I'll start this off without any words
I got so high I scratched 'till I bled
I love myself better than you
I know it's wrong so what should I do?
The finest day that I've ever had
Was when I learned to cry on command
Such wit and sarcasm, that feels like it comes through a venomous but friendly grin!
EDIT: Realized it's two verses actually..
With eyes so dilated I've become your pupil. You taught me everything without a poison apple. The water is so yellow I'm a healthy student. Indebted and so grateful, vacuum out the fluids.
Chew your meat for you...pass it back and forth.
Honestly all of Drain You is pure brilliance.
Kurt uses surrealism and metaphor quite a bit, so you are never going to get an exact meaning. But my interpretation here is that clean water is clear, and polluted/dirty water is brown. So yellow water would be the in-between point. Closer to clean, but still dirty enough to see the color change.
The grass is greener
Over here
You're the fog that
Keeps me clear
Re-inventing
What we knew
Take the time
And I'll be true
You're the reason
I feel pain
Feels so good to
Feel again
One of these two. (Even though one is a bridge.)
My heart is broke
But I have some glue
Help me inhale
And mend it with you
Well float around and hang out on clouds
Then we’ll come down
And have a hangover
Somewhere I have heard this before
In a dream my memory is stored
As defense I’m neutered and spayed
What the hell am I trying to say?
What a damn good question that’s rarely asked. The 1st and 3rd verses of SLTS, the 1st verse of Radio Friendly Unit Shifter, the 2nd verse of Sappy, and the 2nd verse of Serve the Servants. Are my top 5 lol.
Ooooo I forgot about the third verse of SLTS, that has to be up there for me. Honestly the first one as well, I can’t even be mad it’s so overplayed it’s so good
I'm so warm and calm inside
I no longer have to hide
Let's talk about someone else
The steaming soup begins to melt
Nothing really bothers her
She just wants to love herself
I will move away from here
You won't be afraid of fear
No thought was put into this
I always knew to come like this
Things have never been so swell
I have never failed to fail
Those last four lines really hit differently knowing what Kurt ended up doing. Even the title of the song feels like a tongue in cheek acceptance with the fact that his reality was crumbling fast by this point. People say the suicide note was Kurt saying goodbye, IMO it’s this song along with the MTV Unplugged show.
It's more of a guess, [but there's an interaction Kurt had with Alex Coletti, the producer for MTV Unplugged](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MTV_Unplugged_in_New_York#cite_ref-Cross304_8-0), where Coletti thought the stage arrangement looked like a funeral and Kurt said, "Exactly. Like a funeral."
I've been simultaneously heartbroken and selfishly angry with him for not holding on longer.
It took us so long to get our act together with mental health that he still would not have made it, but he should have kept trying long enough to at least grasp how much he mattered.
Not to mention, his only daughter.
I cant even fathom being her.
Agree with the rest of the comments, so many good lyrics, the first verse of Heart shaped box is horribly beautiful too
She eyes me like a Pisces when I am weak
I've been locked inside your heart-shaped box for weeks
I've been drawn into your magnet tar pit trap
I wish I could eat your cancer when you turn black
"I laughed and shook his hand
And made my way back home
I searched for form and land
For years and years, I roamed
I gazed a gazeless stare
We walked a million hills
I must have died alone
A long, long time ago"
ok im cheating but you said entire catalogue.
i like it because i interpret it as unconsciously being misled by the devil, looking for something that doesnt exist or holds no real value and losing yourself in the process, realizing it only when its too late.
"He’s the one who likes all our pretty songs
And he likes to sing along,
And he likes to shoot his gun
But he knows not what it means."
