i highly recommend the song "Where did you sleep last night?". He is showing so much emotion and such high tones for his beautifully distorted voice it is just unimaginable!
The "Malaise" in Kurt Kobain voice is exactly the "malaise" an entire generation was feeling. This is exactly what grunge movement was about :) Great video - Thx
I was a teen at the time. I never understood this genre or this whole “malaise” depression is cool thing. Why was the generation supposedly feeling that way? It seemed like a ridiculous fad at the time.
@@thebluecollarbibleguy5114 definitely wasn't a fad. Although every company tried to capitalize on it. If you didn't connect to it then you must have been outside of that very large cultural circle. It was just disaffected youth. Tired of being told who to be and where they should fit in. Angry over the Middle East, conservativism, manufactured image and music. We were coming of age into a world that was screwed up by the generation before us. The honesty and rawness of the music gave us room to breath and let us know our feelings were not just ours. Incredibly hard to describe to someone that wasn't a part of it. But it definitely wasn't a fad or fake. It was never cool to be depressed. Kids just realized that it was ok to have those feelings and express them.
@@jeremyhollyer977 I had a few friends that were into it. They have all passed away long from various drugs, and other causes. But I also knew my fair share of people that did get into it because it was seen as a counter culture rebellion thing to look grunge and act depressed. That just wasn’t me. I’m pretty much emotionless and have always been that way since birth 🤣. I actually love Twenty One Pilots because they help me try to understand depressed people. For me, feelings have always been a choice. I have to choose to be angry or happy or whatever. My only authentic feeling is “annoyed” and it is usually over other people letting feelings direct them. By the way, I’m not judging people. I am aware I am the odd ball. But it sure is helpful very often to look at things objectively and not feelings based. In other areas of life it is a stumbling block that I have to work on otherwise I will tell people to stop feeling certain ways and to suck it up and move on.
@@sjoormen1 I'm a gen x and I truly think no generation will ever be as disillusioned as zoomers. They will miss the last possible train from the post war miracle, grew up in constant crisis, under techno-surveillance, with almost every ecosystem in freefall around the world. I don't know why today's chart topping music is strangely devoid of anger or anguish. Where are the protest songs? I think the music and marketing industries have fully integrated consumerism into the content. Gucci this, rolex that - a boring dystopia.
"Something In The Way" is my favorite track off that album. Hauntingly beautiful. It feels like waking up by a lake, still drunk from the night before, morning fog obscuring your view.
I took a day trip to Seattle one day in 1994. Driving home, KNDD was playing all Nirvana songs which was odd. The DJ broke in at some point and said there had been a death at the Cobain home but the identity was not yet public. Finally they played Something in the Way and I knew it was him. I’ll never forget that moment in my life.
I still remember when Nirvana hit the airwaves, and they were exactly what I needed. Down to earth and raw emotion, Kurt's voice embodied his songs perfectly.
Kurt's voice is definitely an acquired taste, but I was instantly drawn to "Smells Like Teen Spirit" when I first heard it on the radio in 1991. It was so unique & different! I also love "Lithium".
I can understand your initial surprise, and even disappointment. When your grunge frames of reference are Layne Staley and Chris Cornell, probably the two best rock vocalists in the last 30 years, Kurt was never going to deliver that level of vocal, but the rawness, pain, and anguish that he delivers in every song has it's own legendary quality. I enjoyed seeing your appreciation of him grow throughout the performance.
I'm coming back to this after Elizabeth did "All Apologies" from Unplugged. To me both Punk and Grunge were music for the counterculture, but if Punk was the anger stage of grief, Grunge is the depression stage. And I think in the 90s that resonated with people from all walks of life.
When you said "It's growing on me", that's the key to the whole thing. Kurt's true talent was connecting with his audience. There was nothing special about his singing, guitar playing, or writing. People have been picking all that apart for decades. Dude just had a magic way of reaching people through music.
"There's a longing in it and like a sadness in it, it feels like he's trying to be really real with emotions and trying to communicate this disillusionment " You know, after years and years of studying his life and recounting anecdotes of his life and music, most experts and friends eventually arrived to that conclusion. That he longed for his united family before his parents divorced and then he was disillusioned with his married life, fame, etc. But you picked it up in two seconds after hearing one of his songs for the first time. It takes a superb ear and amazing understanding of the human soul not only to identify notes, but the feeling behind the artist's interpretation. Elizabeth, You're truly one of a kind
One good thing to remember about the purpose of the "grunge" movement was that it wasn't as much about a style of music but rather it was taking the piss out of the exhausting and formulaic heavy pop metal of the 80's. The corporate record companies were killing the music industry bands like sonic youth, husker du, the pixies, smashing pumpkins, butt hole surfers, violent femmes, Nirvana and many others were trying to be something else, a different choice or rather alternative rock. Grunge isn't in tune on purpose because its much more in tune with what mattered
Yeah, but LYeah, but Lara Fabian's Malade is a huge exception, and there are plenty of examples when a great voice can tell the story very well, but hey, great aphorism :)
So what does that say about those with brilliant voices, who built their voices for decades, with blood sweat and tears? All the hard work put into perfecting their craft? I think this sentiment of Byrne's plays with semantics to rationalize a weak singers struggles and make them great because they're popular. I can't imagine someone trying to pull off Otis Redding, Al Green, Marvin Gaye, Aretha Franklin, Linda Ronstadt, etc with the same success they found in their approach to singing. It was their command of tone, timber, range and dynamics they mastered that set them apart. That said, I understand what Byrne is saying and always loved the Dave and Heads. I find the singer of Cake appealing as well and plenty of other front men/wimen. In truth, it's all BS! It's opinion: a subjective take. The love of hearing a voice is personal taste and the performers execution. I've played guitar for nearly 40 yrs, done some singing and played a few other instruments as well. I was a session guy mostly. All I can say is thar people, both young and old either have it or not. However, what I've noticed over the yrs is that masterful technicians that blow people back always works. A bland or flat voice doesn't always cut it. Proof of my opinion is found in this trained vocalists response, who is listening to Kurt and not really feeling it, but claims that his voice is growing on her because she finds the positive in anyone she covers. It's smart on her behalf because she's trying to grow a channel. Although I loved this unplugged show, this isn't who Kurt was. She should have listened to "You know You're Right" or something from Bleach to showcase what made him popular. Personally, I liked most of the big grunge bands, such as SG, Pearl Jam and Chains especially. LOVED LAYNE! But was never a big Kurt fan. Conversely, a few of Nirvana's songs work for me.
@@matthewhorizon6050 Look at Michael Bolton, arguably a great singer but hearing him sing When a Man Loves a Woman with the same intensity as he does a beer jingle diminishes his believeability.
Agree with many people about "Where did you sleep last night", although from a vocal coach point of view that must be horrifying as Kurt really tears into his vocal chords on that. Even more a testament of his depression than this song.
I had an argument with a friend's mom when I was a teenager about Kurt's voice. She challenged me to why I liked it. I responded that It's not a GOOD voice, but it's an honest voice. So much music I was hearing at the time was overproduced pop vocals, and glam (not that there is anything wrong with that, it was just ubiquitous). I kind of think in some ways it's similar to the Bob Dylan-esque sound. I think Kurt's voice is imperfect in a way that invites you into his vulnerability.
LOL, I had the same argument with my friend's mom at the time. She was raised in the '50s and sang opera throughout her younger years (not professionally, just in school and whatnot) and absolutely HATED Kurt's voice and Nirvana's music. Not only did she hate his voice and not understand the idea that the raw emotion and honesty was what made it great, she kept complaining that they (and other modern-at-the-time bands) didn't dress up in synchronized outfits like old Motown and doo-wop groups. She kept saying that the whole point of musicians was to dress up and "put on a show" and that no one wanted to hear people be sad. I tried to explain why it appealed to me, a teenager at the time, and so many other people for most of an afternoon but finally gave up.
