A 1991 Nirvana single that helped break grunge into the mainstream, with a four-chord guitar riff and Kurt Cobain's mumbled vocal phrasing.
Composition
Smells Like Teen Spirit was written by Kurt Cobain with credit shared by bandmates Krist Novoselic and Dave Grohl. Cobain has acknowledged the four-chord riff was partly modeled on “More Than a Feeling” by Boston.
Recording
The song was produced by Butch Vig at Sound City Studios in Van Nuys, California, in May 1991. The mix of the released version was the work of Andy Wallace, brought in by the band’s label DGC.
Reception
Released as the lead single from “Nevermind” in September 1991, the song reached the top ten on the Billboard Hot 100 by January 1992 and helped propel the album to number one. It is widely cited as a catalyst for the early-1990s alternative rock breakthrough.
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