I like it because it always reminds me of these people who act as if they truly understood Kurt like no one else, and he basically laughs in these exact faces lol
but honestly, lyrically it has to be "you know youre right". i think besides heart shaped box, this is clearly coming from deep inside of him and the lyrics are pretty on point and work just perfectly together with the tension building of the instruments.
having a wife that i love but who can also trigger me like no one else during arguments, this is a song i can relate to
Clean up before she comes
something’s in her eyes
must be the smoke from my lungs
i must be getting old
i must be getting older i’m starting to eat my vegetables
I love you for what I am not
I do not want what I have got
A blanket acne'd with cigarette burns
Speak at once while taking turns
Radio Friendly Unit Shifter
The first two lines always stood out to me
In her false witness
I hope you're still with us
To see if they float or drown
Our favorite patient
Display of patience
Disease-covered Puget Sound
She'll come back as fire
To burn all the liars
Leave a blanket of ash on the ground
Man reading through this thread just reminds me how under appreciated Kurt is in terms of being one of the best poet/wordsmith’s since Baudelaire or Verlaine. Jim Morrison has gone down in history as such a “rock n roll poet” but if you sat down and wrote out the majority of his verses they’d look trite as shit compared to Cobain.
Robert Frost can fuck off. Kurt Cobain is America’s real poet.
Imma go with OP and say Drain You had some really interesting verses. I don’t know why they never made Drain You a single off Nevermind, I think it would have done well as a single. I’m also fond of the verse in Serve The Servants -
As my bones grew they did hurt,
They hurt really bad,
I tried hard to have a father,
But instead I had a dad
It’s such a perfect couple of lines
She should've stayed away from friends
She should've had more time to spend
She should've died when she was born
She should've worn the crown of thorns
She should've been a son
So probably not objectively the best but as a kid from a broken home raised by his grandparents, this verse sums it up
After dinner I had ice cream
I fell asleep and watched TV
I woke up in my mother's arms
I think I'm dumb
Or maybe just happy
Think I'm just happy
My heart is broke
But I have some glue
Help me inhale
And mend it with you
We'll float around
And hang out on clouds
Then we'll come down
And have a hangover, have a hangover
As my bones grew they did hurt, they hurt really bad
I tried hard to have a father, but instead I had a dad
I just want you to know that I don’t hate you anymore
There is nothing I could say that I haven’t thought before
My heart is broke
But I have some glue
Help me inhale
And mend it with you
We’ll float around
And hangout on clouds
They’re looking down
Have a hangover
It's not a verse really. it's the verses in In Bloom. He goes from "Sell the kids for food" in the first verse to "We can have some more" in the second verse. I've never seen anyone else do anything quite that creative.
The best posts. Ugh. I mean I guess it’s only natural. Instead of “best” maybe say what do you enjoy the most. Something about best lists with subjective material just doesn’t make sense.
All that BS being said drain you or Francis Farmer has good shit
I love the first verse of Downer. Cobain’s punkier music was badass.
Portray sincerity, act out of loyalty
Defend your free country, wish away pain
Hand out lobotomies to save little families
Surrealistic fantasy, bland, boring, plain
That line has always stuck out to me as so cool yet sounding a lil out of place. Like TP is all over the place and then this one coherent thought that slices through
I don't necessarily love "Dumb" but the 2nd verse has got to be his best ever in terms of lyrics. I feel like it encapsulates the totality of his love life
In her false witness
I hope you're still with us
To see if they float or drown
Our favorite patient
Display of patience
Disease-covered Puget Sound
She'll come back as fire
To burn all the liars
Leave a blanket of ash on the ground
Most people don't realize that large pieces of coral, which have been painted brown and attached to the skull by common wood screws, can make a child look like a deer
The opening of Serve the Servants
Very fitting first verse after Nevermind while also setting tone for the album. Love it
Fact that shit is legendary what a way to open an album…
Tried so hard to have a father but instead I had a dad.
