Kurt’s genius lay in his gift for Melody. His lyrics often served no other purpose than to support the melody, same with his popularly supposed simplistic guitar technique. But the ability to take those simple things and arrange them in ways that create songs that reach into the stratosphere evince Kurt’s true artistry. He was one of a kind.
when I hear him playing on a live video or improvising, he doesn't sound that great. but the bass lines on the records are really good. makes me think that maybe cobain with his talent for melody, told him a few things.
Kurts solo on smells like teen spirit is one of my favourites. Its simple but it fits the tune so well. Kurt played for the sentiment, he was a genius at that. Music was like making a collage of sound to him, he was like the van gogh of punk rock.
I did the same thing with Nirvana. When I first heard Smells Like, I was walking by a TV that was playing it, and I stopped and couldn't leave it until the song is over. However, like you, it went to a fashion trend for asshole teenagers so fast I rebelled against it and went back to listening to the blues rock and metal I was listening to before. Lesson I learned: Don't let tools ruin a great thing for you.
Yeah, it took me a while to get into Nirvana. I avoided them for a long time. After Kurt killed himself, I was even less interested in Nirvana and thought it was rediculous how everyone was "overreacting" over his death. Of course now, I think Nirvana is wicked.
Kurdt was actually a great guitarist and shredder...did lots of shredding on a version of smells like teen spirit...albeit a parody of van halen's style...because eddie pissed him off...the fact remains...if Kurdt was trying he could have been playing regular scale rock/metal....but he wanted to middle finger the establishment of music...I feel he'd be very disappointed in the nickleback's(post grunge pop bands) that he inspired...but I feel he'd have loved the post hardcore bands he inspired(the chariot/dillenger escape plan/mewithoutyou/slothrust...ETC) anyway just defending....a reasonably sober kurt cobain could shredd with almost of the best of shredders...
I was an 80s metal head, when Teen Spirit came out I liked it but when I heard Bleach and Incesticide I thought: "Oh great, this is the "authentic" Nirvana".
Kurt was a musical genius, he changed the face of rock music forever and penned one of the all time greatest albums. Iconic voice, iconic melodies, just a great band. I'll never forget the moment when I first heard his death announced on the radio...tragedy.
Miles Parker ты прав, товарищ. Однако, попробуй сыграть как он-не выйдет. Конечно техника у него хромала и до виртуозов ему, как до марса, но он самоучка и научился владеть инструментом порядочно. Кстати, ни один сегодняшний виртуоз не может похвастаться более-менее приемлемыми мелодиями.,а Кобейн мог!
That's like saying Hendrix didn't have the skills... They were both masters of their instrument, in my opinion that takes a lot of skill... Just because someone isn't classically trained, doesn't mean they haven't mastered the instrument or music in general..
@@evaderknives Let's be honest. Kurt wasn't a good guitar player. He was even sloppy and you can see and hear that for yourself if you watch concerts. He just had talent for writing songs.
It just goes to show how iconic Kurt's playing and compisition was. Heck, add that with his voice and it's no wonder why Nirvana's albums will live on through time.
As soon as he hit the back of the neck I thought, "Breed!" The first time I ever figured out tab it was for "Come as You Are," and I was so excited, felt like I'd finally made it.
Don't forget that for the most part Nirvana was a 3 man band (give or take occasional appearances by part timer Pat Smear) Not many 4 or 5+ member bands ever matched the energy and ferociousness these guys delivered every performance. AND it was all new. Love it or hate it, they pioneered that sound from scratch and still own it.
