Smells Like Teen Spirit

You Tube

Smells Like Teen Spirit was a single from Nevermind, the 1991 album that catapulted Nirvana to fame. Supposedly, the name came from graffiti Kathleen Hanna of the band Bikini Kill once wrote on the wall of lead singer Kurt Cobain鈥檚 hotel room. She wrote 鈥淜urt smells like Teen Spirit鈥� in reference to a deodorant brand that Cobain鈥檚 girlfriend at the time wore. Cobain, who didn鈥檛 know what Teen Spirit was, was said to have interpreted it as a revolutionary catchphrase and named a song after it.

The composition Cobain and the rest of Nirvana created using the title was, according to Cobain himself, an attempt at 鈥渢he ultimate pop song鈥� and was influenced by The Pixies. Although it wasn鈥檛 expected to be particularly successful, the album Nevermind became triple platinum by February of 1992, with Smells Like Teen Spirit being a major contributor to its success. The popularity of the song, the album, and the band is sometimes considered the catalyst for bringing alternative rock, and especially the 1990s grunge genre, to the mainstream.

With its distinctive, distorted guitar riff, Smells Like Teen Spirit became Nirvana鈥檚 most popular song. It served as an anthem for many of Generation X, who, like Cobain, found themselves confused and uncertain about the world around them. The song鈥檚 nihilistic vibe (鈥淗ere we are now, entertain us / I feel stupid and contagious鈥�) appealed to many in a youth culture perceived as apathetic and cynical by outsiders.

Rolling Stone would later vote it the 9th best song of all time. It remains extremely popular and well-known even by people who don鈥檛 know any other Nirvana songs.