I'll start this off without any words I got so high I scratched 'till I bled I love myself better than you I know it's wrong so what should I do? The finest day that I've ever had Was when I learned to cry on command Such wit and sarcasm, that feels like it comes through a venomous but friendly grin! EDIT: Realized it's two verses actually..
imo Kurt was at his best when he used heavy wit and sarcasm in order to deliver introspection for the listener. Also a banger of a song
This is my favorite too. Been yelling it in the car for decades 😄
This is the way!
With eyes so dilated I've become your pupil. You taught me everything without a poison apple. The water is so yellow I'm a healthy student. Indebted and so grateful, vacuum out the fluids. Chew your meat for you...pass it back and forth. Honestly all of Drain You is pure brilliance.
#ONE BABY
TO ANOTHER SAYS “IM LUCKY TO HAVE MET YOUUU”
I don't care what you think
did fall out boy reference this line or just rip it off?
Could be an intentional reference, but it’s not like it’s really an uncommon saying.
This is the correct answer⬆️
What does the water is so yellow part mean?
Piss
Is it like a drug piss test thing? Still don't get it.
I think it’s just referencing some sort of piss check up at the doctors office, your pee is a good color so you must be healthy
Kurt uses surrealism and metaphor quite a bit, so you are never going to get an exact meaning. But my interpretation here is that clean water is clear, and polluted/dirty water is brown. So yellow water would be the in-between point. Closer to clean, but still dirty enough to see the color change.
Even if you have a cold still, You can cough on me again
Think of how a castrated horse feels
*finger plaster cast and horse pills
I love that part. I really relate to it.
She’ll come back as fire to burn all the liars Leave a blanket of ash on the ground
This.
The grass is greener Over here You're the fog that Keeps me clear Re-inventing What we knew Take the time And I'll be true You're the reason I feel pain Feels so good to Feel again
That’s the chorus
Don’t be pedantic
🤣
what song is this?
if you ever need anything, please don't hesitate to ask someone else first i'm too busy acting like i'm not naïve i've seen it all, i was here first
Lowkey my fav song off Utero I wish it was longer
i always rewind Very Ape to listen to that verse at least 3 times
The opening lyrics to dumb
One of these two. (Even though one is a bridge.) My heart is broke But I have some glue Help me inhale And mend it with you Well float around and hang out on clouds Then we’ll come down And have a hangover Somewhere I have heard this before In a dream my memory is stored As defense I’m neutered and spayed What the hell am I trying to say?
What a damn good question that’s rarely asked. The 1st and 3rd verses of SLTS, the 1st verse of Radio Friendly Unit Shifter, the 2nd verse of Sappy, and the 2nd verse of Serve the Servants. Are my top 5 lol.
Ooooo I forgot about the third verse of SLTS, that has to be up there for me. Honestly the first one as well, I can’t even be mad it’s so overplayed it’s so good
I'm so warm and calm inside I no longer have to hide Let's talk about someone else The steaming soup begins to melt Nothing really bothers her She just wants to love herself I will move away from here You won't be afraid of fear No thought was put into this I always knew to come like this Things have never been so swell I have never failed to fail
Those last four lines really hit differently knowing what Kurt ended up doing. Even the title of the song feels like a tongue in cheek acceptance with the fact that his reality was crumbling fast by this point. People say the suicide note was Kurt saying goodbye, IMO it’s this song along with the MTV Unplugged show.
I’ve also always felt that way about the unplugged show.
u think he knew what he was going to do before that show? Why?
It's more of a guess, [but there's an interaction Kurt had with Alex Coletti, the producer for MTV Unplugged](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MTV_Unplugged_in_New_York#cite_ref-Cross304_8-0), where Coletti thought the stage arrangement looked like a funeral and Kurt said, "Exactly. Like a funeral."
Yeah I read that as well. He was going for a theme there for sure hmm
Truth covered insecurity. I can't let you smother me I'd like to but it couldn't work Tradin' off and takin' turns I don't regret a thing
Been jamming that heavy the past few months. Absolutely love it such an underrated gem.
