Customer Reviews

Who Killed Kurt Cobain?: The Mysterious Death of an Icon

5 star:		(46)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(16)

 

 

When the rock icon of a generation dies, media attention isinevitable. In April 1994, the death of Kurt Cobain created a tidalwave of attention. Thousands of fans mourned Cobain, the lead singer of the band Nirvana, a group often credited with pioneering the Seattle grunge scene.

More than 65 young people eventually followed their hero into death, committing "copycat" suicides.

Cobain's death was a sensational and strange tale that inspired passionate debates about suicide, the emptiness of the 90s generation, and the responsibilities of pop culture heroes.

Cobain, who died at the age of 27, was a brilliant and creative man who led an emotionally troubled life. He was a heroin user who reportedly committed suicide, leaving a young daughter and wife behind. Days before he died he had disappeared from an L.A. drug treatment center.

The book "Who Killed Kurt Cobain? The Mysterious Death of an Icon" does not answer the question posed by its title. But it does provide compelling reasons why the investigation into his death should be reopened.

The book relates biographical information about Kurt Cobain and his wife Courtney Love; the events leading up to his death; information and insights gleaned from friends, relatives and people who had been in contact with the couple; and professional opinions from experts in various fields, including pathology and graphology.

Many people who knew Cobain do not believe that he killed himself. Either does Tom Grant, a private investigator hired by Courtney Love to find Cobain after he left the drug treatment center. Grant does not accept the verdict of suicide and has done everything in his power to convince the authorities to reopen the investigation into Cobain's death. Grant's involvement in the case and his crusade are explained in great detail. The address for Grant's Internet website, which receives up to one million hits a year, is listed.

Compelling arguments are presented to disprove the suicide verdict, which was arrived at very quickly after Cobain's death. The medical examiner at the scene, coincidentally, was a friend of Courtney Love's. According to the expert cited in the book, Cobain could not have shot himself with a shotgun given the amount of heroin found in his body: he would have passed out immediately after receiving that amount of the drug.

A musician who passed a lie detector test stating that Courtney Love had offered him several thousand dollars to kill Cobain was found dead under strange circumstances only weeks later.

There were no fingerprints found on the shotgun that inflicted a wound on Cobain, and what about the so-called suicide note? For starters it does not sound like a suicide note, but rather a note declaring his intention to quit the music business. And then there are the two apparently distinct sets of handwriting on this note, which is reproduced in a photograph.

The book focuses a great deal of suspicion on Courtney Love and her sometimes bizarre behavior before and after Cobain's death. In fact, Love's father is on record stating that he believes his daughter murdered her husband. Shockingly, Grant implicates Love in both the death of her husband as well as her bandmate in the group Hole, Kristen Pfaff.

"Who Killed Kurt Cobain?" was written by two Canadian investigative journalists, Ian Halperin and Max Wallace. Halperin and Wallaces were cowinners of the "Rolling Stone" magazine Award for Investigative Journalism. No concrete proof of the murder theory is contained within the book, although the information is well presented.

"Who Killed Kurt Cobain?" will definitely be of interest to Nirvana fans, and to those who like to ponder real-life mysteries. Because the death of Kurt Cobain was as tragic as it was mysterious.

When I first heard a story that Kurt Cobain did not commit suicide but instead was murdered I found it implausible and ridiculous, not to mention sick. It must be some wacko's rantings. Everyone knows that Kurt killed himself, right? The disturbed personality, the suicide attempt in Rome, the note...

After reading this book I am left feeling very disturbed that a terrible injustice has gone overlooked by today's media and society.

This book first gives the story of Kurt's life, his phenomenal success and his marriage to Courtney Love. Then in a verifiable and coherent manner lays down an excellent case that Kurt's death was not the obvious suicide as it was portrayed in the media. It points out many unreported or misreported facts that dispute the cut-and-dried suicide theory. It also provides more than enough proof to seriously question the character and motives of Courtney Love.

If you are at all interested in the facts about how Kurt died, and especially if you were affected personally by his words and music, I HIGHLY recommend it. The truth must come out.

A superb book full of facts and stories relating to the mysterious events and unsolved circumstances relating to the death of my hero, Kurt Cobain. Was his sucicide note just a musical retirement note to his loving fans? Why is there someone else's handwriting on the so called suicide note? The legal systems in America must re open this case and send whoever killed Cobain down...Courtney Love? I recomend this book to anyone...even if you hated NIRVANA and thought Cobain was just a junkie, read this book and bring Cobain's killer to justice.

Some things which need pointing out before you read this book...