Kurt Cobain gave guys like me back in the day hope as a guitar player. Before Nirvana there was Metallica and Guns and Roses. Those guitar players were shredders and I was just starting out on a guitar and it felt like it was gonna take me forever to sound like my heros. Then came Cobain and he changed the playing field, suddenly making me feel like I could achieve a more attainable goal haha. Unfortunately I sorta learned a lot of Nirvana songs and decided i was good enough until the late 90s and then realized it was time to start stepping up my game again. Sorry about the sports puns haha, I'm actually not really into sports.
kurt probably had a 1000 things in his head he couldnt figure out how to play. but its ok because he worked around it and made some of the greatest songs ever. he was moving away from heavy guitar and towards a more acoustic sound towards the end of his life
Kurt is a criminally underrated guitarist. I think his "sloppy" style was intentional to a degree, and it added so much to his and Nirvana's sound. He wasn't an insanely good player from a technical standpoint, but that's nowhere near what he was trying to do or wanted to be. His sense of melody was unmatched, and his guitar writing highlights that, and his playing style gave the music so much unique character too. Nobody can play or write quite like Cobain, and if that, along with the amazing music he gave us, doesn't qualify him as a great guitarist, I don't know what would.
Well said. People that want to measure Kurt against guys like Vai or Yngwie just don't get it and likely never will. To Kurt playing guitar was a means to an end- and that end was creating absolutely beautifully brilliant original songs. Something none of the shred kings seem capable of delivering anyway.
100%. I've been to guitar clinics all over the world and have seen kids in Asia shred harder than just about anyone you can imagine. They're a dime a dozen these days but if had a chance to see Cobain play live again I'd take it over all the Shawn Lane wannabes in the entire world.
@@JethroBoDean You metal elitists completely miss the point that he actually knew how to write good songs,so what he didn't do 7 minute guitar solos? I can listen to And Justice For All or Symphony of Destruction, enjoy it and then go back to Nirvana and realize they were really something special.
Kurt was a great guitarist for the simple reason that he was a fantastic composer, writer, and artist. Love it or hate it, his creativity speaks for itself. People boast “it’s easy to play!” but they never ask themselves “could I create such groundbreaking music that changed the whole music scene?” Of course, the answer is NO! He was a musical revolutionary and he killed 80’s glam rock hair metal garbage! Besides, us fans don’t give a single flying fuck what anyone thinks of him or his music!
This lesson shows that kurt did way more than just power chords. He added so much and so little at the same time. It's hard to be so complex within simplicity. He also had a great voice and huge amounts of passion. Backed by an amazing complementary bassist with Krist Novoselic.
He topped itnoff for sure. But everyone always fkrgets about chad channing. He had great parts and sounds. I love the early stuff. Maybe he wasnt so tight live, but sometimes dave was to robotic live, not allowing certain songs to pulsate and drop or go up a few bpm while feeling it in the moment. I know i like just a little slip from time to time in my drummers.but i am one so i know what i mean anf am looking for @@svenjansen2134
He was a true original and he didn’t give a fuck. His guitar playing sounds like a beautiful explosion to me. Only someone without traditional training could be so unique. It’s what he created that’s important.
The worst thing about guitar is fellow guitarists. I'm referencing the comments section not the video which was cool 👍 I'd love to see all these "great" guitarists in the comments section electrify a 60,000 crowd at Reading Festival with their fuckin My Chemical Romance covers 😂😂😂
This was a rad rad video man. I always search for insight into Kurt’s songwriting/guitar playing and this video is one of the best I’ve come across. In depth, and to the point.
On that first technique he demonstrates, you can see Kurt doing it at it's finest in the song In Bloom. The entire solo is him doing that crazy long slow bend into a frantic vibrato the entire time and uses maybe 4 or 5 notes the entire solo and it's still one of the most difficult solos to replicate EDIT: Well, guess I should of waited until he demonstrated the next technique and mentioned In Bloom like I did... better to edit and not get called out and not delete my comment.. lol
Love this channel. I wanted to voice my appreciation for the respect given to Cobain's style and an attention to detail regarding his technique. Most Nirvana lessons on RU-vid get to the strange sections I really want to learn, then say "It's more about emotion than the actual notes" which is a total cop out. Thank you. You teach me a lot.
Love this video so much. So great to see someone else pick up on the little things kurt did. His playing and songs inspired me to play and learn guitar and playing his songs were so fun to learn and it's so good to play and not be so clean with playing. Best style of playing kurt cobain was. You can just hear the passion of a talented man, who sadly got noticed for only 1 song.
