Smells Like Teen Spirit
From Free net encyclopedia
Smells Like Teen Spirit is a song by the American grunge band, Nirvana. It is the first track and first single from their 1991 album Nevermind, and is commonly regarded as the song that brought Nirvana and grunge music to the attention of teenagers around the world.
The song reached #1 for many weeks on charts around the world in 1991. On the Billboard Hot 100, the song reached #6. It was voted best single of the year in The Village Voice Pazz & Jop critics poll. The video for the song won the band "Best New Artist" and "Best Alternative Group" awards at the 1992 MTV Video Music Awards.
In 2004, Rolling Stone magazine ranked "Smells Like Teen Spirit" ninth in its list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. In 2000, the Guinness Book of World Records marked the song the Most Played Video on MTV Europe. In 2002, the song was featured in an episode of the SBS documentary series, Impact: Songs That Changed The World.
Also In 2006, "Smells Like Teen Spirit" reached 3rd place in "the nations favourite lyric" filmed in Britain.
Contents |
Historical significance
Many consider Smells Like Teen Spirit to be the anthem of the nineties, even, indeed, the anthem of a generation. Released in 1991, the song found itself in a music scene caught in limbo in the wake of the theatrical acts of the 80s. The song, propelled by its music video, put forth a rebellious image that was strongly embraced by its audience. Teen Spirit is also widely considered the definitive Grunge song, and its raging popularity opened the gates for countless other bands of this genre (see also Soundgarden, Pearl Jam and Alice In Chains).
Because of the massive success of the single, and its diversion from a mainstream 80s rock scene dominated by hair bands and retro, Smells Like Teen Spirit is also credited by many for reviving the popularity of rock and roll among those who had become alienated from it. The popularity of grunge stoked commercial radio's interest in alternative rock, which by the mid-90s became a dominant radio format.
Musical qualities and influences
Smells Like Teen Spirit is in the musical key of F minor, and is based around a riff using four power chords (F5-Bb5-Ab5-Db5) with more than a passing similarity to a section of Boston's AOR classic "More Than a Feeling", as well as Blue Öyster Cult's "Godzilla". Kurt Cobain has acknowledged these similarities in his Journals.
While melodically and harmonically simple, it features a minimalistic, moody verse with stream of consciousness lyrics rising to a ferocious chorus, and Kurt Cobain's voice showing a range from tuneful melancholy to primal scream.
In a January, 1994 Rolling Stone magazine interview, Kurt, months away from his death, admitted that Smells Like Teen Spirit was an attempt to write a song like those of the Pixies: "I was trying to write the ultimate pop song. I was basically trying to rip off the Pixies. I have to admit it." He also talked about his dislike for the song, mostly because of its success, and how "Drain You", from the same album, was "definitely as good as 'Teen Spirit'."
Song meaning
In Heavier Than Heaven, Charles Cross' biography of Kurt Cobain, an argument is made that the song is a reference to Kurt's break-up with Tobi Vail.Template:Ref This argument is backed up by lyrics which were present in earlier drafts, which can be seen in Kurt's Journals, such as "Why don't you cry when I'm away / Oh yeah we want what's best for you" and "Who will be the King & Queen of the outcasted teens".Template:Ref
Origin of name
"Teen Spirit" is a U.S. deodorant brand sold by Colgate-Palmolive. Cobain got the song name when friend Kathleen Hanna, lead singer of the riot grrrl punk band Bikini Kill at the time, spray painted "Kurt Smells Like Teen Spirit" on his wall. Since they had been talking about anarchy, punk rock and similar topics, Cobain took it to be a slogan in that vein. The meaning, however, was that Kurt smelled like the roll-on deodorant brand that Tobi Vail, Hanna's band mate, and Kurt's then-girlfriend, wore. Cobain claimed that he did not know it was a brand of deodorant, and in retrospect was unhappy that a commercial product was named in the song.
In the months after the song became a hit, Colgate-Palmolive created an ad campaign to try to cash in on the connection. One tv commercial featured lines including "Do you smell like teen spirit?" and "Deodorant made for your generation".