Kurt Cobain was one of those singers that was just more, he didn't have the greatest voice or was even the most polished. But there was a quality to his voice that hit deeply, and stayed with you. A few recommendations; All Apologies (Unplugged or Album version), Lithium, Heart-Shaped Box and if you do no other song you must listen to Smells Like Teen Spirit.
Like a lot of people have already said, you picked the wrong song from this show. Where did you sleep last night will leave you with chills. Especially if you listen to the emotion in his voice knowing it was his last performance.
It *wasn't* their last performance, though. Nirvana toured the US and Europe after the Unplugged show. The Unplugged show aired on November 8th, 1993. Their actual final show was in Munich, Germany, March 1, 1994.
Not sure it's been mentioned here in the comment section, but I'm glad you noticed and made the remark about his jaw release. David Ghrol in his book mentions the fact that he grinds his teeth to the beat of the melody and that the only other person he knew for doing that was Kurt and you can totally see it through this entire unplugged concert. Miss you Kurt.
I loved watching you, as a pro, hear the jagged soul coming from his mouth, first put off and then finding the art within that captured us all. Sometimes perfection breeds boredom and genius creates beyond perfection through error.
You should really hear his cover of Leadbelly’s “Where Did You Sleep Last Night “ from this same show!Such a treat for anyone who hasn’t listened to a lot of Nirvana. Those who have as well.
Yes to this! It isn't technically anything to brag about, but holy sh*t it is loaded with other things that make it legendary performance. My hair raises up even when I only think of the performance....
LOL not ALL of us. Nirvana's music has grown on me over the years, but in 1994 I *HATED* that band and the whole grunge thing. And I was DEFINTELY not alone.
@@grandwaha ...Apparently you're unaware that music can be RECORDED and played back at a later date? I meant the music he made BEFORE he died, ya Putz.
![[#2024MAMA] ROSÉ (로제), Bruno Mars - APT. | Mnet 241122 방송](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/dgGqD28J6aQ/mqdefault.jpg)
"A voice shouldn't be perfect, a voice should be perfectly suited for the message that its trying to deliver!" That was Kurt!!!
I needed to hear this 🙏🏻
Yes exactly! Could also be said for Neil Young and Tom Petty.
@@lucky_lola And Bob Dylan . Dylan wrote poetry to music.
Yes...that's having soul.
How great a statement is that though. She certainly caught my attention then. She also finally seems to be understanding grunge after listening to this song. Sadness, pain, anger energy, raw emotions captured in song. It's not about technique and being technically correct. It's about being simple and real.
“Where did you Sleep Last Night” unplugged is the perfect encapsulation of the raw power and ability to evoke emotion Kurt’s voice contained. Still cry almost every time I hear it.
still gives me chills towards the end!
That song hits me right in the feels every time. The sheer pain that is in his voice cuts deep.
That performance is greatly set in history!
I feel like the man who sold the world is a bad example of his voice
@@pudge_mf6763, the whole show was a protest of sorts from the band. MTV producers were adamant that they play all their hits, so instead they played predominantly b-sides and covers. It would’ve been very Kurt-esq to purposely sing off key or it could been that he’s just trying to match Bowie’s singing style (in which its not even close to his own).
"A voice shouldn't be perfect, a voice should be perfectly suited for the message it is trying to deliver." Wow, she nailed it with that line.
I would tend to agree with that, very well said.
That is exactly talking about kurt he's imperfectly perfect
@@stoicnotsad I always thought he was perfectly imperfect
Mark knofler comes to mind.
@You Tube not all not even almost of it very few actually very few comes to the mainstream with no musical classes just self taught and sings with emotions like kurt who came from the underground all by himself he took no classes just all by himself singing with passion hope you got the point
David Bowie loved the way Kurt performed the song.
Very late on the reply, but can confirm, I saw them perform together on tour, 30 years ago(ish).
Ya, Kurt took a mediocre Bowie song and launched it into it's own orbit around the sun. Great lyrics, but it took Cobain's rendition to make it legendary.
@@greg967they never preformed together though?
@@mitchelltrantham5085 It is not a mediocre song.
@@mitchelltrantham5085 Indeed, the final section of bowie's album version is absolutely amazing.
"I'm not ready for him to stop singing." None of us were :(
This comment hit me hard in the feels! It's very true and honest.
Even after she said "I'm not sure I like his voice" was priceless lol 😆 😅
Damn :/ true
Hey. I Love your shit. The way you got an open mind and appreciate music. I was looking for any studio song by Nirvana and saw this was the only one.
I'd love seein you do a special Nirvana song and fan made video of their tune "Lounge Act" and analyze the unique way in which he sings that one.
Nirvana - Lounge Act
th-cam.com/video/jSw_hnurmIY/w-d-xo.html
And when it comes to his Scream, I'd love you did "Territorial Pissings" that'd be legit. Love your honest take on a song I can tell you really hadn't heard this song before. Lol
American bittersweet tea....fuck yeah :(
There are so many from this unplugged set that you could do. If you want to hear his voice raw as it ever was, check out “where did you sleep last night”
YES.
It's the last song in the last performance he ever gave, and it's positively overflowing with the pain that led him to suicide soon after. A heart-stoppingly powerful performance.
Yesss ❤💜
facts. this will work much better
THIS. It's my favorite from the unplugged album.
i was about to suggest exactly that one
Kurt Cobain did not have the best voice. But he had just the right voice.
Nailed it.
"Best" is relative. Someone with a "great" voice to me is so BORING. I want to hear variations. In the end singing is about hitting notes, NOT about sounding perfect.
Yeeees! I've watched those vocal comparison videos of the big 4 grunge bands and I always feel like they miss the mark. He didn't have the best voice of the four (hi, Chris Cornell), or even my favorite voice of the four (hi, Layne Staley), but he's still The Voice of Grunge. (Eddie Vedder can take a seat, lol.)
None of the four guys was technically brilliant. But as a band they just worked really well. In the end Grunge, whatever it was anyways, wasn't a very technical genre, if it was a genre at all.
I was trying to think of something to say along these lines. This is perfect.
Nirvana on MTV unplugged was a seminal moment in rock and roll history. In an age before the internet and social media it broke through musical genres and barriers. I remember being 10 and annoyed because my parents let my older brother decide what to watch on Saturday night. It was this. It changed my musical life.
Wow!!
Yea, those older brothers were pretty much controlling 😂
Me too - I was11
Somewhat similar story happened to me. My father thought it was a good idea to watch this. I still remember that i was silent the whole time and didn't need to go the bathroom. And it changed my whole perspectif on music and by that my whole life. Thank you dad!
When I was a child, me and my dad listened to the album on the half hour drive to school every morning. It really shaped my appreciation of music and this is still one of my favourite albums.
Kurt is the most perfect imperfect vocalist of my lifetime. There's a lot to criticize about his technique but his voice pierces your soul every time.
Wha? He's lame. Always was.
@@Salsilator Oooh, arent you the edgy one.
@@Salsilator Look ma! A troll!
Perfection is so boring
@@Salsilator we’ve got someone trying to be different
"I'm not entirely sure I really like his voice"
"A voice shouldn't be perfect. A voice should be perfectly suited to the message it's trying to deliver"
"Okay, it's growing on me"
[Describes how his voice is suited to the message] "Oh, this is actually really appropriate"
"I really like this song"
"I thought we were going to get some more singing. Neeooo"
It's perfect, to me. Your reaction is perfect as well.
I'll suggest anything from this same performance.
Bowie said this version was "very honest" and "heartfelt". I think those are two important factors that go into making it so damn good.
Agree with all this completely. One of my very favorite songs and I loved listening to her analyze this.
