Song From The One And Only Grunge Rock Group Nirvana

b. Nirvana struck a cord with Generation X and opened people's minds to a new kind of music.

In the 1960s, Rock ‘n’ Roll was replaced in popularity by other branches of rock such as Acid Rock, Psychedelic Rock and Hard Rock as a hippie counter culture arose, mainly to protest against the Vietnam war. These new forms of rock provided social commentary on the wide range of assassinations and anti-civil rights actions that infested the country, and united those that wanted to end them. They too celebrated anti-authority actions, but now they were used to promote peace and drugs. Americans—mainly college students—were still rebelling against societal constraints, but instead of fighting against the conformity of white suburbia and their parents, they were uniting to fight against U.S. governmental authority. Rock in the 1960s still mainly appealed to the younger generations, but its influence was spreading. Folk Rock (Bob Dylan) was playing in protest, reminding the individuals there that they were fighting for peace, and Psychedelic Rock—which replicated or enhanced the mind altering experience of psychedelic drugs—created a soothing and new atmosphere in the U.S. Music festivals such as Woodstock in 1969 sprung up to promote peace, do drugs, listen to music, and enjoy being alive and young.6 However, this element of extreme partying and pleasure, eventually brought a few stars to early deaths, such as Janis Joplin and Jimi Hendrix. In the

     Kurt Cobain the singer and guitarist of the 90s band Nirvana which was an alternative rock band from 1988 to 1994. Cobain was born in the town of Aberdeen Washington. Aberdeen is a rural white trash town that borders Seattle the birth place of “Grunge”. Before them at record stores there were special sections for alternative music, they popularized it. However many grunge bands were around such as Mud Honey and The Melvins.

Kurt Cobain; one of the most famous and influential musicians in the history of rock and roll - more specifically, Grunge. Being a member of Nirvana, the most prominent band in the history of the genre isn’t the only accomplishment of the late, great musician though as he also won many awards. Kurt Cobain had an interesting upbringing, successful musical career, and a life that ended with a sudden death.

Rock ‘n’ roll and 20th Century Culture      According to Philip Ennis, rock ‘n’ roll emerged from the convergence of social transformations which resulted from World War II (Ryan 927). Despite its pop culture origins, rock music is arguably one of the strongest cultural factors to develop in this century. Artists such as Lennon, McCartney and Dylan defined the emotions of a generation and, in the last decade, it as even been acknowledged by members of the establishment which it hoped to change as a major influence in the country. In order to understand how rock went from a sign of rebellion to a cultural icon, it is necessary to understand where it came from.      According to Albert

Grunge music originated in Seattle, Washington and can be described as dirty guitar, strong guitar riffs with distortion. They had dark lyrics and expressed the emotions of teenagers. Punk rock is the most popular genre with young rebellious teens that talked about they hated listening to their parents. These genres didn’t become mainstream until the world discovered the rock and roll band “Green Day” in the mid 90’s. The style of the time consisted of cut off T-shirts and tight, ripped jeans. Bands like a “Aerosmith” and “Guns and Roses” played a big fashion roll during this

Cobain’s quote impacted a variety of people, from outcasts and misfits, to accepted and popular people. His quote allowed people to be able to except

Rock ‘n’ roll music has widely influenced music and society and continues to do so today. Rock ‘n’ roll emerged in the 1950’s a time where whites and blacks were heavily segregated. Rock and roll music not only changed the nation’s current musical norms, but indicated the joy of the emerging youth culture of the generation. It influenced artists whether black or white to come into the mainstream music. Famous artists still remembered today also influenced rock and roll. Those pioneers helped change the musical norms and the overall history of music. White rock ‘n’ rollers helped build a ladder for black artists to come into the scene. It was certain that rock ‘n’ roll made it possible for greater acceptance, appreciation and a wider

Kurt Cobain was the lead singer of the Seattle based grunge rock band Nirvana. As Nirvana's lead songwriter, guitarist, and singer, Cobain took the music industry by surprise and is considered the godfather of the grunge rock movement. Cobain and his band had a prevalent influence on young teenagers of the 1990s and were considered idols by numerous individuals. Nirvana took the popular music industry by storm when they were able to revamp the genre of grunge rock and cause a dramatic shift in music, away from the dominant genres of the 1980s. The success of Kurt Cobain was overshadowed by numerous of his psychological problems including drug addiction, his unstable marriage to music celebrity Courtney Love, and constant pressure from the

“Rock music is important to people, because it allows them to escape this crazy world. It allows them not to run away from the problems that are there, but to face up to them, but at the same time sort of DANCE ALL OVER THEM. That 's what rock and roll is about” (Pete Townshend). The concept of rock and roll music had eased into the music industry in a time after a crippling war and a great depression. The mid to late 20th century was home to innovation, rebellious teens, and a devastating war..The introduction of rock music has influenced our country and molded it in many ways as the genre progressed and has found a place in our culture.

Their single Smells Like Teen Spirit made Nevermind the first alternative rock album to acquire worldwide fame (“Kurt Cobain”). Cobain’s talent was record smashing and innovative, because he took a whole music genre to a never before seen worldwide level. This type of accomplishment was not because of some strange luck, but a result of Cobain’s creative approach to the sound of alternative rock. As a result of their breakthrough, many powerful companies started to publicize them like when Time announced, “‘It also launched the commercial vogue for grunge and made Seattle famous for something other than cappuccino, rain, and bad professional sports,’” (Latson, 1). Kurt Cobain’s success was remarkable because not only did the music industry change, but a whole unique business and trend was opened up. The fact that Kurt managed to leave a long lasting imprint in the constantly changing fashion industry displayed how successful he was. In the music industry Cobain changed the direction of contemporary rock and was compared to legends like Bob Dylan and John Lennon (Hilburn). People thought of Kurt as one of the rock legends because of his raw talent that made him extremely relatable and mighty. This was a huge deal, to be compared to other rock legends and to have changed the entire sound of a music genre. Talent, a strong work ethic, and a relatable character took Kurt Cobain to the top and

However, grunge music was not appreciated by everyone. Most adults or elders at that time thought it was too loud, or that it was devilish music. Even metal and rock bands disapproved of grunge, including some bands that helped build the genre’s popularity. Grunge bands fought for popularity, which made matters worse. Nirvana’s late frontman, Kurt Cobain, made a cruel statement about Pearl Jam in an interview. He hated the band with a passion. Not because of their popularity, but the style of their

Each new music genre introduces the counterculture or opposition of previous generation’s values. Led Zeppelin sparked the beginning of the heavy metal culture-- the counterculture to psychedelic rock. The anti-war movement was also prevalent in this counterculture. Led Zeppelin and the Vietnam War influenced the new, darker, generation of rock: heavy metal.

One of my favourite bands of all time is Nirvana, because this was the first rock band I started listening to at the age of twelve and this established my taste of music until nowadays. However, they had a big influence on their contemporary pop-rock musical industry in the early nineties, as well. Despite the fact that they released only three studio albums in seven years, Nirvana is often regarded as one of the most influential, effective and remarkable rock bands of the century.

As a child, Cobain’s main influence was Evel Knievel, and he was determined to be reckless and fearless like his hero. As Cobain grew older, however, his influences became primarily musical, and included Neil Young, nicknamed the “Godfather of Grunge,” the Beatles, and various alternative bands (DeRogatis, para. 8). His major accomplishments were his recordings, as Cobain was known as a lyricist more than a musician, despite his short-lived career.