In 1994, Dave Grohl filled in on drums for Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers on SNL. After the show, Tom Petty said he'd never been in front of a drummer who hit as hard as Dave did! He was thrilled by the way he played.
For anyone who came of age in the 1990s, that opening riff is as iconic as anything recorded in rock history. I've been enjoying these musical trips down the memory rabbit hole and your reactions
Dave Grohl only spent three and a half years drumming for Nirvana - but he says it felt like a lifetime. The band's iconic album “Nevermind” came out 30 years ago last month. And Grohl started the Foo Fighters after Kurt Cobain's heartbreaking suicide in 1994.
I love watchin your reactions. Especially this one. You’re hearing it the perfect most real way that I would hope for. You feelin all the magic. Like, I felt like I was hearing it for the first time again through watching you. Beautiful. Thank you
The first half of the 90s was such a great time in music growing up - Nirvana, Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Pearl Jam, Alanis Morissette, Soundgarden, Bush, Hole, Metallica, Green Day, Rage Against the Machine, R.E.M., Smashing Pumpkins, Faith No More, Live, Massive Attack, Portishead.
PORTISHEAD is one of my favorite bands ever. The album Dummy is on regular rotation in my house & car. Just 🤯💨.... SO FUCKING GOOD. Never gets old, fr... 🌬🕊😏🤘
This video was played on MTV after school. I was about 14... and this BLEW all the 80s hairbands (Motley Crue, Guns n Roses, Poison, etc.) out of the running. It changed the whole music scene to grunge. I was so different from what we were hearing for a decade. I sat on my knees with my mouth hanging open staring at this video... and then started moshing around. A great time in music history!
Yes we were all tired of the skin tight leggings and big hair of the metal bands. We wanted something a bit earthier and more raw. Something not worried with how it was dressed and presented to the world. Totally original and has stood the test of time. Nirvana changed everything in the early 90s.
I remember waking up from a nap when I was 8 on Halloween and this song was playing on MTV. It stuck with me. (Not sure why I was napping in the middle of the day when I was 8 😂)
I was a freshman in college, this song came on, the whole room stopped, we stared at each other like omg!!! This song changed everything. How many moments like that do you get in life? I loved watching someone else have that moment. You are awesome Polo!❤
Slightly a bit a revisionist history. GN’R was still going strong as evident by their tour money and dropping two records the same day that both sold more than 10million apiece in the US alone
Kurt was a brilliant, humorous man but not in the typical humor. It's the kind of humor very high IQ people put out. He was such a great lyricist for this reason.
The reason this song is so great is because it was kinda of a call to arms for all the teens in the 90 that felt dislocated and had no voice in mainstream media. It is more like an anthem than anything else really
You really are a 90’s kid at heart. Love it. This wasn’t just a single, it was literally the end of Pop Radio. One day was Wilson Phillips and Roxette - the next day was this song, and everything else fell. It was the first time it felt like “our” music was on top. And it was pretty much exactly like your reaction. WTF…? Play it again. And again. And again. I love almost every Nirvana song. But if I have to pick one, and knowing what you dig: “All Apologies” from IN UTERO, their second, and last, album. It has everything - the rawness, the melody, the heaviness, the pain
You can't understand how monolithic this song/album was for us 90's kids... before this it was all hairmetal 80's vibe and all of a sudden we had our own voice ! It was literally an explosion 💥
I remember being 12 and hearing this on MTV while playing at a friend's house and i knew it was different and nothing was going to be the same. Looking back it marked a shift from childhood to teenage years, the music was a sound track to my youth.
I remember the first time I saw this video on MTV. It hit me different than anything I’d ever seen. The next day at school I asked one of my friends if they had heard of Nirvana and he said no. No joke the following words came out of my mouth, “they are going to be huge”. I was in junior high.
Gen-X'er here. Another reason that Nirvana took over the airwaves was because of the sound of other songs at the time. The #1 song just before Smells Like Teen Spirit was by Bryan Adams and was a love song. Smells Like Teen Spirit heralded the exact moment that the Boomers lost the culture war to the new (much angrier) generation. Oh... and Come As You Are is a wonderful Nirvana song as well.
Excellent! Excellent! Brother GenXer here. I don’t know, man. It’s kinda hard-looking back-thinking we were that much angrier. I mean, I’m not doubting you. My parents had Kent State, fall of Saigon, etc. We were what? A bunch of latchkey kids. Mom and dad threw off the tie dye hippy sh*t and went to work at Chase-Manhattan Bank. We wandered around with our friends… didn’t wear helmets when we rode bikes… kinda a law unto ourselves. But I’m not sure “angry” is the word. I’d go “disappointed” and “restless” before “angry.” We had no direction-and we were self-destructive. At least me and my friends:) Good post, though. Thoughtful. Reflects the times.
@@iambecomepaul From my perspective, every generation has had their battles. The Boomers had the draft, the glass ceiling, and civil rights. Gen-X brought about Earth Day and fought for LGBTQ. Millennials and Gen-Z are still writing their truth, but already they have fought for Transgender normalization. I base the "angrier" assessment mainly on our collective cultural representation. John Denver and the Rolling Stones were legendary... but we had Public Enemy and Rage Against The Machine. They had the Hippies, true, but we had the Goths. They grew up thinking that the world was getting better though their effort, we grew up thinking that in the year 2000 every thing dies. Good conversation, friend. Rare online.
Don't knock Bryan Adams either. I love both, LOL. Literally was my years of music discovery (roughly everyone discovers it at 14-ish) but I had older siblings so I have their love of hard rap and r&b plus headbanger rock and oddly some country music. Plus the pop music my parents favored. I actually loved opera and classical music as a little girl and I just loved music. I knew I couldn't play instruments for sht but I loved music. Still do. My siblings btch about music today sounds horrible but I find some good stuff. I think they just hear only radio play.
"I'm worst at what I do best, and for this gift I feel blessed". I have always felt that line. I think every artist does to some degree, regardless of medium.