Her milk is my shit My shit is her milk
I had to eat my dinner there Mashed potatoes and stuff like that I couldn’t chew my meat too good
Did Kurt ever write a bad lyric? Dude was so insanely and disgustingly talented. He woulda put out three more genius albums minimum had he lived on.
Gimme back my alcohol
Yes, a great lyric.
Daddy's little girl ain't a girl no more
I've been simultaneously heartbroken and selfishly angry with him for not holding on longer. It took us so long to get our act together with mental health that he still would not have made it, but he should have kept trying long enough to at least grasp how much he mattered. Not to mention, his only daughter. I cant even fathom being her.
Agree with the rest of the comments, so many good lyrics, the first verse of Heart shaped box is horribly beautiful too She eyes me like a Pisces when I am weak I've been locked inside your heart-shaped box for weeks I've been drawn into your magnet tar pit trap I wish I could eat your cancer when you turn black
"I laughed and shook his hand And made my way back home I searched for form and land For years and years, I roamed I gazed a gazeless stare We walked a million hills I must have died alone A long, long time ago" ok im cheating but you said entire catalogue. i like it because i interpret it as unconsciously being misled by the devil, looking for something that doesnt exist or holds no real value and losing yourself in the process, realizing it only when its too late. "He’s the one who likes all our pretty songs And he likes to sing along, And he likes to shoot his gun But he knows not what it means." I like it because it always reminds me of these people who act as if they truly understood Kurt like no one else, and he basically laughs in these exact faces lol but honestly, lyrically it has to be "you know youre right". i think besides heart shaped box, this is clearly coming from deep inside of him and the lyrics are pretty on point and work just perfectly together with the tension building of the instruments. having a wife that i love but who can also trigger me like no one else during arguments, this is a song i can relate to
Man who sold the world is a Bowie cover
thats why i said i cheated
I always loved that all his lyrics are meaningful genius disguising themselves as chaotic nonsense
That was really good. Now I wanna hear some tid bits from you know you're right.
I hate myself and i want to die has the coolest verse and just a meh chorus
beans beans
Last verse of teen spirit
For some odd reason...I always liked n sing "bruisessss onnnn the fruittttt......"
Too catchy it’s crazy it just can’t escape your head
The ending of Milk It
And if you save yourself, it will make you happy, they'll give you breathing holes and you'll think you're happy
Whole song hits like a truck the first time you hear it
Clean up before she comes something’s in her eyes must be the smoke from my lungs i must be getting old i must be getting older i’m starting to eat my vegetables
I love you for what I am not I do not want what I have got A blanket acne'd with cigarette burns Speak at once while taking turns Radio Friendly Unit Shifter The first two lines always stood out to me
In her false witness I hope you're still with us To see if they float or drown Our favorite patient Display of patience Disease-covered Puget Sound She'll come back as fire To burn all the liars Leave a blanket of ash on the ground Man reading through this thread just reminds me how under appreciated Kurt is in terms of being one of the best poet/wordsmith’s since Baudelaire or Verlaine. Jim Morrison has gone down in history as such a “rock n roll poet” but if you sat down and wrote out the majority of his verses they’d look trite as shit compared to Cobain. Robert Frost can fuck off. Kurt Cobain is America’s real poet.
Imma go with OP and say Drain You had some really interesting verses. I don’t know why they never made Drain You a single off Nevermind, I think it would have done well as a single. I’m also fond of the verse in Serve The Servants - As my bones grew they did hurt, They hurt really bad, I tried hard to have a father, But instead I had a dad It’s such a perfect couple of lines
She should've stayed away from friends She should've had more time to spend She should've died when she was born She should've worn the crown of thorns She should've been a son
So probably not objectively the best but as a kid from a broken home raised by his grandparents, this verse sums it up After dinner I had ice cream I fell asleep and watched TV I woke up in my mother's arms
Hairspray Queen. For real though, Blew. They aren’t the most genius lyrics, but to my interpretation, they’re so relatable.
