Welcome to my Music Diary – today for the 1st March!
On the 1st March 1994, Nirvana played their last concert. Kurt Cobain and his band performed in Munich at Terminal Eins. And there were some power difficulties during the show – so the Grunge rockers had to restart „Come as you are“ after a two minute break.
The setlist of this historic show:
My Best Friend’s Girl (Cars Cover)
Radio Friendly Unit Shifter
Drain You
Breed
Serve The Servants
Come As You Are
Sliver
Dumb
In Bloom
About A Girl
Lithium
Pennyroyal Tea
School
Polly
Very Ape
Lounge Act
Rape Me
Territorial Pissings
The Man Who Sold The World (David Bowie Cover)
All Apologies
On A Plain
Blew
Heart-Shaped Box
You can relisten to this show here:
Three days later, Kurt’s wife Courtney Love, found Cobain unconscious in their hotel suite. The singer and guitarist had reacted to a combination of Rohynol and alcohol and so the rest of the tour has to be canceled. On the 8th April 1994, Kurt Cobain was found dead. He comitted suicide by shooting himself. The body had been lying there for days – the coroner’s report said, that Kurt’s died on 5th April 1994. He was only 27 years old.
Get your NIRVANA stuff here (for Austrian customer):
Welcome to my Music Diary – today for the 20th February!
Happy birthday to Kurt Donald Cobain, who was born on the 20th February 1967 in Aberdeen, Washington (USA)!
Kurt already started playing the piano and singing when he was two years old. At the age of seven, his parents divorced – and this was very defining, as he said in an interview:
„I remember feeling ashamed, for some reason. I was ashamed of my parents. I couldn’t face some of my friends at school anymore, because I desperately wanted to have the classic, you know, typical family. Mother, father. I wanted that security, so I resented my parents for quite a few years because of that.“
On his 14th birthday, Kurt received from his uncle a guitar – and the young boy started to play over and over again. And he also crossed paths with bassist Krist Novoselic and the duo rehearsed together and formed the band Fecal Matter – which became very soon Nirvana.
During his second year at Aberdeen High School, Kurt was dropped out. And as he had no job, he was also kicked out of his mother’s home. In 1986, Cobain worked at „The Polynesian Resort“ and lived in an apartment. He spent his money mainly for travelling to Olympia (Washington) attending several Rock concerts. At the end of 1987, Cobain and Novoselic recruited drummer Aaron Burckhard. Due to the fact, that Kurt and Krist moved to Olympia, they lost contact to Aaron and so they had to look for a replacement. Finally Chad Channing became the new drummer in the band, which was now called Nirvana. In May 1988, the first concert took place and in November the single debut „Love Buzz“ was released, followed by the debut album „Bleach„, which hit the stores in June 1989. The LP had initial sales of 40,000 copies.
During the recording sessions for the follow-up „Nevermind„, Channing left the band and Dave Grohl completed the new line up. And they also changed the label and left Sub Pop for signing the major record company DGC Records in 1990. And with producer Butch Vig (who was also a member of Garbage), they put twelve songs togehter for the new release. DGC was hoping to sell 250,000 copies, but it was not like that. The single outtake „Smells Like Teen Spirit“ (released two weeks before the album on 10th September 1991) became a huge hit and so in the first week of the release, 400,000 copies of „Nevermind“ were sold in the US. Until today, over 30 million copies have been sold worldwide. The other singles „Come as you are„, „Lithium“ and „In Bloom“ ensured, that „Nevermind“ was still a megaseller in 1992.
In December 1992, the compilation album (with some rarities from the Sub Pop era) „Incesticide“ hit the market. The long anticipated follow up „In Utero“ was finally released in September 1993. Christopher John Farley from „Time Magazine“ wrote in his review:
„Despite the fears of some alternative-music fans, Nirvana hasn’t gone mainstream, though this potent new album may once again force the mainstream to go Nirvana.“ And two months later, on the 18th November 1993, the legendary MTV Unplugged Session happened in New York.
