Dumb (Nirvana song)
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"Dumb" is a song by American rock band Nirvana. It is the sixth song on the band's third studio album In Utero, released in 1993.
Contents
Composition and critical reception
Kurt Cobain wrote "Dumb" in the summer of 1990 after he had begun to follow some of his own poppier instincts.[1] Cobain debuted the song on September 25, 1990, when he performed a solo acoustic version on the Boy Meets Girl show on KAOS (FM) in Olympia, Washington.[1][2][3] The first live version featuring the full band was at the Off Ramp Café in Seattle, Washington on November 25, 1990.[3]
The song was first officially released in September, 1993 on the band's third and final studio album, In Utero. The album was recorded by Steve Albini at Pachyderm Studio in Cannon Falls, Minnesota in February, 1993, and features Kera Schaley on cello on "Dumb" and "All Apologies." Cobain cited both as examples of the type of song he wished he had put on previous Nirvana albums, and explained that the use of the word "happy" in "Dumb" was "a nice twist" on the negative stuff that they had done before.[4]
Michael Azerrad in his Story of Nirvana described the song as "Beatlesque".[5] Nirvana bassist Krist Novoselic called it "a beautiful song. That's a really good one. I like the BBC version of the song. It's real raw, but still the beauty is strong. A sweet pop song." [6]
"Dumb" was ranked at number 39 on WHFS's top 100 played songs of 1994,[7] number 41 on KROQ-FM’s top 100 played songs of 1994,[8] number 51 on Q101's top 100 played songs of 1994,[9] and number 82 on 91X's top 100 played songs of 1994.[10] The song was subsequently released on Nirvana’s two greatest hits albums, Nirvana in 2002 and Icon in 2010.
Other versions
- A live version appears on the band's MTV Unplugged in New York album, released in November, 1994. It was recorded during the band's MTV Unplugged performance at Sony Music Studios in New York City on November 18, 1993.
- A version appears on the band's rarities box set, With the Lights Out, released in November, 2004. It was recorded during a John Peel session for the BBC at Maida Vale Studios in London on September 3, 1991.[11]
- A live version appears on the live CD/DVD Live at Reading, released in November, 2009. It was recorded during the band's appearance at the Reading Festival in Reading, England, on August 30, 1992.
- An instrumental version appears on the 20th anniversary edition of In Utero, released in September, 2013. It was recorded by Jack Endino at Word of Mouth Productions in Seattle in October, 1992.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Crisafulli. pp. 93.
- ↑ St. Thomas. pp. 66.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Gillian G. Gaar. The Rough Guide to Nirvana. Penguin, 1993.
- ↑ St. Thomas. pp. 169.
- ↑ Azerrad. pp. 321.
- ↑ Gaar, Gillian G. In Utero. Continuum, 2006.
- ↑ WHFS Top 100 of 1994 rocklists.com. Retrieved 29 June 2013.
- ↑ KROQ’s Top 100 of 1994 rocklists.com. Retrieved 29 June 2013.
- ↑ Q101's Top 100 of 1994 rocklists.com. Retrieved 29 June 2013.
- ↑ 91X's Top 100 of 1994 rocklists.com. Retrieved 29 June 2013.
- ↑ St. Thomas. pp. 107.
Bibliography
- Azerrad, Michael. Come as You Are: The Story of Nirvana. Doubleday, (1994). ISBN 0-385-47199-8.
- Crisafulli, Chuck. Nirvana: The Stories Behind the Songs. Omnibus Press.(1996). ISBN 0-7119-5809-2.
- Gaar, Gillian G. In Utero. Continuum, (2006). ISBN 0-8264-1776-0
- Gaar, Gillian G.. The Rough Guide to Nirvana. Penguin, (1993). ISBN 978-1-85828-945-8.
- St Thomas, Kurt and Smith, Troy. Nirvana: The Chosen Rejects. St Martin's Griffin (2004). ISBN 0-312-20663-1.
External links
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