Music video
The music video, directed by Samuel Bayer, who would later go on to direct videos for such notable rock acts as Green Day, with its surreal high school setting was also notable. It was inspired by the 1979 film Over the Edge, of which Kurt Cobain was a fan.
The video featured the band playing at an assembly at a high school gym, surrounded by cheerleaders, wearing black dresses with the Circle-A anarchist symbol, instead of a school mascot. (The location of the symbol is an allusion to the novel The Scarlet Letter.) The video ends with the assembled "students" trashing the set and the band' gear.
The video also featured the then-unknown Burton C. Bell, who later went on to become vocalist in the industrial metal band Fear Factory.
As noted in the Nirvana biography Come as You Are, the demolishing of the set captured in the video was essentially uncontrolled. The extras that filled the bleachers had been forced to stay seated for the entire afternoon of filming, and had sat through uncountable replays of the song. By the time Bayer turned them loose, the set became a scene of chaos.
Cover versions
The song has been covered by numerous artists, including Tori Amos on the Crucify EP, the jazz band The Bad Plus, and the industrial act Xorcist. In 2005, it was covered as a swing song by 1950s star Paul Anka. An instrumental cover version was produced by World Championship Wrestling as the entrance music for wrestler Diamond Dallas Page, with clips of DDP's voice dubbed in from time to time. The song was also performed in a cabaret style in the 2001 movie Moulin Rouge!.
In 1992, the song was parodied by "Weird Al" Yankovic as "Smells Like Nirvana", a song about Nirvana itself. Weird Al's parody was about how it was difficult to understand Cobain's lyrics. According to both Kurt and Yankovic, when asked if he would be okay with Yankovic parodying the song, Kurt asked, "it's not going to be about food, is it?" (A reference to some of Yankovic's previous parodies, most notably "Eat It") Kurt admitted in interviews to being very fond of the parody. In a diary entry later published in Journals, Kurt described "Weird Al" as the closest thing America has to punk rock. Bandmate Krist Novoselic later said that the band realized that they had arrived as rock stars when Weird Al parodied them.
Misheard lyrics
As Weird Al's parody emphasized, the lyrics as Cobain sang them were often difficult for listeners to decipher, both because of their nonsensicality and Cobain's guttural, slurred speech. This problem was compounded by the fact that the Nevermind album liner did not include lyrics for the song, simply random lyrical fragments. Lyrics for the album (some from earlier or alternate versions of the songs) were finally released on the liner of the Lithium single.
See here for examples of mis-heard lyrics.
As a result of the confusion, MTV prepared a version of the video that included the lyrics running across the bottom of the screen, which aired when the video was added to heavy rotation.
Several cover versions make the true lyrics of the song more clear, such as in Tori Amos' quiet, piano-driven cover.
Alternate versions
Nirvana was known for altering song lyrics and play speed for live performances. Most live performances of the song had the line "our little group has always been" changed to "our little tribe has always been".
Live performances
"Smells Like Teen Spirit" was first performed live on April 17, 1991 at the OK Hotel in Seattle, Washington. Parts of this performance can be found in three places: the Nevermind Classic Albums DVD, With the Lights Out and the documentary film Hype! As the song's lyrics had not yet been entirely written, there are notable differences between it and the final version. For example, the first performance started with "Come out and play, make up the rules" instead of the eventual opening of "Load up on guns, bring your friends".
Another memorable performance occurred on BBC's Top of the Pops, during which frontman Kurt Cobain sang in a deliberately low, mournful tone, a protest against the show's requirement that bands must not play their instruments live, and changed the first two lines of the song to "Load up on drugs, kill your friends" (altered from "Load up on guns, bring your friends"). He would later claim it was a tribute to The Smiths frontman Morrissey. This performance can be found on the 1994 home video Live! Tonight! Sold Out!!.
Track listing
The following tracks appeared on the CD single:
- "Smells Like Teen Spirit" (Cobain, Grohl, Novoselic) - 4:30
- "Even in His Youth" (Cobain, Grohl, Novoselic) - 3:03
- "Aneurysm" (Cobain, Grohl, Novoselic) - 4:44
"Aneurysm" did not appear on the cassette single.