Need more singing? A good reason to do another nirvana song. Great reaction, he may not have been gifted with the natural vocal abilities of the other big name grunge singers like Staley and Cornell but there is something in his voice that draws you in and grabs you inside. IMO another example showing you don't have to have a great technical voice to be a great singer
First thing I noticed about Kurt's voice is that from a technical standpoint, it varies from mediocre to horrible. It takes longer to realize that those imperfections are 100% intentional, his voice doesn't do anything other than exactly what he wants it to, and his entire musical style was created around the way he uses his voice, so of course his voice suits the musical style perfectly, and can be extremely engaging even if you find his voice cringeworthy.
I have never heard a bad verson of this song.
I don't think Kurt ever wanted to be regarded as a "good" singer. All accounts I've ever heard say that he preferred his songs to sound raw and unpolished and ... for all intents and purposes, "bad." When he was set up with a professional producer who polished up all the songs, he *hated* having to admit that it sounded better.
An interesting note: Butch Vig, producer of their album Nevermind, commented that while Kurt's voice sounds uncertain and warbly and imperfect, each take during recording was exactly the same. Every imperfection and flat note was completely planned and executed flawlessly. Every time. This was all on purpose. People who heard him sing spontaneously said that he had a clear and pleasant conventional voice. These were all stylistic choices to convey vulnerability and uncertainty. His genius was humility.
edit: Review Something in the Way or Territorial Pissings for contrasting styles
Good point. I think I saw the same video. He showed where Cobain doubled his vocal lines to thicken the sound, as is often done in the studio, and Cobain's takes were almost identical.
Naw he just sucks ass. By the way I heard Layne Staley is pretty good
Also in Montage of Heck you can hear him doing his "comic" voices. Thats how one should see his singing as playing a role. Each song is a different character.
Something in the way. Ooof I feel that angst
@@CultofGrace he still gives me the feels and many others with me.
so i’d say “mission accomplished”
“I was simply blown away when I found that Kurt Cobain liked my work, and have always wanted to talk to him about his reasons for covering ‘The Man Who Sold the World’” and that it was a good straight forward rendition and sounded somehow very honest. It would have been nice to have worked with him, but just talking with him would have been real cool.”
-David Bowie
David Bowie had major class.
It always makes me wonder about how things could have panned out had Kurt lived. Regarding things like the David Bowie quote there, I can only imagine something like- Bowies 50th Birthday Bash in New York, 1995. Inviting a host of amazing people to sing songs with him, be it Robert Smith, Billy Corgan, etc. Imagine had Kurt lived, chilled out, took time out in 1994, then came back with a more Unplugged style sound for a while, furthering what the MTV performance started. He could have joined Bowie onstage for instance, to jam, perform this song together. I know its my fan fiction monologue in my mind talking here, but Nirvana have been my favourite thing to listen to since 1992, and I still wonder about alternate timelines the 90s music scene would have taken , had he and they still rocked and raged through them.
Neil Young, Michael Stipe- there were so many other musicians that wanted to reach out to him. It makes me wonder, even today after all this time, what, how and who he could have evolved and worked with , had he lived.
Kurt Cobain right before playing this: "I guarantee you I'll screw this song up". Then he proceeded to immortalize it.
Well he did screw up the solo
@@johand.h1087 I loved it
Hearing her say the song suite the grunge movement said to me she has concept of the history of the song and very little knowledge of Kurt. Bowie wrote the song for the Movie, The Man who Fell to Earth about an alien's experience on earth. Bowie starred as the alien in the film. It came out in like 1978 or 79. Grunge was still about ten years away.
@@jbarton1541 You realize things don't have to be born of the same time to make sense? The 90's grunge movement was about reflection, and backlash against the extreme lavishness and indulgence of the 80's. The idea of a "man who sold the world" is very much in line with those ideas. Some songs are just as good, or even better with the new rendition and time period. She has some ignorance of the genre, but she's still right that the lyrical context fit.
I seem to remember reading the reheasals had not gone well and they were all very nervous throughout. I think Kurt and Dave had some disagrements about how loud the drums should be and there was tension in the air. It's almost suprisng it came out legendary.
This also seems the song they were most nervous about. Kurt is constantly reading the lyric sheet. So I guess it's nerves that made him screw up the beginning of the solo. I've also heard him do that part with his voice in a live track, and Bowie did it too. I wonder why he decided not to this time.
I agree with everyone who suggested “Where Did You Sleep Last Night?” It’s definitely the best example of raw emotion and power coming from Kurt’s voice. And it still gives me chills every time I listen to the last line of the song. But “Smells Like Teen Spirit” is probably the best example of Kurt’s vocal style overall. Most Nirvana fans agree it’s overrated and overplayed, but there is a reason it gets so much play. It’s the song that catapulted grunge into the mainstream, and still one of the best examples of grunge to this day, even though it’s most certainly not the best grunge song ever written. If you wanna understand grunge and Kurt’s contribution to it, you have to listen to “Smells Like Teen Spirit.”
100% agree!
I, also, must wholeheartedly agree that “ Where did you sleep last night” is THE Nirvana song to react to. Please.
100% for me as well. When I saw the thumbnail I didn't even read the title, just assumed it was gonna be that one and clicked. Also a cover, sure, but I heard a rumor they refused an encore at that performance because Kurt said there was no way they're topping that one. I completely agree, the passion rips through your heart. And watch his eyes, they're closed for the whole song until one pivotal moment.
Yup. Probably a better representation of Kurt's style
It may be over played but it's not overrated. A true original and pure Nirvana
The moment where she finally got Kurt and understood what he was about choked me up so much. He’s perfectly imperfect and raw emotion
I was waiting for her to give into the hypnotic voice of Cobain. It's not sweet, it's not clean but it draws you in. I was a teenager in the 90s and was strait up hip hop. Nothing else, but I heard this album at a friends house and his unplugged performance changed my perception of music as a whole.
It's your imperfections that often set you apart from another. Imagine if everyone was making the same music. 👀 All the songs that wouldn't be there scary
Kurt spoke to all of us who suffer from depression, are weirdos trapped in small towns, or came from broken homes...i mean, i could keep going. There were so many things we were dealing with that were new at the time, i honestly feel like this energy was hiding all across the nation, and this sound is the sound that united all of us.
Couldn't have said it better myself or agree more. The emotions in all of this era's songs are so relatable to so many of us. All the greats suffered from depression, addiction, and the loss of someone so important to them. Clean cut across the board it was all music that had feelings we all could relate to.
Absolutely. Too much time spent alone, drawing, writing and listening to music....but this music felt like it was for us. A way out of the feelings of despair, some respite.
He didn't sing about them he wollowed in them and that's the one thing about grunge that assured it's run would be relatively short. It made for great music, but depression and sadness are not places you want to live. Weirdos are weirdos whether they are trapped in a small town or Brooklyn. Life is more complicated than that. I love many of the grunge bands, and they produced some remarkable music, but people are not intended to live like that. Focusing only on what sucks in life, and taking it serious enough to only see the pain in life rather than than allowing the great things is more than foolish it's dangerous. One needs to only add up the bodies of the front men to see something ain't right. There are more front men from the 70s living than from great grunge bands. That's not an accident. There was no more hardship in the 90s than at other times, and statisticslly there was far less things to be depressed about, but they took it to a point that depression and drugs was their lives, so it's no wonder so many of them left us before they were even 40.
It all made for great songs we could relate to, but they never played songs that were just fun, which btw might have brought balance to their lives away from music and just maybe the classic rock guys who are still touring, could retire because there would be a generation of musicians alive to follow them.
@@AzznbadI can pretty much GUARANTEE you never ‘related’ to any of these songs. You might’ve thought you did, but your comment clearly demonstrates that you missed the entire point of them😞
This seemed to be the point in time where people identified with depression. The generation before this we were just becoming familiar with what we were feeling. The generation before that....one could not be seen as weak, or give in to weakness. Now, some have given in to insanity....the weak seem to be the strength in division .... it's not good. But this song is fabulous.
