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Smells Like Teen Spirit
| "Smells Like Teen Spirit" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 7-inch vinyl UK standard edition | ||||
| Single by Nirvana | ||||
| from the album Nevermind | ||||
| B-side | ||||
| Released | September 10, 1991 | |||
| Recorded | May 1991 | |||
| Studio | Sound City (Van Nuys, California) | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length |
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| Label | DGC | |||
| Songwriter(s) | ||||
| Producer(s) |
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| Nirvana singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Alternative cover | ||||
 US CD single | ||||
| Music video | ||||
| "Smells Like Teen Spirit" on YouTube | ||||
"Smells Like Teen Spirit" is a song by the American rock band Nirvana. It is the opening track and lead single from the band's second album, Nevermind (1991), released on DGC Records. Having sold over 13 million units worldwide, it is one of the best-selling songs of all time. The success propelled Nevermind to the top of several albums charts and is often marked as the point when grunge entered the mainstream.[2] It was Nirvana's biggest hit, charting high on music industry charts around the world in 1991 and 1992, and was number one on the charts in Belgium, France, New Zealand and Spain.
The guitarist and singer, Kurt Cobain, described "Smells Like Teen Spirit" as an attempt to write "the ultimate pop song", inspired by the soft-and-loud dynamics of the Pixies. The title derives from a phrase written by his friend Kathleen Hanna, the singer of the riot grrrl band Bikini Kill: "Kurt smells like Teen Spirit." Hanna was referencing the deodorant Teen Spirit, but Cobain misinterpreted it as a revolutionary slogan.
The music video depicts a high school pep rally which ends in chaos, inspired by Jonathan Kaplan's 1979 film Over the Edge and the Ramones' film Rock 'n' Roll High School. It won two MTV Video Music Awards, and was in heavy rotation on MTV during the 1990s. Amy Finnerty, formerly of MTV's programming department, said the video "changed the entire look of MTV" by giving the channel "a whole new generation to sell to". In 2000, the Guinness World Records named "Smells Like Teen Spirit" the most played video on MTV Europe.
"Smells Like Teen Spirit" was met with acclaim and described as an "anthem for apathetic kids" of Generation X. It was included in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's list of "The Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll". In 2001, the Recording Industry Association of America ranked it number 80 on their Songs of the Century list. In 2002, NME named it the second-greatest single, and in 2013 Kerrang! ranked it the greatest.[3] In 2021, Rolling Stone ranked "Smells Like Teen Spirit" fifth on its list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.[4] In 2017, it was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.
- ^ Nevermind (CD liner notes). Nirvana. DGC. 1991.
{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link) - ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Nirvana – Biography". AllMusic.com. Retrieved May 31, 2012.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
Kerrang! 2002was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time". Rolling Stone. September 15, 2021. Retrieved November 12, 2021.
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