In Australia there is a radio station (Triple J) and every ten years or so they countdown the Hottest 100 songs of all time. This song has never failed to be #1 in every countdown. Iconic song
The amazing thing about Nirvana is we were being fed hair bands for so long and then suddenly this song came out and changed everything. It was like discovering dynamite. My favorite songs are Lithium and Heart Shaped Box.
It's a little bit difficult to state how iconic this album was when it came out it basically ended the glam rock and hair metal scene basically almost Altogether overnight this album is great. Bleach. In utero is amazing.
Hair metal had been dead for sometime grunge is just the next attempt at a product from the recording industry.... The next phase of pop music essentially. This genre is All but dead now.
@@MyBrothersKeeper101 Shows how little you know about grunge. Mudhoney, Tad, Skin Yard, Screaming Trees, Soundgarden, etc. All pop music created by the music industry despite all these bands forming long before the genre was a blip in the eye of the industry? How ignorant do you have to be to come up with something that ridiculous?
The way you describe the shift from sadness, suffering, agony into abject rage... 40 seconds into hearing this your first time, without even knowing the lyrics... you get it. You really received this song. This song tells the story of his lived experience and you got it. Thank you. Can't wait to watch more these with you.
This song is an icon. It encapsulates the confusion and angst of developing into a young adult. This is why it has transcended the decades since it’s release. Heart shaped box next.
Dave Grohl in his interview with Pharrell Williams tells him that the drums in this song are taken from the Gap Band which is why you may have instantly recognized it within the first few beats 🤘🏼but also this is one of the most iconic songs of all time, Breed is one of my favorite songs by Nirvana, pure poetry 🌳🏠
I was 13 when this song came out, and I felt completely blown away. It was like the music I'd always wanted to listen to suddenly "existed". I felt like until that moment, I'd been waiting to hear Nirvana my whole life, but the band hadn't been created yet - and suddenly MTV put them in front of me. I don't think any of my friends were captivated the way I was, but being a fan became part of my identity - at a time when I didn't know how to identify myself. To say the least, they were my favorite band for years to come. When Kurt took his life, I wore a black armband to school to signify the loss. I was picked on for it because I "wasn't even related to him". I guess they didn't understand what affect Nirvana had on music. They certainly didn't care about the effect the music had on me. I still hold a grudge over being picked on.
The Queen’s of the Stoneage “No One Knows “ that you reacted to because it was a song you really liked. Same drummer 😊 Dave Grohl now lead singer and guitarist of his band The Foo Fighters ❤
Thursday Jan 2 1992-Salem, Oregon. I was blessed with the rare experience of seeing Pearl Jam and Nirvana open for Red Hot Chili Peppers, promoting records Ten, Nevermind and Mother's Milk. Still have the shirt, ticket stub and poster.
The drummer on this album and the unplugged concert is Dave Grohl. He's a phenom, also has a band called Foo Fighters that is pretty essential if you love Nirvana.
Ngl. I hated the food fighters. I'm 38. They, to me, were WAAAY to pop/alternative and not grunge. Grohl should've stayed on the drums. Not saying anything about him as a person, I just couldn't stand the transition from rock/grunge. I also respect your opinion as art is subjective and all art isn't for everyone. ✌️
I’m pretty sure I saw him play drums in my community center pool in VA, some punk band whose name I forget. Also Ian McKaye in an earlier band. I still can’t believe the same carpet where I had Monday Boy Scout meetings, these legends were tearing up on fridays.
"I feel stupid and contagious" is a line that has so many possible interpretations, but hits me harder now in the COVID Era. Nirvana were prophets. Those layers of yearning, misery, RAGE, and insight still ring their changes now, decades on.
Also I just watched your David Bowie reaction and Nirvana did an amazing job covering Bowie's "The Man Who Sold The World" , when they did MTV's Unplugged. That whole concert is wonderful. I listen to it very regularly
Be advised, Nirvana live is a radically different experience, especially with Smells Like Teen Spirit because Kurt hated playing that song due to its overwhelming popularity. He hated that song being the only Nirvana song to many people. The same type of people who used to bully him would show up to Nirvana shows exclusively to hear that one song
I’m Gen X, this came out during my freshman year in college. It’s was like this huge shift from hair bands. Finally, there was someone as messed up and filled with so much anger like we were. We had the worst parents across the board and were mostly neglected. My favorite non-single is “All Apologies” live on MTV Unplugged. It was one of their last performances and always hits me in the feels
Hey great story and I’m sure you meant no harm, but claiming to have the ‘worst parents across the board’ is bold considering how your parents likely had worse parents than you guys. Not to mention the huge amount of abused & neglected children that still suffer today.
This song slapped when I first heard it in 1991 and it still slaps. Other non-single favourites are Lounge Act, Stay Away, Milk It, Verse Chorus Verse, Tourette's, Been A Son
It "sounds odly familiar" because it's ICONIC!! As a child the 60s & 70s music, my husband, and even our kids were, were so relieved and in love when Nirvana and the whole grunge & alternative era came along.
Nirvana put Seattle grunge scene on the map. Pearl Jam, Sound Garden and Nirvana were on top of the world for awhile in the 90's, and then grunge fell off the map as rock continued to evolve.
This is seriously one of the top 5 songs of the 90s. It changed the musical landscape, it's catchy as hell, and it spans genres (now, back then it was firmly "grunge").
This is the song where everyone remembers what they were doing and where they were the first time they heard it. It changed music. It ended the hair bands and gave a breath of fresh air to the music scene. There had been nothing like it before.
I love how most people say they've heard this somewhere before even if they swear they haven't it because it just proves that even people who don't listen to a genre can know good music when it comes on, it is so influential everybody knows it deep down 😂
This song, this one moment in music, changed more about popular music than possibly any other song you'll ever react to. Heartbreak Hotel by Elvis and I Wanna Hold Your Hand by The Beatles might be the only ones bigger.
I was lucky enough to grow up near Seattle and turned 21 in 1990. I saw Nirvana live several times, not to mention all the other amazing grunge bands coming out of and thru Seattle.