On 1st March 1994, Nirvana played their last concert in Munich. Three days later, Kurt’s wife Courtney Love, found Cobain unconscious in their hotel suite. The singer and guitarist had reacted to a combination of Rohynol and alcohol and so the rest of the tour has to be canceled. And also Cobain’s heroin addiction resurfaced during that period. Kurt started a rehab, but he broke off. He climbed over the wall of the rehabilitation facility and flew to his home in Seattle. One week later, on the 8th April 1994, Kurt Cobain was found dead. He comitted suicide by shooting himself. The body had been lying there for days – the coroner’s report said, that Kurt’s died on 5th April 1994. He was only 27 years old.
Welcome to my Music Diary – today for the 3rd February!
Pearl Jam (1992)
On the 3rd February 1992, Pearl Jam played their very first gig in Europe in Southend, England!
The show took place at The Esplanade Club and the concert was unannounced and unadvertised. Here’s the setlist of this legendary and secret warm up gig:
Wash
Once
Even Flow
State of Love and Trust
Alive
Black
Why Go
Jeremy
Outshined (Soundgarden)/Leash
Jam (Dirty Frank)
Porch
Release
Breath
300 lucky people witnessed this very special and historic moment in Rock history!
Pearl Jam’s first Europe tour was scheduled from 3rd February until 13th March 1992, by playing in eleven differerent countries (England, Scotland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, France, The Netherlands, Spain, Italy, Switzerland and Germany).
Get your Pearl Jam stuff here (for Austrian customer):
Welcome to my Music Diary – today for the 23rd December!
Eddie Vedder (Pearl Jam)
Happy birthday to Mr. Edward Louis Severson III, who is better known as Eddie Vedder! Eddie was born on the 23th December 1964 in Evanston (close to Chicago – Illinois) and he became and is still the frontman of the legendary Grunge band Pearl Jam. Beside that, he is doing also some solo stuff and various projects like his fantastic recording of the amazing soundtrack „Into the Wild“ (2007).
In the seventies he moved with his family to San Diego (California) and on his 12th birthday (1976) he received a guitar from his mother. So beside surfing, Eddie started to play music. Dropped out of high school, he moved to Chicago and changed his name into Vedder (his mother’s maiden name). In the eighties Eddie Vedder earned his high school GED and moved back to San Diego (1984). Beside his day jobs he started to record demo tapes. Four years later Eddie became the vocalist of the band Bad Radio. In 1990 Vedder left the band and crossed the paths of drummer Jack Irons, who became a close friend over the years. Irons handed him a demo tape from a group located in Seattle, which was looking for a singer. While listening to the music, Vedder wrote the lyrics for three new songs, recorded his singing and sent the tape back to Seattle. These tracks became later the Pearl Jam classics „Alive„, „Once“ and „Footsteps„.
Eddie Vedder get invited by Stone Gossard and Jeff Ament, who were very impressed by his singing. At that time both were working with Soundgarden’s Chris Cornell on the band project Temple of the Dog. During the recording sessions for the self-titled album, Eddie and Chris did a duet for the song „Hunger Strike„. After that, the band Mookie Blaylock (featuring Eddie Vedder on vocals, Stone Gossard on guitar, bassist Jeff Ament, Mike McCready on second guitar and drummer Dave Krusen) was founded. On the 22nd October 1990 the first concert happened in Seattle at the Off Romp Café.
Shortly after this, the band changed the name into Pearl Jam and the quintet was signed to Epic Records. In March 1991 the Grunge Rockers started to record the epic debut album “Ten“. This LP was released on the 27th August 1991 and sold over 13 million times in the USA until today and marks the most successful album in Pearl Jam’s history.
Get your Pearl Jam stuff here (for Austrian customer):
Welcome to my Music Diary – today for the 22nd November!
On the 22nd November 1993 the third studio album by Pearl Jam was released. „Vitalogy“ hit the stores only as a vinyl edition on this day and the album became the first LP to appear on the US chart since the CD relieved the old music format. The comapct disc edition (and also the MC release) of the new Pearl Jam album was available on the 6th December 1993. The 14 songs were recorded at different studios and finally produced by Brendan O’Brien. With 34,000 sold copies in its first week of release, „Vitalogy“ held the record until Jack White’s LP „Lazaretto“ (2014) for most vinyl sales in one week.