This is an excellent video! Videos on Dean DeLeo and Jerry Cantrell would be great too. You always do a fantastic job teaching the techniques others employ so players can add them to their arsenal.
I was in my mid teens in the mid 90's and Kurt got me into playing the guitar and singing. Nirvana basically were the 90's for me. My poor mom had to listen to their records *a lot* having the living room next to my room. Whenever I bring that up, she will tell me "Yeah, well I preferred that to when you were 12 and listening to rap, they're only talking!" 😂 I really enjoyed this video! Thanks! 👍 7:45 "Hot town, summer in the city..." 😉
What fascinated me about Kurt is how his solos sounded so erratic and random, on songs like school and in bloom, yet if you watch his live performances, the solos sound IDENTICAL to the studio versions!! How the hell is he doing that? initially it sounds liek he's just improvising and winging it, but if you listen to a bunch of live shows, they sound exact and intentional. it's crazy... another solo example is on Serve the Servants. he really nails them perfect every time
As a guitar player I'd say his 'mistakes' and 'bum' notes were all intentional because it made the songs sound punkier and better for the intended vibe. Even technical guitarists will notice the visceral parts of a solo are when the notes are on the edge. It's what gives it the emotion and separates humans from robots.
I watched a lot of nirvana bootlegs and cobain does some different things with each on blew or sappy for instance but he is no doubt a pretty good guitar soloist. Did i say good? I meant pretty damn good!
I learned how to play guitar from bleach and in utero songs. Easy stuff now... but the fact the he inspired me to pick up the guitar more than anyone else should say a lot. I still play the Heart Shaped Box riff as soon as I drop D (yes I know it’s actually lower). Great video. It brought me back too my early days of inspiration.
I have always respected Kurt as a person. He wrote and played from his heart and didn't care what anyone thought of him. He was never ashamed or let pride/ego get to his head. After becoming famous, most people tend to buy expensive clothes and other material items, but he stuck to his roots and continued being who he was. He was even one of the first to acknowledge minorities, mental illness and bullying. I believe he helped bring those topics to light. He may not be the best guitarist, but he wasn't trying to be. Comparing guitar players is so silly to me. How can you say Kurt sucks at guitar because he's not Steve Vai or someone else? That makes no sense. Can't people just listen to different artists without making comparisons? Furthermore, as a guitarist myself, one of my entry level guitar players I could learn from was Kurt. His riffs are simple enough to mimic and satisfy a beginner player. A lot of potential guitarists can get easily discouraged if the only people they can learn from are so advanced that it would take years to play them correctly. For Nirvana (and a few others) though, being able to hear a familiar come out from your fingers sends a wave of reassurance down your spine. I've taught new players some riffs and as soon as they can play them, it is amazing seeing their face light up with joy knowing what they can do.
Never really listened to nirvana too much but funny enough I've been doing a lot of these techniques because I'm the only guitar player in my band and I had to do something to spice up the sound and make it sound bigger and more entertaining.
I liked the playing of cobain anyways but you pointed me to some really great stuff. Thank you for this Video. You also gave me some really good answers for People saying cobain was a bad guitarist.
It's weird, because I learned a lot of nirvana early on I kinda just assumed a lot of these were just cool tricks, not something Kurt was unique in doing. Like, I've been doing double bends for years, never realised it was a unique or rare technique. Cool!
@@thecloudyguy4207 Kurt probably knew he would never recover from his heroin addiction. He also probably thought he would be a bad influence and a bad parent for his daughter. That must have been hard for him to handle and he just couldn't take it.
I love the way you explain kurt's technique as a more studied/learned guitarist. it provides some insight into their musical intuition that you can't appreciate just by copying it or hearing it. i'm going to play some kurt riffs now! i've only played do re mi because it's very dear to my heart. talk about simple chord structure becoming incredibly creative!
