Nirvana manager Danny Goldberg released his new book, “Serving the Servant: Remembering Kurt Cobain.” Goldberg ad a recent interview with Forbes, and revealed Kurt’s real thoughts about Led Zeppelin and AC/DC’s music.
Espinoza:
“Did you share Kurt’s opinion that a lot of the mainstream rock of the ’70s and ’80s was inherently sexist and homophobic? Did you at least understand that perspective if not?”
Goldberg:
“Oh completely! Absolutely. First of all, I agreed with him about that. Secondly, I think he was torn: I think he liked the music. He liked Led Zeppelin’s music—and AC/DC. But the lyrics were not something that he felt comfortable with, for exactly the reason that you said. And I think I quote him saying something like that in the book, and I wanted to do it because it’s central to who he was as an artist.
He definitely identified culturally with the values of the punk rock communities, which were rebelling not only against Reagan and things about society that pissed people off, but they were rebelling about things the music business produced. And that was a generational statement and it was one that he shared in.
But as a musician, he had a very broad appreciation: As is widely known, he loved the Beatles—not that the Beatles don’t have some sex*st lyrics, they do.
You know, I love John Lennon and Kurt loved John Lennon, but I think that ‘Norwegian Wood’ though is a bit on the sex*st side.
But he loved the music of a lot of different artists, but culturally he identified with a moral code, and that was one of the things to me that made him such an exciting artist to know and to work with, and that included a real abhorrence of macho stereotypes and behavior.”
2 comments
We cannot ask him but what moral code does he identify with? by what I gather he was a Marxist and drug addict.
He was against homophobia, the was against misogyny, he was against racism. He was for reading and learning and art and literature. He was anti racist.
Being an addict is difficult thing, but to dismiss all addicts for just being addicts dismisses everyone from John Lennon, George Harrison, Prince, Tom Petty and Jim Morrison thru Rush Limbaugh, Alex Jones and Donald Trump.
Being an addict doesn’t equate to a moral code.