The „Rolling Stone“ gave „Vitalogy“ four of five stars. Writer Al Weisel described the LP as „a wildly uneven and difficult record, sometimes maddening, sometimes ridiculous, often powerful.“ In „The New York Times“ the album was praised for the diversity compared to the band’s previous records. Editor Jon Pareles judged: „Fast but brutal punk, fuzz-toned psychedelia and judicious folk-rock, all of it sounding more spontaneous than before“.
In 2011 the remasterd version of „Vitalogy“ (including the second Pearl Jam studio album „Vs.„) was released. The expanded version includes three bonus tracks and a copy of the concert „Live at the Orpheum Theater, Boston, April 12, 1994“ on DVD.
Welcome to my Music Diary – today for the 18th November!
On the 18th November 1993, the legendary recording sessions by Nirvana for the MTV Unplugged show happened. The performance took place at the Sony Studios in New York. The setlist consisted of rare material and cover versions of tracks by The Vaselines, David Bowie, Meat Puppets (during which they were joined by the two members Cris and Curt Kirkwood) and Lead Belly. The TV show was first broadcasted on the 16th December 1993.
The album „MTV Unplugged in New York“ was released seven months after the tragic death of Kurt Cobain and hit the stores on the 1st November 1994. The LP/CD won the Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album in 1996. And thirteen years later, on the 20th November 2007, the DVD featuring the whole performance was finally released.
Get your Nirvana stuff here (for Austrian customer):
The young quintet shared the stage that night with the bands Bathtub Gin and Inspector Luv & The Ride Me Babies (who later became Green Apple Quickstep).
When you read Mookie Blaylock’s setlist of that show you will recognise some songs, I do guess:
Shortly after this, the band renamed into Pearl Jam and signed to Epic Records. In March 1991 the Grunge Rockers started to record the epic debut album „Ten„. This LP was released on the 27th August 1991 and sold over 13 million times in the USA until today and marks the most successful album in Pearl Jam’s history.
Welcome to my Music Diary – today for the 11th October!
Dave Grohl (Nirvana, Foo Fighters)
On the 11th October 1990 Drummer Dave Grohl played his first gig with Nirvana. The show took place at the North Shore Surf Club in Olympia, Washington. And the performance was not that easy for the Seattle Grunge rockers and also the fans, because the power went out a few times. So the songs „Molly’s Lips“ (Vaselines cover) and „D-7“ (Wipers cover) could not been finished. Also during „Blew“ the power went out, but Kurt Cobain, Krist Novoselic and Dave played the track to its end, when the power came back.
Welcome to my Music Diary – today for the 24th September!
On the 24th September 1991 an album was released in the USA, which became a big milestone in Rock and Grunge history: Nirvana’s „Nevermind„. The chart entering was anything but suprising – after the first week the LP was on position No. 144. But this changed, when the Single „Smells Like Teen Spirit“ was played all over the world. So in January 1992 „Nevermind“ peaked the No. 1 place and until now over 30 millions copies were sold world wide.
Welcome to my Music Diary – today for the 8th September!
Courtney Love and Kurt Cobain live in Hollywood (Club Lingerie – Rock Against Rape Benefit) (8th September 1993)
In 1993, Kurt Cobain and Courtney Love played a special set for the „Rock Against Rape Benefit“ at the Club Lingerie in Hollywood. As a duet they performed the two songs „Pennyroyal Tea“ and „Where did you sleep last Night„. Before Kurt came on stage, Cortney introduced him lovely with the words: „My husband, Yoko!“
About the song:
Originally, „Pennyroyal Tea“ is one of the oldest Nirvana songs. The first demo was recorded in Winter 1990 by Kurt Cobain and Dave Grohl. After that the recording was forgotten in the archives. During the sessions for „In Utero“ Cobain remembered the tune again and recorded it with his band. It became one of the best known Nirvana songs.
On the 22nd November 1993 the third studio album by 
On the 18th November 1993, the legendary recording sessions by 
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