Man you just had to have been alive and a music person at the time when this song came out. It singlehandedly took all the pop songs and 80s ballads and flushed them down the bowl. It was crazy everything before this song was released was was forgotten and the entire Rock world was turned upside-down. I've never seen anything like like it.
My senior year of high school, 91-92. This song came out, EVERYONE heard it. Even the kids in learning disability classes were singing this. Teachers, too. EVERYONE knew this song. EVERYONE
Not an album cut, but the song that gives me chills is their cover of Leadbelly's "Where did you sleep last night" on MTV Unplugged. That session also has a cover of Bowie's "Man who sold the world" that is great, but "Where did you sleep", there's a part at the end that just brings goosebumps every time.
It's hard to over state the impact this album had on Grunge music, and the 90's in general. They weren't the first Grunge band. You can argue that they weren't the best. But they were the ones that drug the style kicking and screaming into the light, and cemented the 90's Seattle music scene as part of the cultural zeitgeist. Favorite song? That's hard. It's a toss up between "You know, you're right" (last song recorded before Kurt's death and posthumously released a decade later) or "I Hate Myself and Want to Die" (from the Beavis and Butthead Experience album)
Nirvana’s drummer was Dave Grohl. One of the best drummers of that era. He went on to front the Foo Fighters. Played all the instruments on their first album, essentially. He also played drums for Queens of the Stone Age for a while; check out Nobody Knows.
1 album songs for the deaf and probably the tour its a shame coz that album is the best album qotsa have put out. Amazingly enough its daves drumming which makes it the best album. In my humble opinion
At this point, who hasn't Dave drummed for? If you like his drumming thought, Song for the Dead by QOTS is gold and their live performances of it really show what a BEAST he is on the drums.
Actually the Foo fighters was just Dave Grohl in the beginning 😅 He just named his one-man-orchestra something that would make the audience believe it wasn't just one lonely dude doing it all by himself! 🤣 Then he eventually took in other band members as well. But it wasn't just him playing everything - he was literally the whole band!
I came home from class in college. This popped up on MTV. I knew this was a hit. Just like Pearl Jams Evenflow. Nirvana had 3 great albums. The drummer is Dave Grohl, lead singer of Foo Fighters. Probably the world's best human.
This is a moment-in-time song. I was 18, first year in college. All these new bands and sounds were hitting. I heard Gish by Smashing Pumpkins the first week I was there. Then this song debuted on MTV. I was alone in my dorm room and I freaked and went to every room I knew and asked who else heard it. Three of us geeked out watching Mtv to hear it again until the album was available. It changed almost everything I listened to.
"Sadness to rage..." You described Kurt's voice perfectly. When this song his it was like being out in the wilderness and seeing a wild animal you'd never seen before. It was like someone singing into your heart. Scary and mesmerizing.
I'd love to see your reaction to some other grunge hits like "Black Hole Sun" and "Spoonman" by Soundgarden, "Jeremy" by Pearl Jam, "Would" and "I Stay Away" by Alice in Chains. It's fascinating, how the entire groundbreaking subgenre of rock/metal music was condensed in just couple of bands and albums.
I remember when the song came out because I'm a teenager of the 90s. Just like everybody else has already said it changed everything as far as music goes. Post Malone and Travis Barker, who was the drummer for Blink 182, did an fundraiser at Malone's house for covid-19 during quarantine where they played like 15 Nirvana songs to honor the band and it was actually fire. As I previously stated, I was a teenager during the 90s and Nirvana was a huge influence on me. I thought I was going to hate what they did but it was amazing. I've re-watched that set numerous times. It is probably too long for a reaction because it's 15 songs but it is definitely worth watching sometime. Favorite song: stay away or breed
It's hard to pick a "favorite" Nirvana song, but one of them for me is Breed. Kurt was one of the few celebrity deaths that really affected me. I will always wonder what could have been.
The first time I saw this video on MTV I was sitting alone in my living room and I lost my bleeping mind - I couldn't control myself I had to jump up out of the chair and just start banging my head, it was the only moshpit I've ever been in and I was in it all by myself. It's by far one of my most treasured musical memories. RIP KURT - we lost a genius that had so much more to create
Did you know that the drummer of Nirvana was Dave Grohl, the frontman and singer of the Foo Fighters?? Multi-instrumentalist and a great singer in his own right! Huge talent and a heart of gold - check him out as well as the Foo Fighters ;-) :-) 'The Pretender' smashes everything!!!!
I was 18 when this song came out, not only did it change the musical landscape, it changed what kids started wearing and the vibe in movies. Very few artists have had that kind of impact on the mainstream. Downside to that is you become your own parody, which Cobain saw coming.
The commercial hits are really good to be fair, but the deep cuts are where the real songs are. Check out Bleach or Incesticide or Muddy Banks of the Wishkah, album-wise.
I still remember where I was, what I was doing, what I was wearing the very first time I ever heard this song in 1992. I knew the first 30 seconds that I had never heard anything quite like it. Immediately loved the song and still love it to this day even though I've heard it thousands of times. Historic song.
I remember hearing this for the first time in 6th grade. I couldn't believe my ears... I grew up in a house were classical music played. So this, THIS was so raw, angry and AWESOME! First band to lead me on my own ''musical journey''. That eventually lead to other Grunge bands, NIN, Tool, Korn, Slipknot and many more. 😝🤟🤟🤟🔥🔥🔥
This was the only song that first time I heard it asked the person next to me "What is that "" I gotta hear more"....so powerful.. ended up being a Big Nirvana fan for many years, still listen occasionally... Come as You are was the first song I learned on guitar.
I saw them live in October 1991 at St. Andrew's Hall in Detroit. We hadn't heard the term "Grunge" yet! The first thing I noticed when entering the venue was the really understated stage. You have to remember we were still experiencing the 80's music, most of which I despised! When they took the stage, they looked like nothing we'd ever seen before. No bright spandex. No big, over-processed hairdos. No makeup. For us Gen X'ers grunge became a way of life and a look and we were all the way in!