Kurt Cobain had 3 times the lethal dose of heroin (225 mgs) in his blood system. There were NO fingerprints on the shotgun, on the pen found with the "suicide" note, or the box of shotgun shells found beside Kurt. This indicates the crime scene was "swept" clean before the body was discovered. Eldon Hoke, singer of a band called the Mentors, claimed he was offered $50,000 by Courtney to kill Kurt in December 1993. On March 6, 1996, Hoke was administered a polygraph test by Dr. Edward Gelb, who is one of the country's leading polygraph experts and teaches the advanced polygraph course for the FBI. Hoke passed a lie detector test with 99.7% certainty that he was telling the truth. There is evidence that circumstances were manipulated to prevent Kurt from using his own car and gaining access to his own money in the days leading up to his death. Someone also attempted to use his credit card up until the morning of April 8th. Medical examiners determined Cobain had died on April 5th.

A little suspicious? That is just a few examples of the inconsistencies found in the SPD's investigation. You may want to check out justiceforkurt.com were there is also a rebuttals section - insuring it isn't overly biased information you are reading. There is obviously a lot more involved in this whole saga than meets the eye. WKKC is the best book that has been written about the cobain case led by Private Investigator Tom Grant, to this day. A must read!

"Who Killed Kurt Cobain?" was released in 1998, only four years after Cobain's death -- a relatively short amount of time. It is understandable that the evidence is not plentiful enough to make a solid conclusion. With the release of "Love and Death" (for which I am saving the fifth star) six years later comes much more evidence of the possible murder conspiracy. However, if you are just beginning to learn about the murder theory, don't just skip straight to "Love and Death" -- read this one too.

The difference between the two books is the amount of background information they provide. "Who Killed Kurt Cobain?" gives a lot more information on Kurt and Courtney, the people, which could be necessary if you haven't read much on them. It also goes into some more detail on the supposed approaching of El Duce by Courtney Love, as well as the eery "coincidence" of the only police officer to investigate the case being the only SPD officer to die on or coming off of the job in eight years.

In short, the two books are very different -- "Who Killed Kurt Cobain?" offers a more general look at the case, touching upon all of the evidence and even given a nice concise list at the end of one chapter. "Love and Death" focuses more upon the two most compelling pieces of evidence in support of the theory (the heroin level and the fact that the only person to talk about Kurt's suicidal tendencies was -- guess who? -- Courtney). I highly recommend both, and I also recommend looking up and looking over the essay "Dead Men Don't Pull Triggers" by Roger Lewis. It is a very scientific study of the physical impossibility of Kurt Cobain shooting himself. If you are not a medical student or a doctor, it will most likely go over your head (as it did mine) but it is worth looking at to show that no, everyone who pursues this theory is not simply a hack conspiracy theorist looking for notoriety.

Ignore all the reviews here that give this book 1 star. They are cleary made by people who haven't read this book! Every point they make is covered in the book (eg. Courtney DID give interviews after his death... try the VERY NEXT DAY! Live on TV... Did she mention her album? Of course!)

TRUE Nirvana fans would want to know the truth.

I whole heartedly recommend reading this book. It is well researched and impartial. Please read it, it will open your mind.

This book is brilliant and easy to read. It covers the life of Kurt pretty well and it also really makes you think about how he died. Did Courtney have anything to do with his death? Well, after reading this great book I must admit that I've got every reason to think she has something to hide. Wether or not she killed him or got someone to kill him you have to decide yourself after reading the book. The book dosen't answear a lot of questions but it sure raises alot of them ! A MUST READ FOR ALL COBAIN FANS.

Who Killed Kurt Cobain is an eerie investigation of the life of a legend. I found it very interesting to read about all the facts and opinions on Kurt's death. For fans of Courtney Love I am warning you that you may not enjoy what you read. The strange deaths and occurances have changed my opinion on how he died. This book is very well written and I even recommend it to people who aren't huge Nirvana fans. It will hold your interest tremendously.

I bought this book after searching for Heavier then Heaven by Charles Cross, which has been on the bestseller lists for some time now, and decided to buy this along with it so I could satisfy my curiosity regarding this well-known murder theory.

I expected not much than an entertaining conspiracy theory tome, but not the kind of investigative brilliance which I discovered is hidden in the pages of this book. This is a highly incisive account regarding the history of Kurt, Courtney, and the numerous unanswered questions surrounding Cobain's death, which are well laid-out in a very direct, non-preachy, professional manner for the reader to digest objectively. I have always felt there were a number of things left ignored about Kurt's death, and this book has completely aligned my perspective in a highly informed manner. A very good purchase indeed.
Buy this book, and learn the mysteries surrounding the death of this rock n' roll icon.

While I personally would not have given Hank Harrison as much space and authority as Halperin and Wallace have, it is the most thorough, objective and important work published to date on this extensive tragedy. I found it to be well-written and well-researched, except for minor inaccuracies, and it argues very reasonably and persuasively for the re-opening of the case. I highly recommend it to anyone interested in an objective introduction to the Cobain case, as it is free from the unreasonable apologias the media continues to make for Courtney Love.