"Come as You Are"
Single by Nirvana
from the album Nevermind
Released	1992
Format	CD, 7", 12"
Recorded	1991 at Sound City, Van Nuys
Genre	Grunge
Length	16 min 24 s
Label	DGC
Producer(s)	Butch Vig
Chart positions
#32 (US) #9 (UK)
Nirvana singles chronology
"Smells Like Teen Spirit" (1991)	"Come as You Are" (1992)	"Lithium" (1992)

"Come as You Are" is a song by the American grunge band Nirvana. It is the third song on, and second single from their 1991 album Nevermind. It was the album's second most successful single, overshadowed only by "Smells Like Teen Spirit." Both songs are often credited with breaking Nirvana and grunge into the mainstream. Cover of Nirvanas single, Come As You Are. This image is the cover of an album or single. ... In music, a single is a short (usually ten minutes or less*) record, usually featuring one or two tracks as A-side, often accompanied by several B-sides, usually remixes or other songs. ... Nirvana was a popular American rock band from Aberdeen, Washington. ... Nevermind is the second studio album from the American grunge band, Nirvana. ... 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday. ... It has been suggested that CD rot be merged into this article or section. ... A gramophone record, (also phonograph record - often simply record) is an analog sound recording medium: a flat disc rotating at a constant angular velocity, with inscribed spiral grooves in which a stylus or needle rides. ... A gramophone record, (also phonograph record - often simply record) is an analog sound recording medium: a flat disc rotating at a constant angular velocity, with inscribed spiral grooves in which a stylus or needle rides. ... 1991 (MCMXCI) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Van Nuys is a district within the city of Los Angeles, California, United States. ... A music genre is a category (or genre) of pieces of music that share a certain style or basic musical language (van der Merwe 1989, p. ... Grunge music (sometimes also referred to as the Seattle Sound) is an independent-rooted music genre that became a commercially successful offshoot of hardcore punk, thrash metal, and alternative rock in the late 1980s and early 1990s. ... A minute is a unit of time equal to 1/60th of an hour and to 60 seconds. ... Look up second in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Geffen Records is an American record label, owned by Universal Music Group. ... In the music industry, a record producer (or music producer) has many roles, among them controlling the recording sessions, coaching and guiding the performers, and supervising the recording, mixing and mastering processes. ... Butch Vig Bryan Butch Vig (born August 2, 1957 in Viroqua, Wisconsin) is both a rock musician and record producer. ... Top 40 is a radio format based on frequent repetition of songs from a constantly-updated list of the forty best-selling singles. ... Motto: E pluribus unum (1789 to 1956) (Latin: Out of Many, One) In God We Trust (1956 to present) Anthem: The Star-Spangled Banner Capital Washington, D.C. Largest city New York City Official language(s) None at federal level; English de facto Government • President • Vice President Federal Republic George... Nirvana was a popular American rock band from Aberdeen, Washington. ... Smells Like Teen Spirit is a song by the American grunge band, Nirvana. ... Lithium is a song by the grunge band Nirvana. ... ... Nirvana was a popular American rock band from Aberdeen, Washington. ... In music, a single is a short (usually ten minutes or less*) record, usually featuring one or two tracks as A-side, often accompanied by several B-sides, usually remixes or other songs. ... 1991 (MCMXCI) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... An album is a collection of related audio tracks, released together commercially in an audio format to the public. ... Nevermind is the second studio album from the American grunge band, Nirvana. ... Smells Like Teen Spirit is a song by the American grunge band, Nirvana. ...

Meaning

"Come as You Are" is remembered as being one of Nirvana's more optimistic songs. While many other songs by the band would feature dark, bleak lyrics, "Come as You Are" welcomes the listener "as a friend". The song has an overall theme of acceptance, inviting the listener to do just what the title states. However, the song also carried with it an air of suspiscion when meeting an old friend, particularly the line "And I swear that I don't have a gun," which Cobain repeats many times during the bridge. In the aftermath of Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain's death by gunshot to the head after a heroin overdose in 1994, much attention was paid to this line. Similar claims were made of many of the other songs on Nevermind which also mention guns. However, the album was written and recorded three years before Cobain's death. Lyrics are the words in songs. ... 155 mm M198 howitzer U.S. Army soldier with a compact M249 variant USS Iowa (BB-61) fires a full broadside of nine 16/50 and six 5/38 guns during a target exercise near Vieques Island, Puerto Rico, 1 July 1984. ... Kurt Donald Cobain (February 20, 1967 – ca. ... 1994 (MCMXCIV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated like the International Year of the Family and the International Year of the Sport and the Olympic Ideal. // Events January Bill Clinton January 1 : North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) goes into effect. ...