I was not a Nirvana fan at all nor the grunge genre. Im not a fan of 90's music really. However, this song...I love it and even though I am a huge music fan who loves so many songs I would put this song in the Top 10 best songs of all time. Its that epic. Its the structure, the vocals, the mood...they captured some kind of magic here
I first heard this song, while living in Mississippi, on a Chicago AM station I could only get around midnight. The opening riff made me realize that something had shifted. The song perfectly captured how I felt, one moment melancholy, the other moment defiant rage. I came to realize that just about my whole generation felt the same. Song perfectly captures Gen X.
@@Januaryschild I don't remember the call letters, just remember it was an AM station I could only get after midnight. It was 1991 and it was the first place I heard Nine Inch Nails Head A Hole too. I just remember I couldn't find either album in Jackson, so I told a friend that was going to Dallas to look for the Nirvana cassette and also NINS Pretty Hate Machine. Told him he should get 2 of Nirvana's cassette Nevermind, cause I knew it would blow him away. And...I was right.
This song is when punk rock morphed and created one of the biggest songs on the Planet. The lead singer died tragically but the drummer is a freaking hero who tours has fun and funds school music programs. The drummer has a song called “Everlong” you might like.
I remember a friend of mine giving me a cassette tape with this song on it a year or two before it came out. I sat in my car and played this song about 7 times in a row. I remember thinking “this changes everything”, and it did.
Absolutely awesome reaction! Grunge bands finally showed me who I was and it was an amazing time for us. I’m sure you’ve heard this song because it’s one of the biggest songs from the 90’s. Thank you for this trip down memory lane!
I was a 12 year old kid, and wondered what is nirvana... I'll never forget, that guitar riff, the drums... Immediately it stewed rebellion and I loved it.
Hear this song almost every day on a radio station in the company where I am currently working, and I never get tired of it. I don't know why?? It just is! 🤣
In 1994, Dave Grohl filled in on drums for Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers on SNL. After the show, Tom Petty said he'd never been in front of a drummer who hit as hard as Dave did! He was thrilled by the way he played.
For anyone who came of age in the 1990s, that opening riff is as iconic as anything recorded in rock history. I've been enjoying these musical trips down the memory rabbit hole and your reactions
This is arguably one of the 10 most influential songs in rock & roll history.
Hard to debate that one
I would say it was the most important song in rock history
@@diltberg9627 "The most important song in rock history?" Seriously? That's an awfully bold claim. On what basis?
At first for better then for waaay worse lol
Maybe you should actually research Rock history. This song is pop music😂😂😂😂
"Going from sadness to absolute rage" perfectly describes most of GenX
Yeah, that tracks.
Came here to confirm
Good call by Polo picking up Kurt's sadness. Loved Nirvana and Kurt. Incredible band that captured spirit of the times
And always will until the end. Whatever
This
i love how dave grohl beats the drums like they owed him money. a lot of money. on every track.
I knew he was a bad ass the first time I saw him because all I saw was sticks and hair😂
Grohl has said frequently that his main influence as a drummer was Tony Thompson of Chic.
@@davidgoodman4208 and that makes me love it even more. guy was a boss.
Totally agree. He’s so passionate and I love it
Dave Grohl only spent three and a half years drumming for Nirvana - but he says it felt like a lifetime. The band's iconic album “Nevermind” came out 30 years ago last month. And Grohl started the Foo Fighters after Kurt Cobain's heartbreaking suicide in 1994.
“Here we now. Entertain us.“ Rock classic lyric.
Mind-bending that it’s been 30 years….Truly.
30 years later and my heart still beats faster to this song.
Grunge bands are a great rabbit hole
I love watchin your reactions. Especially this one. You’re hearing it the perfect most real way that I would hope for. You feelin all the magic. Like, I felt like I was hearing it for the first time again through watching you. Beautiful. Thank you
The first half of the 90s was such a great time in music growing up - Nirvana, Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Pearl Jam, Alanis Morissette, Soundgarden, Bush, Hole, Metallica, Green Day, Rage Against the Machine, R.E.M., Smashing Pumpkins, Faith No More, Live, Massive Attack, Portishead.
Right??
Tool
Alice in Chains, Ween, Blonde Redhead, Butthole Surfers, Superchunk
PORTISHEAD is one of my favorite bands ever. The album Dummy is on regular rotation in my house & car. Just 🤯💨.... SO FUCKING GOOD. Never gets old, fr...
🌬🕊😏🤘
SUBLIME
Best power trio of our time. Each member, a force of nature, just killing their respective parts
55 years old here. If there's one song that defines my youth, its this one.
This video was played on MTV after school. I was about 14... and this BLEW all the 80s hairbands (Motley Crue, Guns n Roses, Poison, etc.) out of the running. It changed the whole music scene to grunge. I was so different from what we were hearing for a decade. I sat on my knees with my mouth hanging open staring at this video... and then started moshing around. A great time in music history!
Yes we were all tired of the skin tight leggings and big hair of the metal bands. We wanted something a bit earthier and more raw. Something not worried with how it was dressed and presented to the world. Totally original and has stood the test of time. Nirvana changed everything in the early 90s.
I remember waking up from a nap when I was 8 on Halloween and this song was playing on MTV. It stuck with me. (Not sure why I was napping in the middle of the day when I was 8 😂)
I was a freshman in college, this song came on, the whole room stopped, we stared at each other like omg!!! This song changed everything. How many moments like that do you get in life? I loved watching someone else have that moment. You are awesome Polo!❤
Slightly a bit a revisionist history. GN’R was still going strong as evident by their tour money and dropping two records the same day that both sold more than 10million apiece in the US alone
IM A 'CHILD' OF THE 60'S ... MUSIC IS/WAS MY LIFE .. IM 73 AND I LOVE NIRVANA ... THE ENERGY AND INTELLIGENCE!
Watch this my good man ua-cam.com/video/6a_yCxmOrjw/v-deo.html It was a real eye opener for me in understanding Kurts voice.
Agree, this music is timeless! 65 Myself!
Keep rocking, old man!!!! (No diss intended)
Kurt has often been called my generation's John Lennon.
