Kurt Cobain's Lost 1988 'Montage of Heck' Mixtape Surfaces

Kurt Cobain’s Lost 1988 ‘Montage of Heck’ Mixtape Surfaces

2014-11-09

Story by Charles Ken

Kurt Cobain’s 1988 ‘Montage of Heck’ Mixtape includes tracks by Van Halen, Iron Maiden and the Velvet Underground

What were some of Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain’s songs of choice? According to a 30-minute mixtape created by Cobain, the late singer and guitarist listened to a range of styles– everything from the Beatles to Metallica.

Cobain recorded this variety-packed mixtape, which was recently unearthed by Dangerous Minds, when he was 21 years old in 1988 on a four-track cassette recorder. That’s just one year before Nirvana’s debut studio album, “Bleach,” arrived on Sub Pop Records.

The mixtape, named “Montage of Heck,” features songs by James Brown, the Partridge Family, Led Zeppelin, Queen, Frank Zappa, The Monkees and more. Notable picks include “Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite” by the Beatles, “Eruption” by Van Halen, “Hot Pants” from James Brown, “Whole Lotta Love” by Led Zeppelin, “Run to the Hills” from Iron Maiden, “New Age” by The Velvet Underground, “Call Any Vegetable” from Frank Zappa and even children’s recordings, such as “Curious George,” “Sesame Street” and “The Flintstones.”

“Montage of Heck” is currently streaming in full via Vimeo. To view the full track listing for Cobain’s mixtape, head to the United Mutations blog.

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Charles Ken

Meet the expert - Charles Ken is a graduate of Michigan State University where he studied writing and history. He's a longtime music buff and covers classic rock for Audio Ink Radio. Contact him at ken@audioinkradio.com.