The 25,000,000-selling song that taught Kurt Cobain guitar: “The lyrics were not something he felt comfortable with”
Kurt Cobain reportedly learnt AC/DC’s “Back in Black” as his first guitar song, despite later disliking the band’s lyrics. The choice offers a glimpse of his early musical development before he formed the tastes and views associated with Nirvana.
Cobain received his first guitar for his 14th birthday in 1981. Former Nirvana manager Danny Goldberg said in a 2013 interview that Cobain felt uncomfortable with AC/DC’s lyrics because he saw them as treating women as sexual objects; “Back in Black” was a contemporary hit, and one of the band’s less provocative songs.
- Cobain reportedly began guitar with AC/DC’s “Back in Black”.
- He later objected to the band’s lyrics about women.
- His early choice preceded Nirvana’s distinct musical identity.