Customer Reviews

TEEN SPIRIT: The Stories Behind Every Nirvana Song

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Sure Kurt's songs were great and beautiful, but everyone knows that his lyrics are somewhat crytic, sometimes seeming like just nonsense. This book makes an attempt to explain the songs, but don't take it too seriously. Kurt is often quoted for thinking it's funny when people would try and analize his songs. He says that often they are just lines from poetry books of his, and he didn't even realize what he was writing at the time. There are some songs here that have a definate inspiration and solid meaning, but others were just pretty much made up as he went along. Go ahead and buy it if you have some cash to blow and want some outsider insites on the meaning of his songs.

Ok, this isn't the best book about Nirvana, but it's far from the worst.I really enjoyed the attempt to show a little about what Kurt's mind set was atthe time he was writing some of his punk-pop masterpieces.The book seems very well researched, with a lot of quotes and asides,and alsohas a lot of good pictures.Some of the pictures,however,have nothing to do with Nirvana.In fact,some are downright amusing.They seem a littleout of place, like the mismatched stock footage which graced the legendary Ed Wood's "finest" work as a director.Beyond that, there are a lot of good stories behind the songs.It was a good decision to include the cover songs, if for no other reason than to understand why Kurt loved them.To sum, although more time could have been spent on some songs, and inclusion of many of the pictures is somewhat odd, this is a good and interesting lookinto the mind of a brilliant and sometimes tormented Pied Piper of the misbegotten.

ANY TRUE NIRVANA WOULD APPRECIATE THIS BOOK VERY MUCH. IT NOT ONLY HAS APPROX. 2 PAGES OF SUPERB INFO ABOUT EVERY NIRVANA SONGS,IT ALSO INCLUDES DISCOGRAPHY, GREAT PHOTOGRAPHS [ON ALMOST EVERY PAGE] AND A TIMELINE FROM WHEN KRIST WAS BORN TILL KURT DIED. IT TELLS WHAT THE SONGS MEAN. HOW KURT WAS FEELING WHEN HE WROTE THE SONGS. WHAT THEY WERE ABOUT. BUY IT-YOU WILL LOVE IT!! I KNOW I DO!

Was a decent read, but covered a lot of ground covered elsewhere. The meanings of the songs were more the author's interpretation, and it is questionable as to whether or not this is really the message the song was meant to convey. Okay, but not worth twelve bucks.

This book is so great, I'm a Nirvana junkie I know tons about them along with others, but until you buy this book you don't know it all. There are so many facts I didn't know about some of Kurt's songs that I know now because of this book. It is such an awesome book evey Nirvana freak should own one!!!

Well this book was great but really could have been better. The stories were almost all true but some lacked some. Like the story behind the Vaselines song "Jesus Dosn't Want Me For A Sunbeam" spent the whole time elaberating on Kurts love for the Vaselines and many other bands but failed to mention that the song is a rendition of a Mormon hymn "Jesus Wants Me For A Sunbeam" I fully enjoyed the story for Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge On Seattle though. Its a must get book but use you have to realize that there is no way that it is completely accurate. The pics are great though.

I've Always Liked Books Which Offer The Stories Behind Songs,But There Are Problems Which Arise Concerning This Book.First,Not EVERY Song Is Mentioned.I Realize That Alot Of The Lesser-Known Songs Would Be Difficult To Get Much Dirt On But That Leads One To Say That Maybe The Title Should Have Been,"The Story Behind Most Of Nirvana's Songs".Sure,Not The Best Marketing Scheme,But You Know What I Mean."Every" Was A Bit Extreme.Also,As I Notice Someone Else Mentioned,Cobain Himself Insisted That Most Of His Songs Were Meaningless.He May Have Been Just Saying That,Maybe Alittle Embarressed About Telling People What He Really Meant,But Then Maybe He Wasn't.I Guess There Can Be Deeper Psychological Meanings To Things Even When They're Just Written At The Spur Of The Moment With No Thought Worked Into It At All,But Some Of The Stories Provided Didn't Add Up.Such As Why "Breed" Was Originally Titled "Immodium"Because Of A Tourmates Bout With A Sick Stomach.I Can See The Immodium Connection In The Story But Not With The Song "Breed".There's No Mention Of Diarreah Anywhere In "Breed".Just A Qualm I Have With The Book.I Think Stories And Explainations Were A Bit Pushed For.Otherwise,I Quite Like The Book,But More For The Stories That Actually Make Sense And Add Up.

This book is a great one. My only quarrel is that they failed to mention the b-sides and unreleased tunes. But for the most part all the songs from the main albums are here and are very informative. A must for all Nirvana fans.

Great picures, doesn't have ALL songs, but almost all. Very good buy though.

I only have read two Nirvana books, so I can't compare to any other. To me is a worth-buying book. It has nice pictures, stories of their songs. It is not the greatest thing in the world, but I still think it's very good.