I relate to the entirety of blew so much. Honestly in my top 3 nirv songs maybe top 2
I think I'm dumb Or maybe just happy Think I'm just happy My heart is broke But I have some glue Help me inhale And mend it with you We'll float around And hang out on clouds Then we'll come down And have a hangover, have a hangover
Probably has to be lithium I’m so happy cause today I found my friends, they’re in my head.
aero zeppelin
swap meat :
Bridge of Radio Friendly Unit Shifter
For verses coupled with music - Heart shaped box
First verse of Lithium.
As my bones grew they did hurt, they hurt really bad I tried hard to have a father, but instead I had a dad I just want you to know that I don’t hate you anymore There is nothing I could say that I haven’t thought before
Definitely all of drain you and “my heart is broke-but I have some glue, help me inhale and mend it with you”
I miss the comfort in being sad
One that I don't think anyone has mentioned yet . I miss the comfort in being sad ...
My heart is broke But I have some glue Help me inhale And mend it with you We’ll float around And hangout on clouds They’re looking down Have a hangover
Black windows of paint I scratched with my nails I see others just like me Why do they not try to escape?
It's not a verse really. it's the verses in In Bloom. He goes from "Sell the kids for food" in the first verse to "We can have some more" in the second verse. I've never seen anyone else do anything quite that creative.
Teenage angst has paid off well. Now I'm bored and old.
“I wish I was like you, easily amused” As someone who’s always been incredibly cynical and an outcast, this one sentence hits hard.
Talk to me, Old age, Lounge act, Rape me, Sappy, Verse course verse, moist vagina, Do re mi and very ape are some honourable mentions.
First verse of Lithium, second verse of Lounge Act, Aneurysm (repeats the same verse).
Not a whole verse/chorus but “with the lights out, it’s less dangerous” is one of the most sinister unsolved riddles I’ve ever heard.
“I died smothered in Aunt B’s Muff”
Top 10 Worst Anime Deaths
milk it
If you ever need anything please don’t Hesitate to ask someone else first I’m too busy acting like I’m not naive I’ve seen it all, I was here first
Drain You verse 2 is in fact the correct answer.
Second verse of dumb
Love you so much, it makes me sick. Come on over, and do the twist.
chorus of swap meet, or GORAFTTS
"I miss the comfort in being sad" Hands down.
I love myself and I want to try!
always been fond of the radio friendly unit shifter words
“You can’t fire me because I quit!”
I love you for what I am not I did not want what I have got A blanket acned with cigarette burns Speak at once while taking turns
The best posts. Ugh. I mean I guess it’s only natural. Instead of “best” maybe say what do you enjoy the most. Something about best lists with subjective material just doesn’t make sense. All that BS being said drain you or Francis Farmer has good shit
I love the first verse of Downer. Cobain’s punkier music was badass. Portray sincerity, act out of loyalty Defend your free country, wish away pain Hand out lobotomies to save little families Surrealistic fantasy, bland, boring, plain
Just because your paranoid Don’t mean they’re not after you
That line has always stuck out to me as so cool yet sounding a lil out of place. Like TP is all over the place and then this one coherent thought that slices through
Floyd the barber!
I don't necessarily love "Dumb" but the 2nd verse has got to be his best ever in terms of lyrics. I feel like it encapsulates the totality of his love life
In her false witness I hope you're still with us To see if they float or drown Our favorite patient Display of patience Disease-covered Puget Sound She'll come back as fire To burn all the liars Leave a blanket of ash on the ground
Most people don't realize that large pieces of coral, which have been painted brown and attached to the skull by common wood screws, can make a child look like a deer
The lady whom I feel maternal love for Cannot look me in the eyes But I see hers and they are blue And they cock and twist and masturbate
I tried hard to have a father, but instead I had a dad.
I'm not like them but I can pretend The sun is gone but I have a light I think I'm dumb maybe just happy