Kurt was a brilliant, humorous man but not in the typical humor. It's the kind of humor very high IQ people put out. He was such a great lyricist for this reason.
Kurt’s gritty, raw and emotional voice…it has so, soo much texture. When he sings you believe what he’s saying 100%.
The reason this song is so great is because it was kinda of a call to arms for all the teens in the 90 that felt dislocated and had no voice in mainstream media. It is more like an anthem than anything else really
Sorry but no absolutely not, not even close
The call to arms was actually after the Milli Vanilli scandal.
I hope you don’t think that’s what “smells like teen spirit” means
Dave Grohl was the drummer for Nirvana and after Kurt's death, he founded Foo Fighters. Give it a shot dude, it's one of the great rock bands!
Extremely successful band however I only liked the debut record. Dave will always be Kurt’s drummer to me
You really are a 90’s kid at heart. Love it. This wasn’t just a single, it was literally the end of Pop Radio. One day was Wilson Phillips and Roxette - the next day was this song, and everything else fell. It was the first time it felt like “our” music was on top. And it was pretty much exactly like your reaction. WTF…? Play it again. And again. And again.
I love almost every Nirvana song. But if I have to pick one, and knowing what you dig:
“All Apologies” from IN UTERO, their second, and last, album. It has everything - the rawness, the melody, the heaviness, the pain
Bleach and Insecticide don't count as albums?
In Utero was their third and final album. Everyone forgets about Bleach.
@@Voltor07 second mistake of the day talking about the albums of my day. Drugs, kids. At least I had fun. 🤷
@@Voltor07 In Utero was fourth, everyone forgets Incesticide 😊
@@punkroxgirl That's not an official studio album, it's a compilation of b-sides and covers and stuff
You can't understand how monolithic this song/album was for us 90's kids... before this it was all hairmetal 80's vibe and all of a sudden we had our own voice ! It was literally an explosion 💥
I was through it. Definitely understand. Those days are long gone. Never be anything like what we live through.
This song is one of a handful where I audibly said “WOW” the first time I heard it.
"literally" wasnt the correct word there. there wasn't an actual explosion. but yeah it was big
@@michaelcatanach2403 thank god for grammar Nazis...yes it was figuratively an explosion.
I remember being 12 and hearing this on MTV while playing at a friend's house and i knew it was different and nothing was going to be the same. Looking back it marked a shift from childhood to teenage years, the music was a sound track to my youth.
I remember the first time I saw this video on MTV. It hit me different than anything I’d ever seen. The next day at school I asked one of my friends if they had heard of Nirvana and he said no. No joke the following words came out of my mouth, “they are going to be huge”. I was in junior high.
You nailed it with the outrage in his voice. Proud Gen Xer.
Gen-X'er here. Another reason that Nirvana took over the airwaves was because of the sound of other songs at the time. The #1 song just before Smells Like Teen Spirit was by Bryan Adams and was a love song. Smells Like Teen Spirit heralded the exact moment that the Boomers lost the culture war to the new (much angrier) generation. Oh... and Come As You Are is a wonderful Nirvana song as well.
Excellent! Excellent! Brother GenXer here. I don’t know, man. It’s kinda hard-looking back-thinking we were that much angrier. I mean, I’m not doubting you. My parents had Kent State, fall of Saigon, etc. We were what? A bunch of latchkey kids. Mom and dad threw off the tie dye hippy sh*t and went to work at Chase-Manhattan Bank. We wandered around with our friends… didn’t wear helmets when we rode bikes… kinda a law unto ourselves. But I’m not sure “angry” is the word. I’d go “disappointed” and “restless” before “angry.” We had no direction-and we were self-destructive. At least me and my friends:) Good post, though. Thoughtful. Reflects the times.
@@iambecomepaul From my perspective, every generation has had their battles. The Boomers had the draft, the glass ceiling, and civil rights. Gen-X brought about Earth Day and fought for LGBTQ. Millennials and Gen-Z are still writing their truth, but already they have fought for Transgender normalization. I base the "angrier" assessment mainly on our collective cultural representation. John Denver and the Rolling Stones were legendary... but we had Public Enemy and Rage Against The Machine. They had the Hippies, true, but we had the Goths. They grew up thinking that the world was getting better though their effort, we grew up thinking that in the year 2000 every thing dies. Good conversation, friend. Rare online.
@@horizonblack saluting you in our time. They may never understand us, but we’re still here 😊 “It just doesn’t matter.”
I'm pretty sure Michael was number one before nirvana knocked him off
Don't knock Bryan Adams either. I love both, LOL. Literally was my years of music discovery (roughly everyone discovers it at 14-ish) but I had older siblings so I have their love of hard rap and r&b plus headbanger rock and oddly some country music. Plus the pop music my parents favored. I actually loved opera and classical music as a little girl and I just loved music. I knew I couldn't play instruments for sht but I loved music. Still do. My siblings btch about music today sounds horrible but I find some good stuff. I think they just hear only radio play.
"I'm worst at what I do best, and for this gift I feel blessed".
I have always felt that line. I think every artist does to some degree, regardless of medium.
In Australia there is a radio station (Triple J) and every ten years or so they countdown the Hottest 100 songs of all time. This song has never failed to be #1 in every countdown. Iconic song
The amazing thing about Nirvana is we were being fed hair bands for so long and then suddenly this song came out and changed everything. It was like discovering dynamite. My favorite songs are Lithium and Heart Shaped Box.
It's a little bit difficult to state how iconic this album was when it came out it basically ended the glam rock and hair metal scene basically almost Altogether overnight this album is great. Bleach. In utero is amazing.
Hair metal had been dead for sometime grunge is just the next attempt at a product from the recording industry.... The next phase of pop music essentially. This genre is All but dead now.
It wasn’t dead, but it was definitely dying. They just didn’t kill hair metal, they killed bands like Loverboy.
@@MyBrothersKeeper101 Shows how little you know about grunge. Mudhoney, Tad, Skin Yard, Screaming Trees, Soundgarden, etc. All pop music created by the music industry despite all these bands forming long before the genre was a blip in the eye of the industry? How ignorant do you have to be to come up with something that ridiculous?