"where did you sleep last night" is a good example to Kurts vocal range. A must listen too. Also "come as you are" is a classic and also showcases Kurts vocal range and unique vocals. The whole show really Is great. BTW Love your vocal breakdowns and they are a pleasure always too watch. Thank you for some fun intelligent, very intriguing, analysis.
THIS. Where Did You Sleep Last Night. THIS is the one.
It's definitely the most haunting and painful performance from that show.
YES. This is a Must listen!
Something in the way, and heart shaped box are also good choices. The story goes the singing voice he uses on Heart Shaped box he came up with just before they recorded it.
I swear in one of the final vocal breaks in that song, you can almost hear his resignation to the idea that he isn't sticking around much longer
"I just don't feel like I'm ready to hear him stop singing..."
I know it wasn't meant this way, but many of us have been feeling that way for nearly 28 years.
Thanks for helping make an old favorite new again to me.
Was just thinking the same thing
So touching, true for his generation. He still lives within Us all ~
And there go the tears. Yep. 100%.
Yes so many of us miss him!! We can only hope he is at peace with his suffering.
Same!! Wish some one could of saved. Him
millions loved his voice including me a 71 year old man. it touches a deep sadness and regret in my soul.
Nice. Most older gentlemen hated the grunge movement. Trapped in hair metal I guess
48 here, same appreciation
Yes, exactly, I feel such despair, such suffering in this voice that touches me enormously.
That's the beauty of Kurt and Nirvana. It was never about being pretty or musically perfect. Quite the opposite, the uglier it got, the better it was. They were as real as it got, and that's why they resonated so much when they broke into the mainstream. Everything was so processed, polished and perfect by then, and they splashed mud all over everything. It was fabulous.
Great description 👏
Rite on NoTe❤
Loved this description. ❤
THIS.
"I just don't feel like I am ready to hear him stop singing..." Sister, you aren't the only one who feels that way.
Indeed....wish he was still here
I can't imagine Kurt cared to be 'technically' good at anything. He embodied the origins of 'grunge' more than most, he comes from a place of dissonance and even anti-music of the early punk, post punk and noise rock of the 80s, but mixed that with very appealing song structure that bordered on pop. A cool cover and set, but not the best way to hear him I don't think.
Kurt never understood what “grunge” was. He always considered Nirvana to be a new wave band.
As for caring about technical skill, he wanted people to respect him as a musician like a Bob Dylan or Tom Petty. That’s why he was going to do a solo album of Lead Belly covers (his favorite artist) after the In Utero tour. He was branching off and wanted to do more blues and Americana so people didn’t think of him as “another monkey with a guitar.”
@@dr.floridamanphd I used grunge in quotations purposefully. No one understood what grunge was at the time as it was a term used by journalists and mtv. But his music was still influenced from specific scenes in the 80s that I mentioned above. Regardless as to what Kurt said one time in an interview, Nirvana's music always shared more in common with bands like Wipers, Pixies and Melvins, not 'new wave'. I'm also not suggesting he didn't have technical ability, but I'd say it's pretty obvious it had very little impact on how he wrote songs. Cadence and feel was far more important to him, which again is an attitude derived from punk/noise bands from the 80s.
I still like his voice better than Grohl's. Grohl sounds especially horrible an hour or so into a live performance, just ragged tired screaming. So if she likes his voice better than Kurt's, I won't know what to think ;)
@@supertrexandroidx honestly haven't liked any foo fighters since their first couple albums, but ya Grohl isnt half the vocalist Cobain is.
Only thing I disagree with is that this isn't a good place to hear his voice.
I have to chime in that I agree with everyone on here who has suggested “Where Did You Sleep Last Night”. Kurt ended up giving his all on that rendition, and its impact remains very powerful.
Yes. That's the one to check out. Couldn't agree more.
Agreed this one will give you the power you’re searching for!
It's my girl not where did you sleep last night!
@@daviddecker1744 In the Pines you mean
@@daviddecker1744 you are wrong buddy
I know this video is older so the odds of seeing this comment are low but I genuinely thing the reason Kurt’s voice is loved so much is because you can hear so much expression with so little. Not only does his voice sound like there’s something he’s yearning for but there is clear sadness,hurt,and frustration in every word he speaks.
I see you, I hear you.
Gen X recognises what Gen X is.
I dont even know why, but reading this made me cry (both the comment and reply) yes we gen X see you Gen X!
Yes it is!
Perfect. Total Nostalgic
Can’t wait for this one , if you’re interested then there’s at least one more must do reaction from the same concert, that song is called “where did you sleep last night!”
And "Lake Of Fire"
Ohhh yes. To this day his vocals on that song send shivers down my spine. The way he just HOWLS. My goodness. RIP Kurt 🖤
@@arrecchartruese7206 When I went through the entire discography from start to finish of Nirvana, there's not much I really liked if I'm gonna be honest, but his sound is unmistakable, and some of the covers definitely made me wanna hear more covers from him. He's a guy where even if you don't like him he's got that aura that you can get behind.
@@jaretnegron6809 he's definitely not everyone's cup of tea and I totally respect that. I feel that many could relate to him, then and now. He was such a tortured soul. And he was not expecting, wanting, or ready for the level of fame he got in such a short amount of time. That didn't help him at all. 😕
@@arrecchartruese7206 the final look on his face before that last note on where did you sleep last night nearly beings me to tears each time I see it
He's very understated in this song, you'll get a better feel of the emotional power he brings to a performance if you listen to Where Did You Sleep Last Night from this same concert. Then you can go back and listen to his studio work to appreciate his his song-writing skills, the immediacy of his vocals, and the emotional force Nirvana put out.
"I just don't feel like I'm ready to hear him stop singing yet." Yeah, that sums it up pretty well. RIP Kurt
It’s like he carried the weight of everyone’s sadness, depression and hurt by himself and hearing that in his voice made us all realize we weren’t battling it alone. That’s why we love(d) him.
Can we all just take a moment and appreciate how multi-rock-n-roll-hall-of-famer Dave Grohl looks like a huge dork in this video? Cracks me up every time.
I had same thought. Brilliant musician. Hilarious look.
The man, the legend ❤️
Based on a description from someone who interviewed him, he IS a huge dork, but in a great sort of way and just all around a really good guy!
@@benlee8436 I was going to say this but you handled it lol. "He looks like a dork because he is a dork"
Poor Dave is gutted. Never played for 2 years or anything to do about music after Kurt died. Taylor Hawkins 26 years…Foos are done and Dave is going to take a while to reassemble his broken and crushed heart. 🥲…don’t forget Germs 🦠 dude in this appearance …. Pat Smear!
It’s the honesty in his vocals that reaches out to us. People like to use the term “raw” but listening to him for years I prefer Honest.
Raw is honesty personified
@Long Legged Larry go back to listening to Taylor swift then if you don't like it?
I didnt even say anything about Kurt but ya know...you seem to know everything
@Long Legged Larry lol
Your synopsis of Cobain is hilarious.
He was an untalented musician who wrote geniusly catchy songs that a generation latched on to.
Read your comment out loud and see if it still makes sense to you.
@@Cautionary_Tale_Harris the succes is due to the instrumentation and the lyrics. Let's be honest: KC was not an amazing vocalist. If you don't hear that, there's something wrong with your ears. This doesn't mean I don't enjoy sometimes listening to Nirvana.
@@prody666 Who said Cobain was an amazing vocalist?
'Long Legged Larry' said he was a bad singer with bad technique like he was Yoko Ono or something.
For example, as far as vocals, Stevie Ray Vaughn fits the same bill as Cobain in my book. His voice wasn't perfect but it did complement the songs.
A musical component doesn't have to be perfect to be enjoyable.
I think his flaws and quirks as a vocalist is what made him so good. He owned his sound, it's real and you can feel it.
Exactly. Popular music before this was too slick, polished. Grunge came out unpolished, raw, more sincere. Like older R&R.
