“Rape Me”
Single by Nirvana from the album In Utero
B-side	"Moist Vagina"
Released	1994
Format	???
Recorded	at Pachyderm Studios, Cannon Falls, Minnesota, February, 1993
Genre	Grunge
Length	2:49
Label	DGC Records
Producer	Steve Albini
Nirvana singles chronology
"Heart-Shaped Box" (1993) "All Apologies"/"Rape Me" (1994) "Pennyroyal Tea" (1994)
In Utero track listing
"Heart-Shaped Box" (3) "Rape Me" (4) "Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge on Seattle" (5)

"Rape Me" is a song by the American grunge band Nirvana. It is the fourth song on, and the second single (along with "All Apologies") from their 1993 album, In Utero. Image File history File links AllApologiesNew. ... A collection of various CD singles In music, a single is a short recording of one or more separate tracks. ... This article is about the American grunge band. ... In Utero is the third and final studio album by the American grunge band Nirvana, released on September 21, 1993 by DGC Records. ... “B-Sides” redirects here. ... The Pachyderm Recording Studio, located in rural Cannon Falls, Minnesota southeast of the Twin Cities, is one of the most famous recording studios in Minnesota, perhaps second after Princes Paisley Park Studios in Minneapolis. ... Cannon Falls is a city located in Goodhue County, Minnesota. ... Capital Saint Paul Largest city Minneapolis Largest metro area Minneapolis-St. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Grunge redirects here. ... In the music industry, a record label can be a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. ... DGC Records was a subsidiary of Geffen Records, founded by David Geffen on March 20, 1990. ... In the music industry, a record producer (or music producer) has many roles, among them controlling the recording sessions, coaching and guiding the musicians, organizing and scheduling production budget and resources, and supervising the recording, mixing and mastering processes. ... Steve Albini (born July 22, 1962, Pasadena, California) is a singer, songwriter, guitarist, audio engineer and music journalist. ... This article is about the American grunge band. ... In Utero track listing Scentless Apprentice (2) Heart-Shaped Box (3) Rape Me (4) Heart-Shaped Box is a song by the American Grunge band Nirvana. ... In Utero track listing tourettes (11) All Apologies (12) (Gallons of Rubbing Alcohol Flow Through the Strip) (12 - hidden track, only European pressings) All Apologies is a song by the American rock band Nirvana. ... This article is about the Nirvana song; for the herb, see Pennyroyal. ... In Utero is the third and final studio album by the American grunge band Nirvana, released on September 21, 1993 by DGC Records. ... In Utero track listing Scentless Apprentice (2) Heart-Shaped Box (3) Rape Me (4) Heart-Shaped Box is a song by the American Grunge band Nirvana. ... Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge on Seattle is a song by the influential American grunge band Nirvana. ... Grunge redirects here. ... This article is about the American grunge band. ... A collection of various CD singles In music, a single is a short recording of one or more separate tracks. ... In Utero track listing tourettes (11) All Apologies (12) (Gallons of Rubbing Alcohol Flow Through the Strip) (12 - hidden track, only European pressings) All Apologies is a song by the American rock band Nirvana. ... In Utero is the third and final studio album by the American grunge band Nirvana, released on September 21, 1993 by DGC Records. ...

History

"Rape Me" was written by Nirvana singer/guitarist Kurt Cobain in an apartment in Los Angeles, California in May 1991, around the time the band's second album, Nevermind, was being mixed. It was first performed live on June 18 1991, at the Catalyst in Santa Cruz, California, and subsequently played several times at Nirvana concerts during the next two years. These early live versions featured a dissonant, semi-improvised "anti-solo" (or "noise solo") after the second chorus, which was replaced by a bridge in the song's final incarnation. Kurt Donald Cobain (February 20, 1967 – c. ... Los Angeles and L.A. redirect here. ... See also: 1991 in music (UK) Musical groups established in 1991 Record labels established in 1991 // 1991 was the year that grunge music made its popular breakthrough. ... For other uses, see Nevermind (disambiguation). ... is the 169th day of the year (170th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... For other uses, see Santa Cruz. ...

