Remembering Kurt Cobain

Smells like Teen Spirit filmed by Jem Cohen

This video was shot in memory of Kurt Cobain. My son Jackson is playing banjo. The song was cut live in Electric Lady Studio. I had been driving in Los Angelas some time before with my friend Steven Sebring. The song came on the radio and he turned it up loud. It seemed to me that Kurt had the sound of old style country in his voice, even the twang of banjoes and I decided to perform it live. The late John Cohen and Walker Sheperd played banjo. My band members played acoustic instruments. Sam Sheperd played tambourine and the bass drum with his foot. At the end I riffed on a poem of mine called Our Jargon Muffles the Drum as Sam sped the drum. It has always been an emotional experience performing Teen Spirit, one of the most visceral songs in Rock n’ roll. On his passing day I am thinking not only what was lost but all that we gained through Nirvana.