HUGE FACTS 🔥🔥. Started a genre.
Butch Vig … producer of the soundtrack of my adolescent life … he gets my money every time he brings a band to town!
The way you describe the shift from sadness, suffering, agony into abject rage... 40 seconds into hearing this your first time, without even knowing the lyrics... you get it.
You really received this song.
This song tells the story of his lived experience and you got it.
Thank you.
Can't wait to watch more these with you.
Also fun fact the drummer of this band is now the Lead Singer and guitarist of the Foo Fighters
This song kicked down the door with authority when it came out. It changed EVERYTHING
This song is an icon. It encapsulates the confusion and angst of developing into a young adult. This is why it has transcended the decades since it’s release. Heart shaped box next.
Dave Grohl in his interview with Pharrell Williams tells him that the drums in this song are taken from the Gap Band which is why you may have instantly recognized it within the first few beats 🤘🏼but also this is one of the most iconic songs of all time, Breed is one of my favorite songs by Nirvana, pure poetry 🌳🏠
Me at the top of my lungs: WE CAN PLANT A HOUSE, WE CAN BUILD A TREE
And the opening riff is an off key variation of Boston's More Than A Feeling which they joke around with at Reading '92
This band got me into playing guitar and writing songs when I was 15 and 15 years later I am still doing it and wouldn't regret it
I was 13 when this song came out, and I felt completely blown away. It was like the music I'd always wanted to listen to suddenly "existed". I felt like until that moment, I'd been waiting to hear Nirvana my whole life, but the band hadn't been created yet - and suddenly MTV put them in front of me.
I don't think any of my friends were captivated the way I was, but being a fan became part of my identity - at a time when I didn't know how to identify myself. To say the least, they were my favorite band for years to come. When Kurt took his life, I wore a black armband to school to signify the loss. I was picked on for it because I "wasn't even related to him". I guess they didn't understand what affect Nirvana had on music. They certainly didn't care about the effect the music had on me.
I still hold a grudge over being picked on.
The Queen’s of the Stoneage “No One Knows “ that you reacted to because it was a song you really liked. Same drummer 😊 Dave Grohl now lead singer and guitarist of his band The Foo Fighters ❤
Thursday Jan 2 1992-Salem, Oregon. I was blessed with the rare experience of seeing Pearl Jam and Nirvana open for Red Hot Chili Peppers, promoting records Ten, Nevermind and Mother's Milk. Still have the shirt, ticket stub and poster.
The drummer on this album and the unplugged concert is Dave Grohl. He's a phenom, also has a band called Foo Fighters that is pretty essential if you love Nirvana.
Ngl. I hated the food fighters. I'm 38. They, to me, were WAAAY to pop/alternative and not grunge. Grohl should've stayed on the drums. Not saying anything about him as a person, I just couldn't stand the transition from rock/grunge. I also respect your opinion as art is subjective and all art isn't for everyone. ✌️
Grohl was their drummer from this album until Kurt killed himself in 94.
@@markpipkinsjr1273 I appreciate your consideration of critiquing the foo fighters. I personally love them and Dave Grohl.
I’m pretty sure I saw him play drums in my community center pool in VA, some punk band whose name I forget. Also Ian McKaye in an earlier band. I still can’t believe the same carpet where I had Monday Boy Scout meetings, these legends were tearing up on fridays.
@@markpipkinsjr1273 I felt that way until The Color and the Shape. That was when I realized what a great song writer Grohl was.
"I feel stupid and contagious" is a line that has so many possible interpretations, but hits me harder now in the COVID Era. Nirvana were prophets. Those layers of yearning, misery, RAGE, and insight still ring their changes now, decades on.
Never realized how awesome the bass groove is to this song until now
Every track on Nevermind has a *killer* groove
Also I just watched your David Bowie reaction and Nirvana did an amazing job covering Bowie's "The Man Who Sold The World" , when they did MTV's Unplugged. That whole concert is wonderful. I listen to it very regularly
Like nirvana version b÷tter
Be advised, Nirvana live is a radically different experience, especially with Smells Like Teen Spirit because Kurt hated playing that song due to its overwhelming popularity. He hated that song being the only Nirvana song to many people. The same type of people who used to bully him would show up to Nirvana shows exclusively to hear that one song
I’m Gen X, this came out during my freshman year in college. It’s was like this huge shift from hair bands. Finally, there was someone as messed up and filled with so much anger like we were. We had the worst parents across the board and were mostly neglected. My favorite non-single is “All Apologies” live on MTV Unplugged. It was one of their last performances and always hits me in the feels
Hey great story and I’m sure you meant no harm, but claiming to have the ‘worst parents across the board’ is bold considering how your parents likely had worse parents than you guys. Not to mention the huge amount of abused & neglected children that still suffer today.
This song slapped when I first heard it in 1991 and it still slaps. Other non-single favourites are Lounge Act, Stay Away, Milk It, Verse Chorus Verse, Tourette's, Been A Son
Love Stay Away
@Joe dirty71 "in his hands" i think
@Joe dirty71 sappy
It "sounds odly familiar" because it's ICONIC!! As a child the 60s & 70s music, my husband, and even our kids were, were so relieved and in love when Nirvana and the whole grunge & alternative era came along.
I've always really loved Heart-Shaped Box, but Nirvana had a string of great songs.
also one of my favorites
Great song! Last song they played live.
Me too!
I love that, ‘this is definitely going in the four runner,’ high praise!
Nirvana put Seattle grunge scene on the map. Pearl Jam, Sound Garden and Nirvana were on top of the world for awhile in the 90's, and then grunge fell off the map as rock continued to evolve.
My daughter visited Seattle and sent me pictures of the club Nirvana played . I’m so glad I gave them a proper rock education 😊
you forgot the best of the Seattle bands, Alice In Chains
ANEURYSM is a extremely underrated Nirvana song. And “Where did you sleep last night” is Kurt at another level
This is seriously one of the top 5 songs of the 90s. It changed the musical landscape, it's catchy as hell, and it spans genres (now, back then it was firmly "grunge").