The lyrics "come... soaked in bleach" (along with their debut album, Bleach) refer to a campaign in San Franscisco in the late 1980s. The campaign was for intravenous drug users, to which the city told to bleach their needles to reduce the risk of contracting diseases. The band was and is widely known for their connections to drugs, what with Cobain being a heavy user of heroin, explaining why they poked fun with the campaign slogan. Bleach was the debut album by Nirvana, released in 1989 through Sub Pop. ...

Killing Joke controversy

When Nevermind was released, members of the band Killing Joke claimed the main riff of "Come as You Are" plagiarized the riff of their own single, "Eighties". The band, however, did not file a copyright infringement lawsuit, which according to Rolling Stone was "due to personal and financial reasons." In an interview given to French magazine "Hard Rock Magazine", Jaz Coleman stated he did not file a lawsuit because the members of Nirvana openly confessed to him that they indeed took the riff, which he said was all he wanted to hear. Lead singer Jaz Coleman dominates the cover of Killing Jokes 1986 release Brighter Than a Thousand Suns. ... // History John Lennon - RS 1 (November 9, 1967)How I Won the War Film Still Founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner (who is still editor and publisher) and music critic Ralph J. Gleason, Rolling Stone was initially identified with and reported on the hippie counterculture of the... Jaz Coleman on the cover of the Killing Joke album Brighter than a Thousand Suns. ...

Neither band has apparently held a grudge about this; ex-Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl played drums on Killing Joke's thirteenth (second self-titled) album in 2003, and recorded a version of their song "Requiem" with his own band, the Foo Fighters. The Foo Fighters even performed the song live with Killing Joke's Jaz Coleman at a New Zealand concert. A session drummer at practice A drummer is a musician who plays the drums, particularly the drum kit, marching percussion, or hand drums. ... David Eric Grohl (born January 14, 1969, in Warren, Ohio) is an American rock musician. ... Killing Joke is an album first released July 28th, 2003 by Killing Joke on Zuma Recordings. ... 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Foo Fighters are a rock group formed by musician Dave Grohl in 1995. ... A classical music concert in the Rod Laver Arena, Melbourne. ...

Other versions

An acoustic version of "Come as You Are," from Nirvana's MTV Unplugged set on November 18, 1993, appears on the album MTV Unplugged in New York. The album was released in November 1994. An acoustic guitar is a modern form of guitar descended from the Classical guitar, but generally strung with steel strings for a brighter, louder sound. ... MTV Unplugged is a series showcasing popular musical artists playing acoustic instruments. ... MTV Unplugged in New York is a live album by the American grunge band, Nirvana. ...

A live rendition, recorded on November 25, 1991 at the Paradiso in Amsterdam, appears on the band's 1994 home video, Live! Tonight! Sold Out!!. It features Cobain screaming the song's lyrics over an out-of-tune guitar. Paradiso may refer to: a part of The Divine Comedy a legendary rock club in Amsterdam a french movie by Christian Bricout This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... Amsterdam Location Flag Country Netherlands Province North Holland Population 742,951(1 January 2005) Coordinates Website www. ... The home video business rents and sells videocassettes and DVDs to the public. ... front cover Live! Tonight! Sold Out!! is a VHS home video released by the grunge band Nirvana on November 15, 1994. ...

The Nevermind version appears on the compilation album, Fender 50th Anniversary Guitar Legends, released in 1996 to celebrate the Fender guitar company's 50th anniversary. The Nevermind version also appears on the band's 2002 "best-of" compilation, Nirvana. File links The following pages link to this file: Come As You Are ... 1996 (MCMXCVI) was a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ... The Fender logo, often called the spaghetti logo. ... For album titles with the same name, see 2002 (album). ... Nirvana is a best-of compilation album from the American grunge band, Nirvana. ...

Outtakes from the "Come As You Are" music video, directed by Kevin Kerslake, appear on the DVD menu of the band's 2004 box set, With the Lights Out. Film outtake An outtake can be a take or scene, as of a movie, or a television program, that is filmed but not used in the final version, usually for pacing reasons. ... A music video (also promo) is a short film or video that accompanies a complete piece of music, most commonly a song. ... DVD-R writing/reading side DVD (also known as Digital Versatile Disc or Digital Video Disc) is an optical disc storage media format that can be used for data storage, including movies with high video and sound quality. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... A box set (or boxed set) refers to one or more musical recordings, movies and television programs that are contained in a box made generally out of cardboard. ... With the Lights Out is a box set, containing 3 CDs and 1 DVD, from the American grunge band, Nirvana. ...

