Happy Birthday Kurt Donald Cobain!

Montage of Kurt.

While we constantly change, there are always people, things, and surroundings which add up to create who we are at any moment in time.

"I wish Kim was allowed to write more songs for The Pixies, because ‘Gigantic’ is the best Pixies song and Kim wrote it."

Kurt Cobain penned that statement for Melody Maker magazine in a piece called "Rebellious Jukebox". Back in the early nineties, Melody Maker used to run a section called 'Rebellious Jukebox' (titled after the song by the band the Fall). The magazine would invite musicians to choose ten to twelve albums which carried some sort of personal significance and then go into detail explaining why.

Kurt Cobain chose ten albums of which he was particularly fond. One was 'Surfer Rosa' by the Pixies and another was 'Pod' by the Breeders. Hmm what- or rather who- do these two bands have in common? I can remember first coming across Kurt's list as a teenager and voraciously investigating the inspirations of someone about whose music I was already so passionate. Incidentally, I named this youtube channel, in part, after Kurt Cobain's 'Rebellious Jukebox'.

It's no secret that Kurt admired and drew musical influence from the Pixies. He was very vocal about them being one of his all time favorite bands. However, what a lot of people don't know is that Kurt's favorite part about the Pixies was actually KIM DEAL. Kurt was in awe of Kim and respected what she was able to do not only with the Pixies, but while that band was breaking up, how she was able to create her own, and arguably better band, the Breeders. Kim Deal's voice and the way she structured her songs put the Breeders even a wrung above the Pixies for Kurt, and I have to say in my opinion as well.

Kurt invited the Breeders on tour with Nirvana and by all accounts, both bands greatly enjoyed each other's company. Kurt and Kim gave the cover interview together for Melody Maker in December of 1993. The two posed for funny pictures, a couple of which I included at the end of the edit. In the picture of Kurt by himself, he's wearing his black 'Last Splash' Breeders merch in support of their album which was released a few months prior to his and Kim's photoshoot.

I'd wanted to make an edit to 'Gigantic' for a long time, but for whatever reason, kept holding onto it. I hope both Kurt and Kim would enjoy the video.