#4 Nevermind by Nirvana

The 100 Greatest Albums of All Time

2025 Album Rank

4

2011 Album Rank

5

Total Points

2786

Year Released

1991

Billboard 200 Chart Peak

1

Weeks at #1

2

RIAA Sales Certification

13,000,000 (Multi-Platinum)

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Nevermind Album Details

Released on September 24, 1991, Nevermind marked a seismic shift in the musical landscape of the early 1990s, launching Nirvana and grunge into the mainstream. Produced by Butch Vig and featuring Kurt Cobain, Krist Novoselic, and Dave Grohl (on his first Nirvana recording), the album fused punk aggression with pop melodies, creating a sound that was both abrasive and radio-friendly. With the explosive success of Smells Like Teen Spirit, Nirvana quickly became reluctant spokesmen for a disaffected generation.

The album moves between anthemic tracks like Come as You Are and In Bloom, to darker, rawer cuts like Polly and Something in the Way. Cobain's anguished, often cryptic lyrics combined with the band's dynamic shifts between quiet verses and loud, distorted choruses defined not just their sound, but the sound of an era. Nevermind didn't just dethrone hair metal, it changed the shape of popular music for the next decade.

Interesting Facts About Nevermind

• The iconic cover features a naked baby swimming underwater toward a dollar bill on a fishhook. Photographer Kirk Weddle shot the photo in a Pasadena swimming pool; the baby is Spencer Elden, who later recreated the pose as an adult.
• The inspiration for the album cover came after Kurt Cobain and Dave Grohl watched a documentary on water births. The record label was worried it would offend some people and an alternative cover was made, but it was rejected by the band. The rejected cover was used for the single Come as You Are.
• Smells Like Teen Spirit was inspired by a friend's graffiti. Kathleen Hanna of Bikini Kill spray-painted "Kurt smells like Teen Spirit" on Cobain's wall, referring to a deodorant brand, though Cobain didn't know that at the time.
• Butch Vig's polished production contrasted with the band's raw sound, leading to later friction. Cobain would push for a much rougher approach on In Utero.
• The hidden track Endless, Nameless wasn't on early pressings but was added to later versions after approximately ten minutes of silence following Something in the Way.
• Dave Grohl joined Nirvana just before recording Nevermind. His hard-hitting drumming helped shape the album's dynamic power, particularly on tracks like Breed and Territorial Pissings.
• Polly was based on the true story of a 14-year-old girl's abduction and escape, written from the perspective of the abductor to highlight society's complacency toward violence against women.
• Despite its huge success, Cobain expressed discomfort with how Nevermind was embraced by the mainstream, feeling that many listeners misunderstood the band's ironic stance and subversive intent.
• Drain You was one of Cobain's personal favorite songs on the album. He once said he thought it was as good as Smells Like Teen Spirit, if not better.
• The band originally expected to sell only around 50,000 copies. By January 1992, Nevermind had displaced Michael Jackson's Dangerous from the No. 1 spot on the Billboard 200.
• In retrospect, Nevermind has been credited with opening the door for countless alternative bands such as Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, and Smashing Pumpkins, among others to break through into mainstream consciousness.
• According to his journals, Kurt Cobain intended to have the album broken up into a boy side with songs like Polly and Silver and a girl side which contained like In Bloom and Lithium.
• Before settling on the title Nevermind there were plans on calling the album Sheep.
• The main guitar rift for "Come as Your Are" is very similar to that of Killing Joke's 1984 song Eighties.
• The album was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2018 for its cultural and historical significance.

Nevermind Tracklist

1. Smells Like Teen Spirit - Reached #6 on Billboard's Hot 100 chart
2. In Bloom
3. Come As You Are - Reached #32 on Billboard's Hot 100 chart
4. Breed
5. Lithium
6. Polly
7. Territorial Pissings
8. Drain You
9. Lounge Act
10. Stay Away
11. On A Plain
12. Something in the Way

Smells Like Teen Spirit Music Video

• Next Album: #3. Revolver by The Beatles
• Previous Album: #5. Rumours by Fleetwood Mac