Serving the Servant

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Serving the Servant: Remembering Kurt Cobain
Serving the Servant - Remembering Kurt Cobain.jpg
First edition (US)
AuthorDanny Goldberg
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
GenreMemoir
Publisher Ecco Press (US)
Orion Books (UK)
Publication date
April 02, 2019 [1]
Pages304
ISBN 978-0062861504

Serving the Servant: Remembering Kurt Cobain is a book by Danny Goldberg, former music manager of Nirvana, and current president and owner of Gold Mountain Entertainment. It was published in April 2019, on the 25th anniversary of Cobain's suicide.

Contents

Release

The book was announced in July 2018, and was released April 2nd, 2019, around the 25th anniversary of Kurt Cobain's death. It was published by Ecco Press. [2] In May 2019, Goldberg held an "Ask Me Anything" Session to promote the book, on Reddit. [3] The book is named after the Nirvana song "Serve the Servants" which is the first track on the band's 1993 album, In Utero . [4]

In promotion of the book, Goldberg stated:

I think that in terms of icons, Kurt was kind of the last icon of the rock era and then the hip-hop era started.

Then, obviously, in our kid's generation, hip-hop has been a dominant voice for adolescence. It's not the only one, there were still rock artists but not only was he iconic in terms of depth in which he touched people, that music was pop. Those songs were as big as Rihanna, Travis Scott or Justin Bieber or anything today.

They were pop hits as well as touching the underground culture. That fusion of pop and underground, I don't think rock has produced someone else who could do that since Kurt. I think he's arguably the last of that era.

You could almost have bookends of an era that started with The Beatles and ended with Kurt. I mean, yeah, there was rock and roll before The Beatles but The Beatles broadened it and I think you can make that argument. [5] [6] [7]

Reception

The book was well-received. Rolling Stone writer Angie Martoccio stated of the book "[Goldberg] added a fascinating perspective to one of rock’s most harrowing stories, one that will certainly enhance the late icon’s legacy." [8] Gillian Gaar, for bookandfilmglobe.com, wrote that "The pain he feels over Cobain’s death still lingers, and he writes of still wondering if there’s something he could’ve said or done that might have made a difference. But while Goldberg’s feelings of loss run deep throughout the story, Serving the Servant never hesitates to accentuate the positive". [2]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kurt Cobain</span> American rock musician (1967–1994)

Kurt Donald Cobain was an American musician, singer, and songwriter. He became known as the co-founder, lead vocalist, guitarist, and primary songwriter of the rock band Nirvana. Through his angst-fueled songwriting and anti-establishment persona, his compositions widened the thematic conventions of mainstream rock music. He was heralded as a spokesman of Generation X and is widely recognized as one of the most influential alternative rock musicians.

<i>In Utero</i> 1993 studio album by Nirvana

In Utero is the third and final studio album by the American rock band Nirvana. It was released on September 21, 1993, by DGC Records. After breaking into the mainstream with their second album, Nevermind (1991), Nirvana hired Steve Albini to record In Utero, seeking a more complex, abrasive sound that was reminiscent of their work prior to Nevermind. Although frontman and primary songwriter Kurt Cobain claimed that the album was "very impersonal", many of its songs contain heavy allusions to his personal life and struggles, expressing feelings of angst that were common on the band's previous album.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">You Know You're Right</span> 2002 single by Nirvana

"You Know You're Right" is a song by the American rock band Nirvana, written by lead vocalist and guitarist, Kurt Cobain. It is the first song on the greatest hits album Nirvana, released by DGC Records in October 2002. It is also the final song the band recorded before Cobain's suicide in April 1994.

<i>With the Lights Out</i> 2004 compilation box set by Nirvana

With the Lights Out is a box set by the American rock band Nirvana, released on November 23, 2004. It contains three CDs and one DVD of previously rare or unreleased material, including B-sides, demos, and rehearsal and live recordings. The title comes from the lyrics of Nirvana's 1991 single "Smells Like Teen Spirit". The box set was planned for release in 2001, but was delayed by a legal battle with Courtney Love, the widow of Nirvana singer Kurt Cobain. As of 2016, With the Lights Out had sold 546,000 copies in the US.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Heart-Shaped Box</span> 1993 song by Nirvana

"Heart-Shaped Box" is a song by the American rock band Nirvana, written by vocalist and guitarist, Kurt Cobain. It appears as the third track on the band's third and final studio album, In Utero, released by DGC Records in September 1993. It was one of two songs on In Utero remixed by Scott Litt prior to the album's release, due to the band's dissatisfaction with the original mixing by producer Steve Albini. The Litt remix also featured additional vocal harmonies and guitar by Cobain, which were the only elements on the album's 12 main tracks not recorded during the original sessions with Albini in February 1993.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">In Bloom</span> 1992 single by Nirvana

"In Bloom" is a song by American rock band Nirvana, written by vocalist and guitarist Kurt Cobain. It appears as the second track on the band's second album, Nevermind, released by DGC Records in September 1991.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rape Me</span> 1993 song by Nirvana

"Rape Me" is a song by the American rock band Nirvana, written by vocalist and guitarist Kurt Cobain. It is the fourth song on the band's third and final studio album, In Utero, released in September 1993.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lithium (Nirvana song)</span> 1992 single by Nirvana

"Lithium" is a song by the American rock band Nirvana, written by vocalist and guitarist Kurt Cobain. It appears as the fifth track on the band's second album Nevermind, released by DGC Records in September 1991.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pennyroyal Tea</span> Song by Nirvana

"Pennyroyal Tea" is a song by the American rock band Nirvana, written by vocalist and guitarist Kurt Cobain. It is the ninth track on the band's third and final studio album, In Utero, released in September 1993.

