I just saw the preview for the Beastie Boys movie.
I mean, what the fuck?
4.07.2011
4.06.2011
The world has turned and left me here
April 5, 1994 was a Tuesday. I was sitting in the old school gym waiting for play practice to start. That year I was playing the lead in Black Angel. We were probably getting ready for our Area performance on our way to State.
I was going over my lines when Josh Cohagen walked in and told me Kurt Cobain killed himself. I immediately dismissed him. Kurt wouldn't do something like that. It must have been a hoax or publicity stunt. But then I started thinking, Kurt wouldn't do something like that either. This was before a lie could speed around the world in seconds. Josh saw it on TV. He wasn't one to spread base rumors. A story like that must have some backup!
But then Mr. Gonzalez started a run-through of the play so I stopped thinking about it for the moment.
I called you as soon as I got home.
me: Hey, it's Starr. Did Kurt Cobain kill himself?
you: I've been watching MTV all afternoon. I can't believe it.
or something like that. I went over to your house and watched MTV for the rest of the day and into the night.
Now I knew what my parents felt like when Kennedy killed himself.
I was also bummed because Nirvana was set to headline Lollapalooza that year. I drove down to Houston to visit my friend Kasi and see that show. I ran into Lara too, but I didn't get to talk to her much. All the bands were bumped up in the order they had been in. So Smashing Pumpkins moved to headliner with the Beastie Boys right before them. Which was still awesome. That was my first concert. Breeders and George Clinton also played and that's where I fell in love with Shonen Knife. I got dehydrated and almost passed out during the Pumpkins and later puked out the car window on I-10 on the way back to Kasi's place. So basically, I had a good time but I was really looking forward to seeing Nirvana.
I remember saying "Now the media is just going to turn him into a god." Then I cut out any image of him from Spin and Rolling Stone and stuck them on the wall behind my door at home. It's still up to this day, btw. I tore down every other poster except that collection. I remember you got a little annoyed when you saw it and questioned me on it. But I've always admitted to being a little hypocritical.
You were already listening to Nirvana before they broke. But I didn't get hooked until I saw them on Saturday Night Live.
I read later that G.E. Smith, SNL's Band Leader, was really impressed with Kurt's playing.
I'm sure I woke Mimi up that night. She never liked me watching SNL anyway. I would always take my VHS copy to youth group at the Methodist Church on Sundays to share.
I am always impressed with how Pat Smear went from the Germs, to Nirvana, to Foo Fighters (again). I hope I'm still rockin' at 51.
These are all I have now.
I always get a little mad when people dismiss him as a junkie rock star that killed himself. From what I've read, friends said he'd finally cured his stomach pains that had turned him to heroin in the first place. He felt confident of going to rehab. He was divorcing Courtney Love. He was doing a lot of non-suicidal things. But something strange happend that day and we may never know the real truth. So who knows where he would have gone with his career. What songs he would have written and played. Had he lived, who knows where you or I would be. What concert we would travel to on a 24-hour round trip? What song is playing when a new girl walks through the door.
I owe almost all my musical tastes to Nirvana. Why do I like the Beatles? Because Kurt Cobain did. He liked Zeppelin. So do I. Throw some Pixies in there. That's why I like Weezer so much. Rivers Cuomo is the biggest Nirvana fan. Ever. The first songs I learned on guitar were Nirvana. And when playing those songs, I did my best to perfect the Cobain Sway. I'm no Dead Head, but in the right mood, I will watch Nirvana concert videos online for hours on end. In fact, the 5 albums I'd take to a deserted island are some combination of the Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Pixies, Nirvana and Weezer! That's it. Why would I need to listen to anything else?
I could go on.
I was going over my lines when Josh Cohagen walked in and told me Kurt Cobain killed himself. I immediately dismissed him. Kurt wouldn't do something like that. It must have been a hoax or publicity stunt. But then I started thinking, Kurt wouldn't do something like that either. This was before a lie could speed around the world in seconds. Josh saw it on TV. He wasn't one to spread base rumors. A story like that must have some backup!
But then Mr. Gonzalez started a run-through of the play so I stopped thinking about it for the moment.
I called you as soon as I got home.
me: Hey, it's Starr. Did Kurt Cobain kill himself?
you: I've been watching MTV all afternoon. I can't believe it.
or something like that. I went over to your house and watched MTV for the rest of the day and into the night.
Now I knew what my parents felt like when Kennedy killed himself.
I was also bummed because Nirvana was set to headline Lollapalooza that year. I drove down to Houston to visit my friend Kasi and see that show. I ran into Lara too, but I didn't get to talk to her much. All the bands were bumped up in the order they had been in. So Smashing Pumpkins moved to headliner with the Beastie Boys right before them. Which was still awesome. That was my first concert. Breeders and George Clinton also played and that's where I fell in love with Shonen Knife. I got dehydrated and almost passed out during the Pumpkins and later puked out the car window on I-10 on the way back to Kasi's place. So basically, I had a good time but I was really looking forward to seeing Nirvana.
I remember saying "Now the media is just going to turn him into a god." Then I cut out any image of him from Spin and Rolling Stone and stuck them on the wall behind my door at home. It's still up to this day, btw. I tore down every other poster except that collection. I remember you got a little annoyed when you saw it and questioned me on it. But I've always admitted to being a little hypocritical.
You were already listening to Nirvana before they broke. But I didn't get hooked until I saw them on Saturday Night Live.
I read later that G.E. Smith, SNL's Band Leader, was really impressed with Kurt's playing.
I'm sure I woke Mimi up that night. She never liked me watching SNL anyway. I would always take my VHS copy to youth group at the Methodist Church on Sundays to share.
I am always impressed with how Pat Smear went from the Germs, to Nirvana, to Foo Fighters (again). I hope I'm still rockin' at 51.
These are all I have now.
I always get a little mad when people dismiss him as a junkie rock star that killed himself. From what I've read, friends said he'd finally cured his stomach pains that had turned him to heroin in the first place. He felt confident of going to rehab. He was divorcing Courtney Love. He was doing a lot of non-suicidal things. But something strange happend that day and we may never know the real truth. So who knows where he would have gone with his career. What songs he would have written and played. Had he lived, who knows where you or I would be. What concert we would travel to on a 24-hour round trip? What song is playing when a new girl walks through the door.
I owe almost all my musical tastes to Nirvana. Why do I like the Beatles? Because Kurt Cobain did. He liked Zeppelin. So do I. Throw some Pixies in there. That's why I like Weezer so much. Rivers Cuomo is the biggest Nirvana fan. Ever. The first songs I learned on guitar were Nirvana. And when playing those songs, I did my best to perfect the Cobain Sway. I'm no Dead Head, but in the right mood, I will watch Nirvana concert videos online for hours on end. In fact, the 5 albums I'd take to a deserted island are some combination of the Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Pixies, Nirvana and Weezer! That's it. Why would I need to listen to anything else?
I could go on.
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