The song was first recorded in the studio by Jack Endino in October 1992 in Seattle, Washington. The band had wanted to debut it (along with "Tourette's," then called "New Poopy") at the 1992 MTV Awards in Los Angeles a month earlier, but the network wanted them to play "Smells Like Teen Spirit" instead. The band eventually played their then-latest single "Lithium," but not before strumming "Rape Me"'s opening chords, which almost resulted in the performance being taken off the air. Jack Endino is a music producer based in Seattle, USA. Long associated with Seattle label Sub Pop and the grunge movement, Endino worked on seminal albums from bands such as Mudhoney and Soundgarden, but is probably best known for producing the first Nirvana album, Bleach, released in 1989. ... Seattle redirects here. ... For the neurological condition, see Tourette syndrome For the band, see Tourettes (band) tourettes is a song by the American rock band Nirvana. ... Year 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1992 Gregorian calendar). ... The MTV Video Music Awards were established in 1984 by MTV to celebrate the top music videos of the year. ... Nevermind track listing Smells Like Teen Spirit is a song by the American rock band Nirvana, and the opening track and lead single from the bands 1991 breakthrough album Nevermind. ... Lithium is a song by the grunge band Nirvana. ...

"Rape Me" was finally recorded by Steve Albini in February 1993 for In Utero, and was released alongside "All Apologies" as the album's second single in late 1993. A music video was planned but never made, in part because the band believed MTV would be reluctant to play it. However in 1999, an MTV video was made from their live performance of the song recorded on Saturday Night Live (see "Other versions"). Steve Albini (born July 22, 1962, Pasadena, California) is a singer, songwriter, guitarist, audio engineer and music journalist. ... A music video is a short film or video that accompanies a complete piece of music, most commonly a song. ... SNL redirects here. ... In Utero track listing Rape Me is a song by the American grunge band Nirvana. ...

Controversy

This section does not cite any references or sources. (November 2007) Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed.

"Rape Me" drew the ire of many feminists upon its release on In Utero in 1993, but Cobain, a proclaimed feminist himself, often said in interviews that it was an "anti-rape" song. He said it was a song of poetic justice, in which a man rapes a woman, is sent to jail, and ends up being raped there himself. "Basically, I was trying to write a song that supported women and dealt with the issue of rape," Cobain explained in a 1993 Rolling Stone interview . It has also been said that Cobain offered the song for use in RAINN, a rape, abuse, and incest international helpline. However, Tori Amos, the founder of this organization, declined, stating that many victims of rape cannot deal with such blunt terms. Image File history File links Question_book-3. ... Feminism is a social theory and political movement primarily informed and motivated by the experience of women. ... Poetic Justice is a 1993 drama/romance film starring Janet Jackson, Tupac Shakur, Regina King and Joe Torry. ... This article is about the magazine. ... The Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN) in the United States is a toll-free, confidential and anonymous provider of counseling to victims of rape and sexual assault. ... Tori Amos (born Myra Ellen Amos on August 22, 1963) is an American pianist and singer-songwriter. ...

Still, the song's title was censored as "Waif Me" on Wal-Mart and Kmart releases of In Utero, an intentionally comical name chosen by Cobain himself (he had originally wanted to call it "Sexually Assault Me", but that name was too long). The audio of the song remains uncensored in these versions. For other uses, see Censor. ... Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. ... For the Australian department store chain, see Kmart Australia. ...

Cobain often pointed out that "Rape Me" was written before Nirvana's ascension to superstardom, and therefore could not have been a cynical comment on fame, as many suggested around the time of In Utero's release. However, the song's bridge, which was written later on, does seem to contain direct references to Cobain's celebrity, such as the lyric, "My favorite inside source." The line "I'm not the only one" seems to reference that it is not just him but his wife and daughter who are affected by his celebrity, but is more likely about the karmic justice of the rapist being raped in jail.

Planned music video

Kurt Cobain considered a video for the song, described in his Journals under the title "Rape Me Treatment." It was to be set in a women's prison and shot in black and white.