Yes.
Well said
Please I’m begging you nirvana fans as nicely as I can to stop pretending he’s better than he is. Chris Cornell, for example, shows that an amazing singer can sing grunge.
@@qwerty.4450 Cornell is Clapton, Cobain is Hendrix.
My child used this as an audition piece for their high school musical today. Not your typical audition piece, but if you knew the struggles my kiddo has been through and the ABSOLUTE strength it took for him to find joy, again, after the anxiety and severe depression, to sing, this song would absolutely be appropriate and heartfelt for him. It's an extremely emotional piece and extremely important for anyone to know. Period!
The whole unplugged concert is a must listen. Nirvana at their very best in my opinion.
1000% agreed
As much as I love it I don’t think it does the same thing for me as bleach
I love the music that came from MTV unplugged.
Cobain has been on record many times explaining that his style is intentionally sloppy and unpolished. It was his way of boycotting/criticizing the current state of pop/rock music of his time. What does it say that millions of people flocked to his style and caused a musical revolution. He was on to something
we need more of that 'sloppy' work. anyone can be polished on a autotune...
he did what punk did to the stadium bands. Raw....Dirty and distorted..
When it comes to self-commenting on his talent (or lack thereof), I guess a poor excuse is better than none.
Kurt cobain and other grunge rockers literally defined a generation and changed rock music forever
There is a very nice live performance where he sings smels like team spirit in a talk show and it is gold.
Everyone is saying “Where Did You Sleep Last Night”, and the ending to that song is very stunning, but if you want to hear a better presentation of the “dynamics” of his voice I would say the Unplugged version of “Pennyroyal Tea” is a better choice. You get all the breaks and grit and disillusionment that everyone really connected to. And it’s his own words.
That's debatable. Courtney Love wrote "Pennyroyal Tea." The style and language are hers, not to mention the subject matter is very feminine.
@@FippyDarkpaw No. that’s a Cobain tune-like most of Nirvana’s catalog. Check the liner notes to In Utero for confirmation.
Responding without researching as any good you tube content, lol, but I'd question Love's contribution to Pennyroyal Tea just because of the massive amount of Cobain and Billy Corgan contribution to Live Through This makes me doubt she returned the favor. Then again, my bias towards Love as a person might be influencing my opinion there. I just don't think she's capable of it.
@@FippyDarkpaw oh for God's sake, c'mon man.
@@FippyDarkpaw ive never heard that, besides her best songs sounds like Cobains music, Violet and Doll parts have Kurt Cobain written all over it.
Anyone who saw this live, must have had a transformative experience. You can't say you saw this performance live, and that it didn't affect you. I watched it live, on TV... and it still had an impact on my life.
I was lucky enough to see him perform in NYC months before he died. It was awsome! I'm so thankful I was able to see it.
I was in the audience...
Kurt was in a spiritually good frame of mind... Best humor during the entire taping by far kept the mood and feel of the entire performance one of the greatest times of my life.
...well, so far....✌️
I'm jealous u are soo lucky
Fabulous, happy for you,I am envious
Wow ..if i could time travel this show would be on the top of my list. Good job showing up. I was in New York at that time but unfortunately wasn’t paying attention.
Thats kick ass I used to pretend like I was in the same room with them
You were in the audience at the best live recording ever. I'm really happy for your sake. This is music history!
He was never the best singer but i always thought he was a very emotional singer. Which is why so many people could connect with his music.
Exceptional singer if you take into regard thst he was super high on heroin all the time
Take your head for a shit - Kurts voice was perfection
That's true. I just thought how I used to say the same thing about Bob Dylan back in the day.
@@thor498 That might be so, who knows for sure? How many other godfathers of rock-n-roll do think had some issue they dealt with at their heights of fame? RIP KURT
STFU his voice was amazing.
Kurt was very good at challenging what was expected musically, the dissonance in his vocals and guitar are very deliberate and well placed. He was a one of a kind and is very missed.
another vote here for "Where Did You Sleep Last Night" from this concert.
EDIT:
If you're looking for non-acoustic Nirvana song that is just chilling and full of power and raw emotion, do "You Know You're Right".
It wasn't released until long after Kurt passed away (Rest in Peace, you brilliant man); it is an eerie insight into his personal state right before he died.
@Patrick Shepherd PAAAAAAIIIIAIIIIIAAIIIIIN
One of my favorites!
Yeah, I would also recommend "Where Did You Sleep Last Night" and "You Know You're Right"!
"Something in the Way" acoustic version is my favorite Nirvana song.
You talk about the little effort he's using to sing and you're spot on. When a person is in the throes of a deep depression, effort is very hard to come by. The couple flattened notes you mentioned, the voice cracking.... imagine constantly feeling like there's a brick on your chest. It's the not-so-subtle nuances like this that help me feel like I'm not alone when I listen to Nirvana.
Not to mention the depressant effects of heroin...
I miss that guy. I never knew him, but I miss him. Nirvana’s music got me through the darkest time of my life. I’m so thankful for the art they made.
We all miss him. At least we still have the music though
“I never wanted to sing,” Cobain insists now. “I just wanted to play rhythm guitar - hide in the back and just play."
'Where did you sleep last night' MTV unplugged is a good example of his his entire range, from mumbling to screaming.
"...I just don't feel like I'm ready to hear him stop singing..." - Truer words have never been spoken about the surprising beauty found in Grunge music when you finally turn off your "analyzer / intellectualizer" and start really listening with your whole human being. Thank you for including this review. I look forward to more of Kurt Cobain if you're willing to go there. :)
That was my response too, Ryan... that's always the best thing about listening to a new album by someone you don't know.. i will admit I do look for reviews on albums.
@Ryan, I miss grunge and the whole era. It was so great. Such great music came from that time.
This is a very stylized vocal for this song. Check out Bowie's version for reference, he does interesting stuff on his too. "Where Did You Sleep Last Night" gets tons of reactions, but it's really one of the best displays of Kurt's vocal talent in this set. You should watch this entire Unplugged performance. There's also a particular thing that I know you will comment on, so I'm interested to see what you say. It's ranked as the Best or 2nd Best of all time.
AiC and then Nirvana are my 2 fav.
I wanted to say that this is him doing a "voice" for the song because I didn't know the right term for it. You nailed it with "stylized".
I also agree that on this set, WDYSLN is a powerful and moving cover, and worth the listen and review.
This whole MTV Unplugged album from Nirvana has to be one of the best albums ever. It's so raw, and real, and Kurt absolutely did a great job conveying the emotions through the music. Rest in peace, Kurt
Edit: I was not aware she also called it "raw and real" when I commented, but glad to see she can hear it too
"The antithesis of classical" is spot on for his "technique". He sang in an anti-traditional fashion, consciously rejecting and performing the opposite of what was considered pretty or correct.
My first introduction to Nirvana was through their album In Utero, where you can hear many showcase examples of his vocal distortions and harshness. "Scentless Apprentice" and "All Apologies" live rent free in my head forever.
I really like “Lake of Fire” and/or “Where did you sleep last night?” on this Live Set. If you want to really hear some emotion, “You know you’re right” has become one of my favourite Nirvana Tracks. “Polly”, and “On a Plain” are also really good. Aaaaaaaaah! You need to do this whole Set 😝 hard to pick favorites.
You know you’re right is probably their most emotional track. Curt was really at the end of his line when that song was recorded, its almost as if he knew when and where.
Can't agree enough with this comment
I'm echoing Len and Julian in regards to "You know you're right." If that song doesn't raise hairs on the back of your neck, then you're emotionally dead inside.
Please do other nirvana unplugged songs they have more range he harmonizes with dave groels voice beautifully.
I think Lake of Fire is not in his natural singing key, what makes it very interesting to listen to, but it was hard for him to sing that song.
All songs mentioned are great. Very emotional.
