Yesterday would have been Kurt Cobain’s 50th birthday, and today I heard a RHCP song that I always thought was written about him.

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Finally, I took the time to investigate today, to know for certain once and for all. Before I mention the song or the conclusion of the matter, I’ll quickly share a little background information. Many people who may be more familiar with the Red Hot Chili Peppers or Nirvana may think that this is a foolish investigation or a waste of time.

However, when the song in question was recorded, and when Kurt Cobain died, I was just a teenager. Also, though I am very familiar with a lot of the songs recorded by both the Red Hot Chili Pepper and Nirvana, during the days when I listened to a lot of their music, I was often drunk and high every day and cared very little about most things. That said, I wasn’t exactly the type of person to search things like this out, as I was too busy trying to have a good time.

THE SONG IN QUESTION

Off of their album One Hot Minute, the song that I heard today was “Tearjerker.” Hearing this song brought back some 20 year old memories, lyrics, and thoughts. As the song began, I mentioned to a co-worker that I had always thought that it was written about Kurt Cobain.

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HERE IS A VIDEO OFF OF YOUTUBE OF THE SONG

WARNING- The F-word is in this song.

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Before too long, the lyrics “First time I met you, you were sitting back stage in a dress” were sung by the Red Hot Chili Peppers front0man Anthony Kiedis. To some, this would have been evidence that I may have been wrong in my conclusion. However, for Nirvana fans who ever saw a live show, or at least footage or photographs from some of them, you may realize that periodically Kurt Cobain would wear dresses on stage during concerts.

As the song and lyrics continued, the type of love that Anthony was expressing towards the person in the song allowed for multiple conclusions to be drawn, but it even got me wondering for a moment if there was anything else in the lyrics that had made me conclude that Kurt Cobain was the one the song was written about.

Soon enough, “I liked your whiskers, and I liked the dimple in your chin, your pale blue eyes” were lyrics that were sung shortly, and I remembered more of why I thought what I did.. Of course, that description could have been about an unshaven John Travolta too, but soon a little more was shared in the song.

For me, hearing these lyrics once again after so many years, and with having Kurt on my mind after finding out that it was his birthday yesterday, made me once again confident that “Tearjerker” was written in response to the death of the Nirvana front-man.

The song even starts out with “My mouth fell open, hoping that the truth would not be true, refuse the news.” Of course, my own beliefs or conclusions about a matter don’t make it true, so I figured that I have better do some online research and find out once and for all if my conclusion drawn twenty years ago was accurate or not.

LYRICS AND AN ANSWER

Here are the full lyrics:

My mouth fell open
Hoping that the truth would not be true
Refuse the news

I'm feeling sick now
What the #@%$ am I supposed to do
Just lose and lose

First time I saw you
You were sitting backstage in a dress
A perfect mess

You never knew this
But I wanted badly for you to
Requite my love

Left on the floor
Leaving your body
When highs are the lows
And lows are the way
So hard to stay
Guess now you know
I love you so

I liked your whiskers
And I liked the dimple in your chin
Your pale blue eyes

You painted pictures
'Cause the one who hurts can give so much
You gave me such

Left on the floor
Leaving your body
When highs are the lows
And lows are the way
So hard to stay
Guess now you know
I love you so

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As I finally looked into it, it turns out my conclusion had been correct. The first time that Anthony had met Kurt, we has backstage in a dress and looked like he hadn't slept in days. The news of Kurt's death apparently hit the Chili Peppers hard, as it did many of us.

Anyway, I thought that it was strange to remember that yesterday was Kurt Cobain's birthday and then hear a song that I thought was about him today, and find out that it really was!

Who already knew this, and who just learned it?

Please let me know in the comments!

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GIFS from http://giphy.com/search/kurt-cobain-dress and
http://giphy.com/search/red-hot-chili-peppers
VIDEO from YouTube
LYRICS from http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?lyrics=2370

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