Other versions

A live version of "Rape Me," recorded on Saturday Night Live on September 25, 1993, appears on the compilation album, Saturday Night Live: The Musical Performances, Volume 2, and on the DVD, Saturday Night Live: 25 Years of Music, Volume 4. is the 268th day of the year (269th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1993 (MCMXCIII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1993 Gregorian calendar). ... DVD (also known as Digital Versatile Disc or Digital Video Disc - see Etymology) is a popular optical disc storage media format. ...

Two versions of the song appear on the 2004 Nirvana box set, With the Lights Out: a solo acoustic home demo, and the 1992 studio version. Both versions also appear on the 2005 compilation album, Sliver - The Best of the Box. With the Lights Out is a box set, containing 3 CDs and 1 DVD, from the American grunge band, Nirvana. ... A steel string acoustic guitar is a modern form of guitar descended from the classical guitar, but strung with steel strings for a brighter, louder sound. ... For other uses, see demo. ... Sliver: The Best of the Box is a compilation album from the American grunge band Nirvana. ...

Cobain's infant daughter, Frances Bean Cobain, can be heard crying in the background of the band demo version. According to Charles R. Cross' 2001 Cobain biography Heavier Than Heaven, she was sitting on his lap when he recorded the vocals. Frances Bean Cobain (born August 18, 1992) is the only child of the late Nirvana frontman, Kurt Cobain and spouse Courtney Love. ... Charles R. Cross is a rock music journalist and author based in Seattle. ... Heavier Than Heaven is the name of a 2001 biography of musician Kurt Cobain, the lead singer of the grunge rock band Nirvana. ...

The In Utero version was re-released in 2002 on the band's "best-of" collection, Nirvana. Nirvana is a best-of compilation album from the American grunge band, Nirvana. ...

In 2008, it was parodied in a way on The Simpsons episode "That 90's Show" as "Shave Me", which, in turn, is parodied by "Weird Al" Yankovic as "Brain Freeze", similar to the parody of Smells Like Teen Spirit, Smells Like Nirvana. 2008 (MMVIII) is the current year, a leap year that started on Tuesday of the Anno Domini (or common era), in accordance to the Gregorian calendar. ... Simpsons redirects here. ... This article is about the musician. ... Nevermind track listing Smells Like Teen Spirit is a song by the American rock band Nirvana, and the opening track and lead single from the bands 1991 breakthrough album Nevermind. ... Smells Like Nirvana is a parody of Nirvanas Smells Like Teen Spirit written and performed by Weird Al Yankovic. ...

Covers

"Rape Me" has been covered by American cover band Richard Cheese and Lounge Against the Machine on their 2000 album "Lounge Against the Machine", and also featured it on their 2006 album "The Sunny Side of the Moon: The Best of Richard Cheese" (both with the ironic introduction, "Here's one for the ladies!"). The song was also covered by the American rock band The Used and the South-African band Seether. "Rape Me" has also been used to make a parody, featured in the "That 90's Show" episode in The Simpsons, with the title changed to "Shave Me." A cover band (or covers band) is a band that plays only cover songs. ... Richard Cheese & Lounge Against the Machine are a cover band and comedy act based in Los Angeles, California, playing popular rap, rock, metal, and pop songs in a swanky lounge music style. ... Lounge Against the Machine is the first album from Richard Cheese and Lounge Against the Machine, released October 17, 2000. ... The Used is a rock band from Orem, Utah. ... Seether is a post-grunge band from South Africa. ... Simpsons redirects here. ...

Chart positions

This article or section needs to be wikified. ... Recording Industry Association of New Zealand - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... The Irish Singles Chart is the Irish music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on behalf of the IRMA by Chart-Track. ... “British Hit Singles” redirects here. ... The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. ...

Accolades

• Ranked #90 in Kerrang!'s "100 Greatest Rock Tracks Ever" (1999). ^[1]
• Ranked #10 in NME's "Top 20 Nirvana Songs" (2004).

For other uses, see NME (disambiguation). ...

References

• Azerrad, Michael. Come as You Are: The Story of Nirvana, Doubleday, New York: 1993, ISBN 0-86369-746-1
• Cross, Charles. Heavier Than Heaven. Hyperion, 2001. ISBN 0-7868-6505-9
• Kurt Cobain by David Fricke, Rolling Stone, January 27, 1994