The version of "Smells Like Teen Spirit" on the release is the single edit, which removes approximately thirty seconds from the album version. In particular, two repetitions of the main riff have been removed from the beginning of the song, as has the repeat of the first section of the guitar solo.
The US CD Single falsely lists the length of "Even in His Youth" as 4:20. This was supposedly an inside joke within the band, a reference to smoking marijuana.
Accolades
- Melody Maker magazine Single of The Year #1 (1991)
- Rolling Stone Critics Singles Pick #2 (1991)
- Kerrang! magazine Greatest 100 Rock Tracks Ever #1 (1999)
- Kerrang! magazine Greatest Singles of All Time #1 (2002)
- List of Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time #9 (2002)
- VH1's 100 Greatest Songs from the Past 25 Years #1
Chart positions
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | Official New Zealand Singles Chart | No. 1 |
| 1991 | Official Belgium Singles Chart | No. 1 |
| 1991 | Official Irish Singles Chart | No. 1 |
| 1991 | Official Spanish Singles Chart | No. 1 |
| 1992 | Official French Singles Chart | No. 1 |
| 1992 | Official Norway Singles Chart | No. 2 |
| 1992 | Official German Singles Chart | No. 2 |
| 1991 | Official Sweden Singles Chart | No. 3 |
| 1991 | Official Holland Singles Chart | No. 3 |
| 1992 | Official Italian Singles Chart | No. 3 |
| 1992 | Official Australian Singles Chart | No. 5 |
| 1992 | The Billboard Hot 100 (US) | No. 6 |
| 1992 | Official Switzerland Singles Chart | No. 6 |
| 1991 | Official UK Singles Chart | No. 7 |
| 1992 | Official Austrian Singles Chart | No. 8 |
| 1992 | Hot 100 Brasil | No. 9 |
| 1991 | Modern Rock Tracks (US) | No. 1 |
| 1992 | Mainstream Rock Tracks (US) | No. 7 |
| 1992 | Hot Dance Music/Club Play (US) | No. 14 |
| 1992 | Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales (US) | No. 27 |
| 1992 | French Airplay Chart | No. 1 |
| 1991 | Triple J Hottest 100 | No. 1 |
| 1992 | Poland Airplay Chart | No. 2 |
| 1992 | Slovakian Airplay Chart | No. 9 |
| 1992 | Canadian National Airplay Chart | No. 17 |
| 1994 | Latvian Airplay Chart | No. 18 |
Samples
Template:Multi-listen start Template:Multi-listen item Template:Multi-listen item Template:Multi-listen item Template:Multi-listen end
Covers
- 1992 by Tori Amos on Crucify (EP)
- 1992 parodied by "Weird Al" Yankovic as "Smells Like Nirvana" on Off the Deep End
- 1993 by Sara DeBell on Grunge Lite
- 1993 by Xorcist on Shut Up Kitty compilation
- 2000 by The Melvins (Vocals by guest star Leif Garrett) on The Crybaby.
- 2001 by the actors of the film 'Moulin Rouge!
- 2001 by Blanks 77 for the Nirvana punk tribute, Smells Like Bleach
- 2003 by The Bad Plus on These Are The Vistas
- 2004 by The Wounded on Atlantic
- 2005 by Paul Anka, on Rock Swings
References
- Template:NoteCobain, Kurt. Journals. Riverhead Books, 2002. ISBN 1573222321
- Template:NoteCross, Charles. Heavier Than Heaven. Hyperion, 2001. ISBN 0786865059
External links
- Kurt Cobain: The Rolling Stone Interview
- Nirvana Forums — A popular Nirvana discussion community.
- Template:Musicbrainz album
- Smells Like Teen Spirit lyrics
es:Smells Like Teen Spirit he:Smells Like Teen Spirit nl:Smells like teen spirit pl:Smells Like Teen Spirit pt:Smells Like Teen Spirit fi:Smells Like Teen Spirit sv:Smells Like Teen Spirit tr:Smells Like Teen Spirit