Nirvana's Kurt Cobain Gets Praise from Unexpected Guitarist Audio Ink Radio

Nirvana’s Kurt Cobain Gets Praise from Unexpected Guitarist

2025-01-06

Kurt Cobain of Nirvana is known for many great things when it comes to music, but guitar enthusiasts rarely name his as a standout guitarist. – Author: Anne Erickson, Photo via Ken Settle

Kurt Cobain of Nirvana is known for many great things when it comes to music, but guitar enthusiasts rarely name his as a standout guitarist. Cobain was the heart and soul of Nirvana, and in that role, he also helped write some of the band’s most enduring hits. Cobain certainly struck a chord, pun intended, with youth in the early-1990s, and for that, he’ll also be remembered and revered in music. But, one virtuoso guitarist is actually naming Cobain as a “great” guitarist.

Legendary Guitarist Was ‘Very Happy’ With Nirvana Records

Joe Satriani is an expert guitarist. In a January 3 interview with Classic Rock magazine, Satriani praised Cobain and said the Nirana vocalist was “great guitar player.”

“I was very happy with those Nirvana records,” Satriani said to Classic Rock in the chat. “He was a great guitar player. You go back and look at Nirvana clips, and you realize this guy is playing everything he’s supposed to play. He’s not looking at what he’s playing, so obviously he really knows the instrument.”

Satriani added some good reasoning for his thinking, too, stating, “And he’s playing with one of the greatest drummers of all time [Dave Grohl], so that wouldn’t have worked if he was not a good guitarist.”

With the talk going to the 1990s, Satriani was also asked if the decrease in popularity of the guitar solo during the Seattle invasion changed his approach to guitar playing at the time. If the guitar solo wasn’t cool anymore, did that matter to him? Of course not.

“I didn’t pay any attention to that, I guess,” he responded. “[My 1992 studio album] ‘The Extremist’ came out as my love letter to the classic rock era, so it was a throwback record anyway, but when I emerged from the studio I realized, ‘Oh, it’s all Nirvana and Soundgarden.'”

It’s refreshing to hear such a fantastic guitarist be confident in their own unique abilities to not hate on the grunge movement. Besides, it’s not like grunge bands didn’t play guitar. They did play guitar, they just didn’t solo, instead opting for wild, messy riffing. In fact, many grunge musicians actually liked listening to hair metal and thought the genres could coexist. Of course, that didn’t happen, and grunge instead snuffed out hair metal, but that really wasn’t the goal for many.

Joe Satriani Keeping Busy in 2025

Satriani can’t be bored often with all that he has on his plate. Not only does he play solo guitar, but he also holds down the instrument for a variety of musicians and bands. He’s currently serving as a band member in Sammy Hagar’s “Best of All Worlds” band, and they have a Las Vegas residency coming up this spring. Satriani has formed a new band with fellow guitar great Steve Vai called the SATCHVAI Band.

To kick off 2025, Satriani will release the “G3 Reunion Live” album, which was recorded his 2024 G3 reunion tour with Vai and Eric Johnson.

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Anne Erickson

Meet the expert - Author, writer and editor Anne Erickson is a Detroit-based reporter and radio host. She has written for the USA Today Network, Consequence.net, Blabbermouth.net, and many more. Anne holds a master's degree from Michigan State University. Contact Anne at anne@audioinkradio.com.