Foo Fighters' Dave Grohl: Nirvana's Nevermind Was Perfect

Foo Fighters’ Dave Grohl: Nirvana’s Nevermind Was Perfect

2011-09-24

Foo Fighters frontman says he wouldn’t change a thing on Nirvana’s, Nevermind

Nevermind was never intended to change the world, but one can never forecast when a new spirit will turn a generation upside down, and Nirvana‘s sophomore LP resulted in alternative rock colliding into the mainstream. Then-Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl (now of Foo Fighters) and bass player Krist Novoselic remember oh-so well those early Nirvana days.

“We practiced five or six nights a week, playing the songs over and over. We were determined to make a good album,” Grohl, 42, told USA Today, regarding the prep for the groundbreaking alternative rock album.

Nevermind, Grohl says, turned out “exactly like I hoped it would be”: “It’s a real simple record. A drum set, a bass, a couple of guitar overdubs and a vocal that’s doubled. That’s it. By today’s standards, it might as well have been done at Sun Studio.

“Kurt’s melodies were so brilliant, and his lyrics were so meaningful. His voice was beautiful,” he added. “He’d come in almost every day with a new song. How did he do that? He was an endless stream of beautiful music. He made it look so easy.”

Novoselic, 46, has mixed feelings about the 20th anniversary of Nevermind, which is today (Sept. 24): “There’s a joy and a sadness for me, because of the way things ended. There’s some anger. There’s a whole lot of things. But in the end, listening to this music reminds me that this is what it was all about. I have Nevermind on vinyl, and every now and then I’ll put it on and go, ‘Wow, this is a great record.'” (Photo credit: Michael Lavine.)