Blew

"Blew" is a song by American rock band Nirvana, written by vocalist and guitarist Kurt Cobain. It is the first song on the band's debut album ''Bleach'', released in June 1989 by Sub Pop.

The song was re-released on Tupelo Records as the title track of a four-song EP in the United Kingdom in November 1989, where it charted at number 15 on the UK Indie Singles chart.

Background and recording

"Blew" was first performed live at the Community World Theatre in Tacoma, Washington, on March 19, 1988. This was also the first show the band played with their name as Nirvana.

The song was first recorded in the studio by Jack Endino at Reciprocal Recording Studios in Seattle, Washington on June 11, 1988, during the recording sessions for what became the band's debut single, " Love Buzz".

''Bleach''

A second studio version was recorded by Endino at Reciprocal in December 1988, and was released on ''Bleach'' on June 15, 1989.

The ''Bleach'' version of "Blew" was accidentally recorded one step lower than the band had intended, which contributed to what Nirvana biographer Michael Azerrad called its "extraordinarily heavy sound". Not realizing that they had already tuned to their favored D Standard tuning, the band tuned further down to Drop C on the first day of the sessions and recorded several songs in that tuning. As bassist Krist Novoselic recalled in a 2009 ''Seattle Times'' article, "we came back the next day and decided the idea wasn't so hot, and we recorded over most of it with things tuned back up a little. In fact, 'Blew', with that growly bass, is the only survivor of that experiment."

''Blew'' EP

The ''Bleach'' version of "Blew" was re-released on the ''Blew'' EP in November 1989, along with the ''Bleach'' mix of "Love Buzz" and the previously-unreleased songs " Been a Son" and "Stain", which had been recorded by Steve Fisk at Music Source in Seattle, Washington in September 1989. The band's original plan had been to release an EP to promote their upcoming European tour, but the EP was delayed and released exclusively in the United Kingdom a few days before the final tourdate in London. However, the EP built on the interest the band had generated in the UK with ''Bleach'', and was promoted by English DJ John Peel, who had also played ''Bleach'' on his influential show. The ''Blew'' EP eventually peaked at number 15 on the UK Indie chart.

Post-''Bleach''

"Blew" was one of only three songs from ''Bleach'', along with " About a Girl" and "School", that remained in the bands setlists until the end of their touring career. It was performed live for the final time in Munich, Germany on March 1, 1994, as the second-to-last song preceding "Heart-Shaped Box".

Composition and lyrics

"Blew", written by Kurt Cobain, showcases the sludge punk and 70s heavy rock influenced sound of its album, ''Bleach'', and most Sub Pop releases of the time. According to the sheet music published at Musicnotes.com by BMG Rights Management, the song is written in the key of C major, and is moderately fast with a tempo of 144 beats per minute.

In his 1993 Nirvana biography '' Come As You Are: The Story of Nirvana'', Azerrad described the song as having a "theme of entrapment and control."

Release and reception

In 2009, Novoselic said that "Blew" was perhaps his favorite song on ''Bleach'' "because it has a groove, and again, it's the sole survivor of the Doom Pop experiment."

In 2015, ''Rolling Stone'' listed "Blew" at number 22 on their ranking of 102 Nirvana songs. In 2023, ''the A.V. Club'' ranked it at number 29 in their list of Nirvana's "30 greatest songs.

EP

The ''Blew'' EP was released in November 1989 on Tupelo Records on 12-inch vinyl and CD. With a working title of ''Winnebago'', the EP was originally intended as a release to promote an upcoming European tour, but due to production delays, the maxi-single ended up being released exclusively in the United Kingdom a few days before the tour's completion.

Released exclusively in the UK, the EP was difficult to obtain elsewhere, with only 3,000 copies of the maxi-single pressed on 12-inch vinyl and CD. Both vinyl and CD counterfeit copies exist, with the vinyl copies varying in color. The official 12-inch vinyl was pressed only on black vinyl. The cover art was photographed by Cobain's then-girlfriend Tracy Marander at a May 26, 1989 concert at the Green River Community College in Auburn, Washington. Marander shot the back cover photo as well.

"Stain" was re-released by DGC Records in December 1992, on the band's rarities compilation, '' Incesticide''. The ''Blew'' version of "Been a Son", hailed by Kurt St. Thomas as the "definitive take" due to its trashy sound and pronounced bass solo, remained a rarity until it was re-released in October 2002 on the band's first best-of compilation, ''Nirvana''.

Track listing

*"Blew" and "Love Buzz" were previously released on Nirvana's 1989 debut album ''Bleach'', but "Love Buzz" was not included on the original 1989 UK version. In its place was "Big Cheese", the B-side to the US "Love Buzz" single. Therefore, the ''Blew'' EP was the first time that "Love Buzz" was officially released in the UK. However, "Love Buzz" was included on the 1992 UK re-issue of ''Bleach''.
*"Been a Son" was later released on the 2002 "best-of" compilation, ''Nirvana''. An alternate version appeared on the 1992 compilation, '' Incesticide''.
*"Stain" was later released on ''Incesticide''.

Charts

Accolades

Other releases

*A live version, recorded at the Pine Street Theatre in Portland, Oregon on February 9, 1990, was released in November 2009 on the 20th anniversary "Deluxe" version of ''Bleach'', which featured the complete Pine Street show as bonus material.
*A live version, recorded at the Paramount Theatre in Seattle on October 31, 1991, appeared on the live video '' Live at the Paramount'', released in September 2011.
*A live version, recorded at the Paradiso in Amsterdam, Netherlands on November 25, 1991, appeared as the final track on the live compilation, ''From the Muddy Banks of the Wishkah'', in November 1996. Video of this version of the song was released in November 2006, when it appeared on the bonus disc of DVD release of '' Live! Tonight! Sold Out!!''. The full Paradiso show was released on CD and Blu Ray on the 30th anniversary "Deluxe" and "Super Deluxe" versions of ''Nevermind'' in November 2021.
*The 30th anniversary "Deluxe" and "Super Deluxe" versions of ''Nevermind'' also featured live performances of "Blew" from the band's shows at The Palace in Melbourne, Australia on February 1, 1992, and the Nakano Sunplaza in Tokyo, Japan on February 19, 1992.
*A live version, from the band's appearance at the 1992 Reading Festival in Reading, England on August 30, 1992, was released on CD and DVD on '' Live at Reading'' in November 2009.
*A live version, from the band's performance on December 13, 1993 at Pier 48 in Seattle, Washington, recorded for MTV, was released on the live video '' Live and Loud'' in September 2013.
*Two live versions of "Blew," from the band's concerts at the Great Western Forum in Inglewood, California on December 30, 1993, and at the Seattle Center Arena in Seattle on January 7, 1994, appear on the 30th anniversary "Super Deluxe" reissue of Nirvana's final studio album, ''In Utero'', released in October 2023.

Personnel

Nirvana
*Kurt Cobain – guitar, vocals
*Krist Novoselic – bass guitar
*Chad Channing – drums

Production
*Jack Endino – production for "Blew" and "Love Buzz"
*Steve Fisk – production for "Stain" and "Been a Son"

Additional Personnel
* Tracy Marander – photography

See also

*'' Experiencing Nirvana: Grunge in Europe, 1989''

References

External links

Blew EP on Nirvanadiscography.comLive Nirvana Sessions History – September 1989

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1989 debut EPs
Nirvana (band) EPs
Sub Pop EPs
American garage rock songs
Albums produced by Jack Endino
Albums produced by Steve Fisk