Lithium and Heart Shaped Box are two of my all time favorite Nirvana songs
This is the song where everyone remembers what they were doing and where they were the first time they heard it. It changed music. It ended the hair bands and gave a breath of fresh air to the music scene. There had been nothing like it before.
Ya know, I hadn't thought about this but you're right. I was at a friend's 12th birthday bowling trip! Thanks for prompting the memory.
True Statement
I love how most people say they've heard this somewhere before even if they swear they haven't it because it just proves that even people who don't listen to a genre can know good music when it comes on, it is so influential everybody knows it deep down 😂
Nirvana once joked that they copied the melody from Boston's More Than A Feeling and I've never been able to unhear it since.
This song, this one moment in music, changed more about popular music than possibly any other song you'll ever react to. Heartbreak Hotel by Elvis and I Wanna Hold Your Hand by The Beatles might be the only ones bigger.
I would agree with your historical thesis. It's probably as close to inarguable as anything in America can be
@Christopher Moltisanti Pretty much wiped out hair metal too. Sorry about Adriana.
I remember when this song started playing, it was a game changer.
I too remember hearing it the first time and the visceral feeling of the music change to come.
Agree on all three songs being absolute game changers.
I was lucky enough to grow up near Seattle and turned 21 in 1990. I saw Nirvana live several times, not to mention all the other amazing grunge bands coming out of and thru Seattle.
Man you just had to have been alive and a music person at the time when this song came out. It singlehandedly took all the pop songs and 80s ballads and flushed them down the bowl. It was crazy everything before this song was released was was forgotten and the entire Rock world was turned upside-down. I've never seen anything like like it.
The song that put the final nail in the coffin of 80s hair band music.
My senior year of high school, 91-92. This song came out, EVERYONE heard it. Even the kids in learning disability classes were singing this. Teachers, too. EVERYONE knew this song. EVERYONE
Not an album cut, but the song that gives me chills is their cover of Leadbelly's "Where did you sleep last night" on MTV Unplugged. That session also has a cover of Bowie's "Man who sold the world" that is great, but "Where did you sleep", there's a part at the end that just brings goosebumps every time.
Now you have a feeling for why it blew us all away back in 91. Absolute classic and one of the most important songs ever imo.
I remember driving my pre-teens around listening to Nirvana. This was their favorite band.
It's hard to over state the impact this album had on Grunge music, and the 90's in general. They weren't the first Grunge band. You can argue that they weren't the best. But they were the ones that drug the style kicking and screaming into the light, and cemented the 90's Seattle music scene as part of the cultural zeitgeist.
Favorite song? That's hard. It's a toss up between "You know, you're right" (last song recorded before Kurt's death and posthumously released a decade later) or "I Hate Myself and Want to Die" (from the Beavis and Butthead Experience album)
You have to listen to Where Did You Sleep Last Night from the unplugged album. Kurt really shows his vocal talents in full bloom
"Where Did You Sleep Last Night" is a cover, it was originally done by Lead Belly.
Ahh I miss what music used to sound like. I'm probably supposed to be too old (61) to like this. Now you have to listen to Weird Al's Nirvana's song
Not really you're not that much older than Kurt would've been
Luv em Both
🍻🇨🇦
I miss it too!
To old? Never ever; I'm 58 next week....this gives me such energy!
Nirvana’s drummer was Dave Grohl. One of the best drummers of that era. He went on to front the Foo Fighters. Played all the instruments on their first album, essentially. He also played drums for Queens of the Stone Age for a while; check out Nobody Knows.
Slight correction, that's No One Knows...lol...
1 album songs for the deaf and probably the tour its a shame coz that album is the best album qotsa have put out.
Amazingly enough its daves drumming which makes it the best album. In my humble opinion
At this point, who hasn't Dave drummed for? If you like his drumming thought, Song for the Dead by QOTS is gold and their live performances of it really show what a BEAST he is on the drums.
@@angelinakump4732 love song for deaf its class n yeah that intro is prime grohl drumming
Actually the Foo fighters was just Dave Grohl in the beginning 😅
He just named his one-man-orchestra something that would make the audience believe it wasn't just one lonely dude doing it all by himself! 🤣
Then he eventually took in other band members as well. But it wasn't just him playing everything - he was literally the whole band!
Saw them winter of '93. I was so young.
I came home from class in college. This popped up on MTV. I knew this was a hit. Just like Pearl Jams Evenflow. Nirvana had 3 great albums. The drummer is Dave Grohl, lead singer of Foo Fighters. Probably the world's best human.
This is a moment-in-time song. I was 18, first year in college. All these new bands and sounds were hitting. I heard Gish by Smashing Pumpkins the first week I was there. Then this song debuted on MTV. I was alone in my dorm room and I freaked and went to every room I knew and asked who else heard it. Three of us geeked out watching Mtv to hear it again until the album was available. It changed almost everything I listened to.
Yes me too. Before that I was really into Madchester and The Stone Roses. Grunge changed everything.
Ok...dave grohl...front for foo fighters...played guitar...and nine inch nails and nirvana drummer....SUPER TALENT
"Sadness to rage..." You described Kurt's voice perfectly. When this song his it was like being out in the wilderness and seeing a wild animal you'd never seen before. It was like someone singing into your heart. Scary and mesmerizing.
This was the song of the 90’s. One of my favorites is lounge act.
I'd love to see your reaction to some other grunge hits like "Black Hole Sun" and "Spoonman" by Soundgarden, "Jeremy" by Pearl Jam, "Would" and "I Stay Away" by Alice in Chains. It's fascinating, how the entire groundbreaking subgenre of rock/metal music was condensed in just couple of bands and albums.
I absolutely love "Jeremy" by Pearl Jam!
Glad you liked the song. It really revolutionized music in its day.