"Dumb" is a song by the American rock band, Nirvana, written by vocalist and guitarist, Kurt Cobain. It is the sixth song on the band's third and final studio album, In Utero, released in 1993.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">All Apologies</span> Song by Nirvana

"All Apologies" is a song by American rock band Nirvana, written by vocalist and guitarist, Kurt Cobain. It appears as the final track on the band's third and final studio album, In Utero, released by DGC Records in September 1993. The song closes the American version of the album, while non-US versions of In Utero feature an additional song, "Gallons of Rubbing Alcohol Flow Through the Strip," which begins after approximately 20 minutes of silence on the same track.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Candy / Molly's Lips</span> 1991 split single by The Fluid / Nirvana

"Candy"/"Molly's Lips" is a vinyl-only split-single from the American rock bands the Fluid and Nirvana. It was released in January 1991 on Sub Pop records and includes two live tracks: "Candy" by the Fluid; and "Molly's Lips", a cover of a song by the Vaselines, performed by Nirvana.

"Sappy" is a song by the American rock band, Nirvana, written by vocalist and guitarist, Kurt Cobain. It was first released as a hidden track on the AIDS-benefit compilation album, No Alternative, in October 1993.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Serve the Servants</span> 1993 song by Nirvana

"Serve the Servants" is a song by the American rock band Nirvana, written by vocalist and guitarist, Kurt Cobain. It is the first track on their third and final studio album In Utero, released in September 1993.

"Scentless Apprentice" is a song by the American rock band Nirvana, written by vocalist and guitarist Kurt Cobain, drummer Dave Grohl, and bassist Krist Novoselic. It is the second track on their third and final studio album In Utero, released in September 1993.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dive (Nirvana song)</span> 1990 song by Nirvana

"Dive" is a song by the American rock band Nirvana, written by vocalist and guitarist Kurt Cobain and bassist Krist Novoselic. It was released as the B-side to the band's second single, "Sliver" in September 1990. The same version was re-released as the opening track on the compilation album The Grunge Years in 1991, and again on the Nirvana rarities compilation, Incesticide, in December 1992.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">I Hate Myself and Want to Die</span> Nirvana song

"I Hate Myself and Want to Die" is a song by the American rock band Nirvana, written by vocalist and guitarist Kurt Cobain. It was first released in November 1993 as the first track on The Beavis and Butt-Head Experience compilation album which peaked at number 5 on the Billboard 200.

<i>Verse Chorus Verse</i> (Nirvana album) Unreleased live album by Nirvana

Verse Chorus Verse is an unreleased live album by the American rock band Nirvana, scheduled for release on November 1, 1994. It was to be a double album comprising a CD of live performances on one CD and Nirvana's MTV Unplugged performance on the other. It was canceled as Nirvana members Krist Novoselic and Dave Grohl found it overwhelming to compile material so soon after the death of Kurt Cobain earlier that year.

Craig Montgomery is an audio engineer from Seattle. He began working with Nirvana shortly after their debut album Bleach was released in 1989 on indie record label Sub Pop. Montgomery also worked with other bands on the Sub Pop label.

References

  1. Serving the Servant: Remembering Kurt Cobain Hardcover – April 2 2019. ASIN   0062861506.
  2. 1 2 Gaar, Gillian G (April 3, 2019). The Man Who Loved Kurt Cobain . Retrieved April 18, 2020.{{cite book}}: |website= ignored (help)
  3. "Danny Goldberg". reddit.com. Retrieved April 18, 2020.
  4. Smoak, Shelby. "Serving the Servant: Remembering Kurt Cobain". nyjournalofbooks.com. Retrieved April 20, 2020.
  5. "Nirvana Manager: I Don't Think Dave Grohl Touches People as Deeply as Kurt Did. I Suspect Dave Would Acknowledge That Too". Ultimate Guitar . April 20, 2019. Retrieved December 11, 2023.
  6. Jenke, Tyler (April 21, 2019). "Nirvana's manager calls Kurt Cobain the 'last icon of the rock era'". Tone Deaf . Retrieved December 11, 2023.
  7. Mazzarone, Mike (April 20, 2019). "Nirvana Reveal If Dave Grohl Made More Money Than Kurt Cobain". Alternative Nation. Retrieved December 11, 2023.
  8. Martoccio, Angie (April 5, 2019). "Book Review: Danny Goldberg's 'Serving the Servant' is a Fascinating Account of His Years Inside Nirvana's Drama". Rolling Stone . Retrieved April 18, 2020.