Nirvana: “Rock and Roll Hall of Fame” Inductees


In a small Washington town in 1987, Krist Novoselic, Aaron Burckhard, and Kurt Cobain decided to form a rock band of their own. Burckhard, the original drummer, was replaced by a line of new drummers that eventually ended with Dave Grohl in 1990. In 1988 the band, Nirvana, released their first single, “Love Buzz”.

Skip forward to 2013. It has been 25 years since Nirvana’s first single was released, meaning the band is officially eligible for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. It has been nearly 20 years since singer Kurt Cobain committed suicide, meaning it has been nearly 20 years since Cobain, Novoselic, and Grohl have played together. Nirvana was only an official band from 1987 - 1994, not even for a full decade. However, the band still influenced a generation of rock and rollers, set off an entirely new genre of rock, and are still listened to and loved by men and women of all ages today. This is why, in October of 2013, Nirvana was immediately nominated to become a part of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

On April 10th, 2014, Nirvana will officially be inducted. The ceremony will be held at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center in New York City. Cobain’s widow, Courtney Love, and their daughter, Frances Bean Cobain, are expected to  join band members Dave Grohl and Krist Novoselic for the ceremony, which will be hosted by Michael Stipe, lead singer of REM.

Courtney Love and Frances Bean Cobain, 2009 Love has not remarried since Cobain's death, Frances Bean, now 21, is an aspiring artist.

Courtney Love and Frances Bean Cobain, 2009
Love has not remarried since Cobain’s death, Frances Bean, now 21, is an aspiring artist.

Fans are also excited about rumors of a possible performance by the existing band members of Nirvana. The former bassist tweeted the following, fueling the rumors.

Been playing those @HalLeonardBooks bass tabs to get up to speed. Muscle memory is good too. #PracticeMakesPerfect @nirvana

On May 31st, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony will air on HBO.

Kurt Cobain committed suicide in the garage of his Seattle, Washington home. He was 27 years old.  Three days later, his body was discovered by an electrician named Gary Smith who described his experience to a local TV station:

So I looked a little closer and geez, that’s a person. I looked a little closer and I could see blood and an ear and a weapon laying on his chest… I only read the bottom lines (of the suicide note). The bottom two lines said, ‘I love you, I love you’ to someone.

Two days after the body was discovered, a public memorial was held at Seattle Center. Over 7,000 fans and mourners crowded the area to listen to a recording of Courtney Love, 29 years old at the time, reading a segment of Cobain’s sucide note.

According to police, Cobain had already taken a lethal dose of heroin before shooting himself in the head. He was still wearing the medical identification bracelet given to him by the rehab center he had left just days before.

Cobain and family, 1993

Cobain and family, 1993

The 20th anniversary of Cobain’s death and the 25th anniversary of their first single has caused a large amount of public attention to be brought to the  band and its members. Fans have been buzzing about every aspect of the band and its history, including the circumstances of Cobain’s death. This led to the reopening of the case by Seattle PD. The case was quickly closed again, concluding that the death was, in fact, a suicide. However, several previously undeveloped films were discovered, and the photos were released to the public earlier this week. The majority of the photos depict the lower half of Cobain’s body, his suicide note, and items discovered around and near the body.

This year also marks what would have been Cobain’s 47th birthday. In honor of this, a statue of the singer was erected in Aberdeen, Washington - the hometown of Cobain and Novoselic, where the band was formed.  Mayor Bill Simpson also declared February 20th as “Kurt Cobain Day.”  The statute, made entirely of cement, depicts Cobain playing his guitar, with a single tear rolling down his cheek.

Cobain's statue in Aberdeen, Washington

Cobain’s statue in Aberdeen, Washington

 

According to Simpson, this “should have been done a whole heckuva long time ago”.