I remember when the song came out because I'm a teenager of the 90s. Just like everybody else has already said it changed everything as far as music goes. Post Malone and Travis Barker, who was the drummer for Blink 182, did an fundraiser at Malone's house for covid-19 during quarantine where they played like 15 Nirvana songs to honor the band and it was actually fire. As I previously stated, I was a teenager during the 90s and Nirvana was a huge influence on me. I thought I was going to hate what they did but it was amazing. I've re-watched that set numerous times. It is probably too long for a reaction because it's 15 songs but it is definitely worth watching sometime.
Favorite song: stay away or breed
It's hard to pick a "favorite" Nirvana song, but one of them for me is Breed. Kurt was one of the few celebrity deaths that really affected me. I will always wonder what could have been.
The first time I saw this video on MTV I was sitting alone in my living room and I lost my bleeping mind - I couldn't control myself I had to jump up out of the chair and just start banging my head, it was the only moshpit I've ever been in and I was in it all by myself. It's by far one of my most treasured musical memories. RIP KURT - we lost a genius that had so much more to create
Try “Drain You!”
Drain You is still my favorite song from this album. Possibly my fav Nirvana song. Or Come as You Are or Bloom!
Did you know that the drummer of Nirvana was Dave Grohl, the frontman and singer of the Foo Fighters?? Multi-instrumentalist and a great singer in his own right! Huge talent and a heart of gold - check him out as well as the Foo Fighters ;-) :-) 'The Pretender' smashes everything!!!!
As a 14 year old drummer when this came out, it Changed my life... Cheers Polo 🍻 👏
I was a junior when this came out … our anthem!
I was 18 when this song came out, not only did it change the musical landscape, it changed what kids started wearing and the vibe in movies. Very few artists have had that kind of impact on the mainstream. Downside to that is you become your own parody, which Cobain saw coming.
The commercial hits are really good to be fair, but the deep cuts are where the real songs are. Check out Bleach or Incesticide or Muddy Banks of the Wishkah, album-wise.
I still remember where I was, what I was doing, what I was wearing the very first time I ever heard this song in 1992. I knew the first 30 seconds that I had never heard anything quite like it. Immediately loved the song and still love it to this day even though I've heard it thousands of times. Historic song.
I remember hearing this for the first time in 6th grade. I couldn't believe my ears... I grew up in a house were classical music played. So this, THIS was so raw, angry and AWESOME! First band to lead me on my own ''musical journey''. That eventually lead to other Grunge bands, NIN, Tool, Korn, Slipknot and many more. 😝🤟🤟🤟🔥🔥🔥
This was the only song that first time I heard it asked the person next to me "What is that "" I gotta hear more"....so powerful.. ended up being a Big Nirvana fan for many years, still listen occasionally... Come as You are was the first song I learned on guitar.
I saw them live in October 1991 at St. Andrew's Hall in Detroit. We hadn't heard the term "Grunge" yet! The first thing I noticed when entering the venue was the really understated stage. You have to remember we were still experiencing the 80's music, most of which I despised! When they took the stage, they looked like nothing we'd ever seen before. No bright spandex. No big, over-processed hairdos. No makeup. For us Gen X'ers grunge became a way of life and a look and we were all the way in!
"I just wasn't ready to listent o the words, at the time."! What a quote!
I was not a Nirvana fan at all nor the grunge genre. Im not a fan of 90's music really. However, this song...I love it and even though I am a huge music fan who loves so many songs I would put this song in the Top 10 best songs of all time. Its that epic. Its the structure, the vocals, the mood...they captured some kind of magic here
I was so lucky to be a teen when this was released ❤
They're arguably the greatest underdog story in music history. From nobody to the biggest band in the world overnight.
This one song on you tube alone has 1,600,000,000 views. They my will forever be one of the best and meaningful bands of all time!!!!
I first heard this song, while living in Mississippi, on a Chicago AM station I could only get around midnight. The opening riff made me realize that something had shifted. The song perfectly captured how I felt, one moment melancholy, the other moment defiant rage. I came to realize that just about my whole generation felt the same. Song perfectly captures Gen X.
I'd be interested which Chicago AM station played Nirvana?
@@Januaryschild I don't remember the call letters, just remember it was an AM station I could only get after midnight. It was 1991 and it was the first place I heard Nine Inch Nails Head A Hole too. I just remember I couldn't find either album in Jackson, so I told a friend that was going to Dallas to look for the Nirvana cassette and also NINS Pretty Hate Machine. Told him he should get 2 of Nirvana's cassette Nevermind, cause I knew it would blow him away. And...I was right.
This song is when punk rock morphed and created one of the biggest songs on the Planet. The lead singer died tragically but the drummer is a freaking hero who tours has fun and funds school music programs.
The drummer has a song called “Everlong” you might like.
Dave Grohl is amazing! Foo Fighters are incredible, his drumming, and his daughter Violet is amazing, too! Her voice is so beautiful ….❤
This was a song that changed music. OH, I was born in 62, It blew my mind.
I remember a friend of mine giving me a cassette tape with this song on it a year or two before it came out. I sat in my car and played this song about 7 times in a row. I remember thinking “this changes everything”, and it did.
A lot of music producers heard it before it came out; most of them knew it was going to blow the doors off pop music.
Absolutely awesome reaction! Grunge bands finally showed me who I was and it was an amazing time for us. I’m sure you’ve heard this song because it’s one of the biggest songs from the 90’s. Thank you for this trip down memory lane!
If you want to get into Nirvana's biggest musical inspiration, check out The Pixies. A lot of their sound was inspired by the Pixies.
It’s just “pixies.” No the.
I came here to say this. Pixies were the ur-ur.
And many of their covers were either songs by the Vaselines, Meat Puppets and Wipers.
@@Naomi-pq6tvdefinitely influenced by them bands as well as Husker Dü and Fugazi
I was a 12 year old kid, and wondered what is nirvana... I'll never forget, that guitar riff, the drums... Immediately it stewed rebellion and I loved it.
I wish I could hear nirvana for the first time again. The live album is even better (it's rawer)
Hear this song almost every day on a radio station in the company where I am currently working, and I never get tired of it. I don't know why?? It just is! 🤣