Come as You Are
"Come as You Are" is a song by the American grunge band Nirvana. It was the second single from their second album, Nevermind, the first was the enormously popular "Smells Like Teen Spirit". It is one of the band's most famous songs. Rolling Stone magazine named it as the 445th on their list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
| "Come as You Are" | |
|---|---|
| Song by Nirvana | |
| from " | |
| B-side | "Drain You" (Live) (US) "Endless, Nameless" (UK) |
| Released | March 2, 1992 |
| Recorded | May 1991 at Sound City Studios in Van Nuys, California |
| Genre | Grunge |
| Length | 3:38 |
| Label | DGC |
| Songwriter(s) | Kurt Cobain |
| Producer(s) | Butch Vig |
Music video
There was a music video for the song. It has a lot of random scenes, such as Kurt Cobain sitting on a chandelier hanging from a ceiling, a handgun floating in a swimming pool, and a baby swimming in that pool (a reference to the cover art of Nevermind.)
Release
After the single was released, the English post-punk band Killing Joke became angry at Nirvana for supposedly ripping off their song "Eighties".
Nirvana thought that "Smells Like Teen Spirit", the previous single from Nevermind, would not be very popular, and that "Come as You Are" would be a big hit. However, "Smells Like Teen Spirit" became the band's most famous song and one of the most famous songs ever, even though Come as You Are was also popular.
Other versions of the song
On November 18, 1993, Nirvana played "Come as You Are" on their show on MTV Unplugged. The show contained mostly their unpopular songs and covers of other artists' songs; "Come as You Are" was the only hit they played.