A boombox-recorded demo version appears on the 2005 compilation album, Sliver - The Best of the Box. It was recorded in March 1991 as part of a demo tape sent to Nevermind producer Butch Vig. 1980s JVC boombox // Overview A boombox or boom-box is a portable stereo system capable of playing radio stations or recorded music (usually cassettes and/or CDs) at relatively high volume. ... A demo version or demo of a song is one recorded for reference rather than for release. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Sliver: The Best of the Box is a compilation album from the American grunge band Nirvana. ... In the music industry, a record producer (or music producer) has many roles, among them controlling the recording sessions, coaching and guiding the performers, and supervising the recording, mixing and mastering processes. ... Butch Vig Bryan Butch Vig (born August 2, 1957 in Viroqua, Wisconsin) is both a rock musician and record producer. ...

Welcome to Aberdeen

Tribute to Kurt Cobain in Aberdeen

In 2005, a sign was put up in Aberdeen, Washington, Cobain's hometown, that reads "Welcome to Aberdeen - Come As You Are" as a tribute to Cobain. The sign was paid for and created by the Kurt Cobain Memorial Committee, a non-profit organization created in May 2004 to honor Cobain. Founded by author Jeff Burlingame and Aberdeen City Councilman Paul Fritts, the Committee also plans to create a Kurt Cobain Memorial Park and a youth center in Aberdeen. Welcome to Aberdeen Come As You Are sign, tribute to Kurt Cobain File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Welcome to Aberdeen Come As You Are sign, tribute to Kurt Cobain File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Tribute to Kurt Cobain in Aberdeen. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Tribute to Kurt Cobain in Aberdeen. ... Jeff Burlingame is the longtime arts and entertainment editor for The (Aberdeen) Daily World newspaper and author of Kurt Cobain: Oh Well, Whatever, Nevermind. He is also the founder of indie rock public relations firm If You Wouldnt Mind PR and co-founder of the Kurt Cobain Memorial Committee. ...

Covers

"Come as You Are" has been covered by the following artists:

• British punk band the Vibrators.
• American singer-songwriter Laura Love.

Punk rock is an anti-establishment music movement beginning around 1976 (although precursors can be found several years earlier), exemplified and popularised by The Ramones, the Sex Pistols, The Clash and The Damned. ... The term singer-songwriter refers to performers who both write and sing their own material. ...

Track listing

The following tracks appeared on the single:

1. "Come as You Are" (Cobain) - 3:38
2. "Endless, Nameless" (Cobain) - 6:40
3. "School" [live, Paramount Theatre (Seattle, Washington) 1991.10.31] (Cobain) - 2:31
4. "Drain You" [live, Paramount Theatre (Seattle, Washington) 1991.10.31] (Cobain) - 3:35

Drain You was originally a track from the seminal Nevermind album by Nirvana, in 1991. ...

Samples

ComeAsYouAre. ...

Chart positions

Triple J (JJJ) is a nationally-networked, government-funded Australian radio station (a division of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation), mainly aimed at youth (defined as those between 12 and 25). ... The Triple J Hottest 100 is an annual top 100 list, based on the votes of Australian youth radio station Triple J listeners, in order to determine their favourite song of the year. ...

Accolades

• Ranked #13 in Guitar Magazine's "Riff Of The Millennium Readers Poll" (1999)
• Ranked #49 in Kerrang!'s "100 Greatest Rock Tracks Ever" (1998)
• Ranked #28 in Kerrang!'s "100 Greatest Singles of All Time" (2002)
• Ranked #9 in NME's "Top 20 Nirvana Songs" (2004)
• Ranked #10 in Q's "10 Greatest Nirvana Songs Ever" (2004)

Kerrang! is a weekly music magazine (mainly rock) published by EMAP in the United Kingdom. ... The New Musical Express (better known as the NME) is a music magazine in the UK which has been published weekly since March 1952. ... Q is a music and entertainment magazinepublished monthly in the United Kingdom. ...

References

• Azerrad, Michael. Come As You Are: The Story of Nirvana, Doubleday, New York: 1993, ISBN 0863697461

• LiveNirvana

• Nirvana Pay Back Killing Joke

Miscellaneous

The state slogan of Louisiana is "Come As You Are. Leave Different." Official language(s) English and French Capital Baton Rouge Largest city New Orleans at last census; probably Baton Rouge since Hurricane Katrina Area  Ranked 31st  - Total 51,885 sq. ...