Where did you sleep last night is like a good by, a last big effort. Kurt never saw himself as a singer or guitar player. He was a songwriter and he had a punk attitude or approach to pop music.
You know you're right is the posthumous ... I don't know ... revenge?
my favourite Nirvana song: Lithium. The most popular choice is clearly Smells Like Teen Spirit. In any case, Kurt´s voice will be dramatically different from this song´s performance.
Well, its not theirs but its certainly the best cover
I think she chose the wrong song to discover Nirvana.
Come as you are
Territorial Pissings is my jam
Anything off of Bleach is the best.
“A voice shouldn’t be perfect, it should be perfectly suited for the message it’s trying to deliver.”
Wow…..well, I think you nailed that one!
The best part of high end grunge is that they go out of the way to show you they have the talent to do what is expected musically, but they won’t give it to you.
Well said.
"I just don't feel like I'm ready to hear him stop singing"
Oh, honey, neither were we...
My first celebrity death I felt a closeness to. It was horrible.
I's say "Where did you sleep lat night" is the most vocally impressive on this album. OTher than the songs with the Meat Puppets but on those it's not only him singing.
Came here to say that. I was nearly yelling it at the screen. Lolo
"a voice shouldn't be perfect. A voice should be perfectly suited for the message that is trying to deliver".
How beautiful that was Elizabeth!
"Come as you are" is one of the best. It's unbelievably hard to sing any Nirvana songs, because if you sing them with perfect voice and in pitch - they become plain and boring and the magic is gone.
Watch one of Local H’s halloween concerts. Trust me, you won’t be disappointed.
Well said! 🙌🏻 @lazy1708
Territorial Pissings does that for me.
Bound for the floor is one of the greatest forgotten songs of the 90's
Local H are amazing 👏
@@somecallmetim4490so, that was a lie.
“Where Did You Sleep Last Night” is the real treasure from the Unplugged concert. You hear all of Kurt’s emotion and his full vocal capacity is on display. Hope you give it a shot!
My elderly father, a lifelong Leadbelly fan, was knocked out by this performance when I played it for him many years back.
*a real treasure...there are a lot on that album.
This song along with "where did you sleep last night", "lake of fire", off the unplugged are just a few of my all time fav's of Kurt's and this album.
So glad you have "reacted" to it.
Lake of Fire and Plateau are my favorites from the album. Because of this performance, I started listening to Meat Puppets. I can't believe this aired in 93'. I was 16, ugh time flies!
@@scottp.5055 100% agree. "Oh Me " is way up there to.
The whole album is pure gold.
what exactly was the connotion behind the quotation marks on "reaction"? if you dont mind me asking?
@@shayriley95
None. It's a reaction video. She "reacted". Simple.
@@shaneschneider6275 oh so you just typed like a news article in your first comment lmfao. Thanks. For. Clarifying. Bro.
You hit the nail on the head about how Kurt could evoke raw emotion. How come rare humans are taken from us so quickly.
They need singers in the after life as well as here my friend they just took him, it would of been nice to av been asked, but there you go mate.
From the same concert: "About a Girl" and "On a Plain". Also "Lake of Fire" and "Where Did You Sleep Last Night". The latter two are also covers but they're brilliant and have become legendary. The whole concert is required listening in my opinion. It should be part of everyone's cultural education.
For an altogether different experience with Nirvana watch the "Live and Loud" concert, Seattle 1993, also here on TH-cam. My highlights are probably "Rape Me", "Lithium" and "Come As You Are". Beware though, this is how they performed when NOT unplugged. It's mostly raw and noisy, there's little artifice or sophistication about it. Turn the volume up though.
None of Nirvana's and Cobain's stuff was ever easy to digest for people who were looking for pretty melodic music and pleasant singing. And that was absolutely intentional. Kurt would have had some choice words for you if you had tried to correct his singing. It's how he expressed himself, and that's part of why we loved him and why we keep coming back to his music.
"Or will it become addictive?" yes, yes it will. This whole Unplugged album is one of the most addictive albums I have ever listened to. Apart from few exceptions, I am not a huge Nirvana fan, but this album sits at my number one spot as the album of all time, and by a pretty clear margin at that
It really felt like a super rich person deciding she found the poor life quaint... kinda felt insulting.
same
@@rustyferrell2118 What?
@@rustyferrell2118 I'm assuming you mean her reaction, and the whole video leads to it. She has very classic training and it trains your hear towards disliking a lot of sounds and voices that Kurt has. When I first started to listen to Jazz I HATED the sounds it felt so wrong, and now I play it, sing it and love it. Anything grunge is similar in a way, because it's not aiming for pretty and perfect and flowy. It's one of my favorite genre, but when I was getting classical training and not listening to much else other than radio pop and musicals it was MUCH different
This album is my favourite of all time. Gives me goosebumps everytime
Kurt said in a interview he realized that most of their songs wouldn't work very well acoustically so he picked a bunch of songs he liked that were out of his range because he wanted to struggle and be flat. I think the interview might have been in the 20 year anniversary of Nirvana Unplugged documentary.
Interesting. I hadn’t heard that. I’ll have to go find the doc. Thanks!
@@peggynunez391 There was a time when I read or watched every interview with Nirvana that I could. I remember him saying he specifically picked the three Meat Puppets songs because he liked the struggle of having to sing out of his range. Unfortunately I haven't been able to find a video of him saying it yet. The documentary/ special I was thinking of was called "Bare Witness: Nirvana Unplugged" which turns out aired in 1999 so I was way off on the year. It's still a decent watch and only about 15 minutes without commercials. th-cam.com/video/1a5TtD-vSSk/w-d-xo.html
Would love to see you do Bowie through out his career. To hear how much his voice evolved and actually got better with age...
me too, or /any/ Bowie !
Bowie is amazing. He feels like the voice of every generation.
Agreeing with others that “Where Did You Sleep Last Night” from the same show would be a good song to analyze.
Also, because I’m not sure where to make general suggestions, I’d be so curious to hear you react to Coheed and Cambria. The lead singer Claudio Sanchez has one of the most distinctive voices/singing styles I’ve ever heard.
Coheed and Cambria would be great. Muse would also be great--especially some of the Origin of Symmetry-era stuff.
Second both of these!!!
Delirium Trigger or Favor House Atlantic!
Absolutely Claudio!! That man is one of a kind
C&C, would love to see that!
The irony of this is that Kurt probably wouldn't give a shit what a vocal coach thought of his voice. But, SO glad to see him make the channel!! Pennyroyal Tea is one the greatest songs every written in my opinion - certainly within the Nirvana catalogue. It treats abdominal cramps which I have heard were what pushed Kurt over the edge (assuming Courtney wasn't it). Lots of crazy foreshadowing in his songs at times.
how to like this comment twice???
Kurt almost certainly had cannabinoid hyper-emesis, without the emesis, which is well known now, but not then, and can be tricky to diagnose.
I have helped numerous patients with this.
weird, cause I thought he was very subconscious of his voice and thought it wasn't good himself. I thought that was part of what gave him depression.
Pennyroyal tea was also used for under-the-radar abortions. If you listen closely to the lyrics, I think that's the more likely thing he was thinking of.
@@MrScrofulous Can we elaborate a bit about what all that means, without all the doctor talk?
Kurt even said before starting this song ''I'm probably gonna mess up on the guitar'' or something like that, and he did on that final part. This is raw and very real. Glad they didn't correct it for the final release!
Yeah, I actually kind of like that error. Of course, I hear it. But it kind of belongs to the performance very well.
Can’t imagine the song without that part. It was a beautiful mistake.
I wasn't a Nirvana fan, but my younger brother was. When this album came out, my brother got it, and I had to get it myself. I love this song. The emotion he put into this album just screams out. Another of my favorites of this album is Where did you sleep last night. A soul lost way too soon.
