Pop Song 473 of 500 'Smells like teen spirit' Nirvana 1991

Pop Song 473 of 500 'Smells like teen spirit' Nirvana 1991

"Smells Like Teen Spirit" was one of several songs written following Nirvana's first recording sessions with producer Butch Vig in 1990. Lead singer and guitarist Kurt Cobain began writing it a few weeks before recording their second album, Nevermind, in 1991. He said it was an attempt to write a song in the style of the Pixies, a band he admired:

I was trying to write the ultimate pop song. I was basically trying to rip off the Pixies. I have to admit it. When I heard the Pixies for the first time, I connected with that band so heavily that I should have been in that band—or at least a Pixies cover band. We used their sense of dynamics, being soft and quiet and then loud and hard.

When Cobain presented the song to his bandmates, it comprised just the main guitar riff and the chorus vocal melody.Cobain said the riff was "clichéd", similar to a riff by Boston or the Richard Berry song "Louie Louie".[5] Bassist Krist Novoselic dismissed it as "ridiculous"; in response, Cobain made the band play it for an hour and a half. Eventually, Novoselic began playing it more slowly, inspiring drummer Dave Grohl to create the drum beat,[8] which drew from disco artists like The Gap Band. As a result, it is the only song on Nevermind to credit all three band members as writers.

The title derives from a phrase written on Cobain's wall by his friend Kathleen Hanna, singer of the riot grrrl band Bikini Kill: "Kurt smells like Teen Spirit." Hanna meant that Cobain smelled like the deodorant Teen Spirit, which she and Tobi Vail, his then-girlfriend, had discovered during a trip to the grocery store. Cobain said that he was unaware of the deodorant until months after the single was released, and had interpreted it as a revolutionary slogan, as they had been discussing anarchism and punk rock

Load up on guns, bring your friends
It's fun to lose and to pretend
She's over-bored and self-assured
Oh no, I know a dirty word
Hello, hello, hello, how low
Hello, hello, hello, how low
Hello, hello, hello, how low
Hello, hello, hello
With the lights out, it's less dangerous
Here we are now, entertain us
I feel stupid and contagious
Here we are now, entertain us
A mulatto, an albino
A mosquito, my libido
Yeah
Hey
Yay
I'm worse at what I do best
And for this gift I feel blessed
Our little group has always been
And always will until the end
Hello, hello, hello, how low
Hello, hello, hello, how low
Hello, hello, hello, how low
Hello, hello, hello
With the lights out, it's less dangerous
Here we are now, entertain us
I feel stupid and contagious
Here we are now, entertain us
A mulatto, an albino
A mosquito, my libido
Yeah
Hey
Yay
And I forget just why I taste
Oh yeah, I guess it makes me smile
I found it hard, it's hard to find
Ooh well, whatever, nevermind
Hello, hello, hello, how low
Hello, hello, hello, how low
Hello, hello, hello, how low
Hello, hello, hello
With the lights out, it's less dangerous
Here we are now, entertain us
I feel stupid and contagious
Here we are now, entertain us
A mulatto, an albino
A mosquito, my libido
A denial
A denial
A denial
A denial