“This sounds strangely raw and real”-as does EVERY Nirvana track.
the whole Nirvana unplugged is really good. could you react to ''Lake of Fire'' or ''Where did you sleep last night'' or ''Plateau''? thank you!
Honestly Plateau is so underrated. Or maybe I’m weird. I love that song!
Where Did You Sleep Last Night is awesome. One of my favorites from the set.
I immediately figured 'where did you sleep last night' but 'lake of fire' is a great one too.
@@rappel322 nope brothers meat songs are fantastic and so are the Nirvana covers
13:00 That feedback is iconic for those of us that grew up with it.
The song isn't complete without it.
Yes, totally
Agreed. It's part of the song now
Amen to the
Whether by total accident or on purpose, you always listen for that "error" because it makes the song real.
I even expect it when I hear the Bowie version now
I love your comment about how he seems to put so little effort into his voice and yet he makes the perfect sounds for what he is trying to convey. He was so full of emotions they just oozed out of him.
"I don't feel like I'm ready to hear him stop signing." Spoken like a true fan, and sums up how we all felt the day we learned of his death.
You were hearing actual pain and depression he was experiencing. He was going through withdrawals during this performance. Where did you sleep last night is by far the most raw and powerful song/representation of Kurt’s voice from the Unplugged session. It’s the raw emotional power, imperfection, and no bull simplicity that raises Kurt and Nirvana to a higher level. Despite such a terrible choice in song for a first impression evaluation, you still seemed to nail the larger scope of what made them so incredible. You also have an amazing way with words. Such a lovely way of saying Krist Novoselic is a mouth breather 😂
What’s so terrible about the song choice this is still one of my favourite songs over 30 years on
@@abigailslade3824 Nothing is terrible about the song itself at all. I love that song. It’s just not a great choice out of all the songs from their catalog or live performances to represent Nirvana or Kurt to get a good sense of their sound as a whole, especially as a first impression. If she’s trying to get a grasp of Nirvana’s flavor of grunge, I would have probably chosen Breed (Live at the Paramont/1991) or Smells Like Teen Spirit from the same concert, or from Reading 1992. Neither are necessarily my favorite song, but for an initial intro to the band, and Kurt’s voice, I feel like those are better suited as a more accurate representation. One would really need to listen to multiple performances of the same song to grasp their intention with their music. It wasn’t about the musical ability, it was more about expressing pure unfiltered chaotic angst and emotion. The less attention to technicalities and perfect sound, the better. Kurt didn’t like the Nevermind album because it was too polished and pop sounding compared to what he was trying to convey as an artist. I love Chris Cornell, Eddie Vedder, Layne Staley, and the rest of the Grunge all-stars, but I feel like they were playing a completely different sport in the same arena compared to Nirvana, and it’s hard to get a sense of that out of just one or two songs, and even harder to pick which song should convey that to someone new to them. Anyway, thanks for coming to my TedTalk.
@@finding7 ah I see where you are coming from yes Breed would have been a perfect start or about a girl from Bleach which is a rawer version than on unplugged.
Guys, this song was written by Dawid Bowie -_-
@@gabbut7110 And? Leadbelly wrote Where Did You Sleep Last Night. Doesn’t mean it’s not the best representation of his vocal capabilities on the Unplugged album. Who wrote a song has nothing to do with how they chose to perform it, nor does it have any bearing on Kurt’s vocal capabilities. If she was trying to dissect his lyrical writing style then, yeah, who wrote it would matter. But she isn’t. And it doesn’t. And just for random knowledge sake, lyrics were the last thing on Kurt’s mind anyway, sometimes up until the day of recording, until In Utero where he was more intentional with his lyrics to try and navigate all the overanalyzing critics. But none of that matters in a voice analysis. But 10 points for Bowie anyway, because Bowie is legend.
From this live performance i highly recommend the song "Where did you sleep last night?". He is showing so much emotion and such high tones for his beautifully distorted voice it is just unimaginable!
Kurt has the most honest voice I have ever heard
The "Malaise" in Kurt Kobain voice is exactly the "malaise" an entire generation was feeling. This is exactly what grunge movement was about :) Great video - Thx
I was a teen at the time. I never understood this genre or this whole “malaise” depression is cool thing. Why was the generation supposedly feeling that way? It seemed like a ridiculous fad at the time.
@@thebluecollarbibleguy5114 definitely wasn't a fad. Although every company tried to capitalize on it. If you didn't connect to it then you must have been outside of that very large cultural circle. It was just disaffected youth. Tired of being told who to be and where they should fit in. Angry over the Middle East, conservativism, manufactured image and music. We were coming of age into a world that was screwed up by the generation before us. The honesty and rawness of the music gave us room to breath and let us know our feelings were not just ours. Incredibly hard to describe to someone that wasn't a part of it. But it definitely wasn't a fad or fake. It was never cool to be depressed. Kids just realized that it was ok to have those feelings and express them.
@@jeremyhollyer977 I had a few friends that were into it. They have all passed away long from various drugs, and other causes. But I also knew my fair share of people that did get into it because it was seen as a counter culture rebellion thing to look grunge and act depressed. That just wasn’t me. I’m pretty much emotionless and have always been that way since birth 🤣. I actually love Twenty One Pilots because they help me try to understand depressed people. For me, feelings have always been a choice. I have to choose to be angry or happy or whatever. My only authentic feeling is “annoyed” and it is usually over other people letting feelings direct them.
By the way, I’m not judging people. I am aware I am the odd ball. But it sure is helpful very often to look at things objectively and not feelings based. In other areas of life it is a stumbling block that I have to work on otherwise I will tell people to stop feeling certain ways and to suck it up and move on.
@@thebluecollarbibleguy5114 We grew up and find out, that we were fucked.
@@sjoormen1 I'm a gen x and I truly think no generation will ever be as disillusioned as zoomers. They will miss the last possible train from the post war miracle, grew up in constant crisis, under techno-surveillance, with almost every ecosystem in freefall around the world. I don't know why today's chart topping music is strangely devoid of anger or anguish. Where are the protest songs? I think the music and marketing industries have fully integrated consumerism into the content. Gucci this, rolex that - a boring dystopia.
"Something In The Way" is my favorite track off that album. Hauntingly beautiful. It feels like waking up by a lake, still drunk from the night before, morning fog obscuring your view.
its a good one for sure..
Yep a very apt discription
I took a day trip to Seattle one day in 1994. Driving home, KNDD was playing all Nirvana songs which was odd. The DJ broke in at some point and said there had been a death at the Cobain home but the identity was not yet public. Finally they played Something in the Way and I knew it was him. I’ll never forget that moment in my life.
@@castorpollux3752 yep its pretty sad when u find out the flesh system and dont wanna live in it anymore..
I remember Heart-Shaped box being played to death on MTV, that was my childhood.
I still remember when Nirvana hit the airwaves, and they were exactly what I needed. Down to earth and raw emotion, Kurt's voice embodied his songs perfectly.
This was following on from the glam rock hair bands that by this stage were all show and no substance, this band really changed the meta of the time
@@R0WDY Exactly, the hair bands were so out of touch. I can remember being so excited the first time I heard Nirvana
That entire unplugged album is just a really great listen, even the little band interactions between songs
Kurt's voice is definitely an acquired taste, but I was instantly drawn to "Smells Like Teen Spirit" when I first heard it on the radio in 1991. It was so unique & different! I also love "Lithium".
I can understand your initial surprise, and even disappointment. When your grunge frames of reference are Layne Staley and Chris Cornell, probably the two best rock vocalists in the last 30 years, Kurt was never going to deliver that level of vocal, but the rawness, pain, and anguish that he delivers in every song has it's own legendary quality. I enjoyed seeing your appreciation of him grow throughout the performance.
If you are doing Grunge or Punk to become a rockstar, then you are doing it wrong!
@@zenithquasar9623 Becoming rockstars, while a wonderful thing for us, ended up being their undoing. A tragic loss for all.
*Eddie Vedder and Chris Cornell
This is one of my all time favorite Nirvana performances, I'm so happy you're doing this!
I'm coming back to this after Elizabeth did "All Apologies" from Unplugged. To me both Punk and Grunge were music for the counterculture, but if Punk was the anger stage of grief, Grunge is the depression stage. And I think in the 90s that resonated with people from all walks of life.
When you said "It's growing on me", that's the key to the whole thing.
Kurt's true talent was connecting with his audience. There was nothing special about his singing, guitar playing, or writing.
People have been picking all that apart for decades.
Dude just had a magic way of reaching people through music.
Oh, I disagree about his writing. He was absolutely masterful at writing hooks.
"There's a longing in it and like a sadness in it, it feels like he's trying to be really real with emotions and trying to communicate this disillusionment "
You know, after years and years of studying his life and recounting anecdotes of his life and music, most experts and friends eventually arrived to that conclusion. That he longed for his united family before his parents divorced and then he was disillusioned with his married life, fame, etc.
But you picked it up in two seconds after hearing one of his songs for the first time.
It takes a superb ear and amazing understanding of the human soul not only to identify notes, but the feeling behind the artist's interpretation.
Elizabeth, You're truly one of a kind
I thought the same. She seemed to totally 'get it' within a few minutes. I'm always very impressed with her analysis.
This is why I've been binging her. Her perception is almost spooky sometimes.
Her reaction to Mr. Crowley is superb
One good thing to remember about the purpose of the "grunge" movement was that it wasn't as much about a style of music but rather it was taking the piss out of the exhausting and formulaic heavy pop metal of the 80's. The corporate record companies were killing the music industry bands like sonic youth, husker du, the pixies, smashing pumpkins, butt hole surfers, violent femmes, Nirvana and many others were trying to be something else, a different choice or rather alternative rock. Grunge isn't in tune on purpose because its much more in tune with what mattered
sort of like the 60s
Well said
His voice was perfect for the message he was delivering and that was doing a bit of justice to a magnificent Bowie tune.
The better a singer's voice, the harder it is to believe what they’re saying.
David Byrne
Yeah, but LYeah, but Lara Fabian's Malade is a huge exception, and there are plenty of examples when a great voice can tell the story very well, but hey, great aphorism :)
real shit...
Beautifully said
So what does that say about those with brilliant voices, who built their voices for decades, with blood sweat and tears? All the hard work put into perfecting their craft? I think this sentiment of Byrne's plays with semantics to rationalize a weak singers struggles and make them great because they're popular.
I can't imagine someone trying to pull off Otis Redding, Al Green, Marvin Gaye, Aretha Franklin, Linda Ronstadt, etc with the same success they found in their approach to singing. It was their command of tone, timber, range and dynamics they mastered that set them apart. That said, I understand what Byrne is saying and always loved the Dave and Heads. I find the singer of Cake appealing as well and plenty of other front men/wimen.
In truth, it's all BS! It's opinion: a subjective take. The love of hearing a voice is personal taste and the performers execution.
I've played guitar for nearly 40 yrs, done some singing and played a few other instruments as well. I was a session guy mostly. All I can say is thar people, both young and old either have it or not. However, what I've noticed over the yrs is that masterful technicians that blow people back always works. A bland or flat voice doesn't always cut it.
Proof of my opinion is found in this trained vocalists response, who is listening to Kurt and not really feeling it, but claims that his voice is growing on her because she finds the positive in anyone she covers. It's smart on her behalf because she's trying to grow a channel.
Although I loved this unplugged show, this isn't who Kurt was. She should have listened to "You know You're Right" or something from Bleach to showcase what made him popular. Personally, I liked most of the big grunge bands, such as SG, Pearl Jam and Chains especially. LOVED LAYNE! But was never a big Kurt fan. Conversely, a few of Nirvana's songs work for me.
@@matthewhorizon6050
Look at Michael Bolton, arguably a great singer but hearing him sing When a Man Loves a Woman with the same intensity as he does a beer jingle diminishes his believeability.
He purposely asked for the white lily's on the stage, "like a funeral.". This gig is incredible it still gets me even now.
Agree with many people about "Where did you sleep last night", although from a vocal coach point of view that must be horrifying as Kurt really tears into his vocal chords on that. Even more a testament of his depression than this song.
I know Kurt didn't write this particular song, but I get a sense that he was the man who sold the world that he's singing about, haunting.
indeed , ive always said kurt cobain is the man who sold the world
I had an argument with a friend's mom when I was a teenager about Kurt's voice. She challenged me to why I liked it. I responded that It's not a GOOD voice, but it's an honest voice. So much music I was hearing at the time was overproduced pop vocals, and glam (not that there is anything wrong with that, it was just ubiquitous). I kind of think in some ways it's similar to the Bob Dylan-esque sound. I think Kurt's voice is imperfect in a way that invites you into his vulnerability.
LOL, I had the same argument with my friend's mom at the time. She was raised in the '50s and sang opera throughout her younger years (not professionally, just in school and whatnot) and absolutely HATED Kurt's voice and Nirvana's music. Not only did she hate his voice and not understand the idea that the raw emotion and honesty was what made it great, she kept complaining that they (and other modern-at-the-time bands) didn't dress up in synchronized outfits like old Motown and doo-wop groups. She kept saying that the whole point of musicians was to dress up and "put on a show" and that no one wanted to hear people be sad. I tried to explain why it appealed to me, a teenager at the time, and so many other people for most of an afternoon but finally gave up.
Very well said.
I feel this whole album . What a unique and original sound he has.
That's one of the reason why Nirvana became legends, the sound of the "popular" music was fake. That and the topics of their lyrics.
You heard that pain. That pure scream
Kurt Cobain was one of those singers that was just more, he didn't have the greatest voice or was even the most polished. But there was a quality to his voice that hit deeply, and stayed with you. A few recommendations; All Apologies (Unplugged or Album version), Lithium, Heart-Shaped Box and if you do no other song you must listen to Smells Like Teen Spirit.
Huge upvote for Heart-Shaped Box, omg that song.
Like a lot of people have already said, you picked the wrong song from this show. Where did you sleep last night will leave you with chills. Especially if you listen to the emotion in his voice knowing it was his last performance.
It *wasn't* their last performance, though. Nirvana toured the US and Europe after the Unplugged show. The Unplugged show aired on November 8th, 1993. Their actual final show was in Munich, Germany, March 1, 1994.
Not sure it's been mentioned here in the comment section, but I'm glad you noticed and made the remark about his jaw release. David Ghrol in his book mentions the fact that he grinds his teeth to the beat of the melody and that the only other person he knew for doing that was Kurt and you can totally see it through this entire unplugged concert. Miss you Kurt.
I loved watching you, as a pro, hear the jagged soul coming from his mouth, first put off and then finding the art within that captured us all. Sometimes perfection breeds boredom and genius creates beyond perfection through error.
You should really hear his cover of Leadbelly’s “Where Did You Sleep Last Night “ from this same show!Such a treat for anyone who hasn’t listened to a lot of Nirvana. Those who have as well.
I so much agree
Yes to this! It isn't technically anything to brag about, but holy sh*t it is loaded with other things that make it legendary performance.
My hair raises up even when I only think of the performance....
"Really, I just don't feel like I'm ready to hear him stop singing."
You and all of us, especially in 1994.
LOL not ALL of us. Nirvana's music has grown on me over the years, but in 1994 I *HATED* that band and the whole grunge thing. And I was DEFINTELY not alone.
@@philpennington826 Kurt died in 1994 ya Putz, we never got to hear him again.
@@grandwaha ...Apparently you're unaware that music can be RECORDED and played back at a later date? I meant the music he made BEFORE he died, ya Putz.
Probably the best of the Unplugged series.
I would recommend listening to “Come as you are” to really understand the full range of His voice. Incredible song