Oh, The Guilt: A Cobain TL

[Mango Soup]

Prelude

​

Exodus Recovery Center:
March 31st, 1994

An audible sigh erupted from the mouth of the exhausted employee. A nurse practitioner at the rehab facility for over a few months now, she had still not adjusted to the long hours and surprisingly heavy work load the job had laid upon her. It was all she could to to not fall asleep standing up. She leaned against the blindingly white wall, slowly resting her eyes. She was tired, not to say that she found the job boring. If you ever wanted to accumulate a wealth of stories to bring back to your families and friends, a rehab center was certainly a place to gain them. Humorous and often times unbelievably bizarre stories, but also sad and depressing ones. After all, it still was a rehab. The job certainly tested the durability of human emotion. And human patience. She wondered...

"Mrs. Anderson?" A voice spoke to her.

She opened her eyes to see a co worker standing in front of her.

"Oh yes, what do you need?" she said.

"Nothing particularly, I just saw you drifting there and thought you needed, uhh, woken"

"What I NEED is a cigarette" she thought...out loud. "Hold it down, if anyone needs anything, come for me"

"...ok" She heard in response as she made her way outside. Past those doors awaited a cool and slightly forceful breeze that banished the lingering drowsiness, well needed for getting through the next few hours. She lit a cigarette, and proceeded again to get lost in her thoughts when she saw a shadow sitting near the fence.

The shadow let out an achy moan, now in full view before the worker. A disheveled looking man, he had obviously attempted climbing the fence. It had rained not to long before, and it was quite easy to loose footing, she deduced.

Walking forward, she realized she remembered that face. How could she forget, it was not often someone so famous....okay it was quite often someone famous.... wound up at one of their facilities. Still, it took her for quite some shock when the bruised and frustrated, but otherwise fine, man now sitting before her was none other than Kurt Cobain.

--------------------------------------------------

ABC World News Tonight: April 4th, 1994

"...Good evening America and welcome to World News Tonight. Today: Is the conflict in Rwanda reaching a boiling point? We have a panel of Military and Political experts to discuss this with you...

...But first we have breaking news from the entertainment world. Kurt Cobain, frontman of famed Grunge Rock band Nirvana, has extended into a 30 day inpatient program at the Exodus Recovery Center, a Drug Rehabilitation Facility in Los Angeles, CA.

Concurrently, we are receiving word that Nirvana is pulling out of the Lollapalooza Travelling Music Festival. Is Nirvana headed for a breakup? All that and more, tonight on ABC"

 

[Mango Soup]

1.1:Exodus From Exodus

Kurt with Frances Bean, May, 1994
​

Contrary to many peoples expectations, the thirty day stay at the rehab went relatively well and smooth for the troubled rock star. The psychiatrists were quickly able to pinpoint and examine the mental health problems underlying his addictions and the often self destructive behavior that had plagued him. He was set prescriptions for various anti-depressives as well as extensive therapy regimens deemed appropriate by the employed psychiatrists. Tapering his opioid abuse would prove much trickier due to his high tolerance, but they found themselves able to stave off most withdrawal symptoms. According to many who saw him near the end of his stay at the Exodus Recovery Center, he was looking far healthier since the months leading towards his entry.

Kurt Cobain checked out from the rehabilitation center on May 3rd, 1994, around noon. Boarding a plane to Seattle, he would be at his home on Lake Washington Boulevard by the end of the day

While he was in rehab, the rest of the band members were relatively inactive. It is known that Pat Smear and Dave Grohl had met various times during the month, whether to write music or not is unknown, but these two would form the core of the punk-influenced Alt-Rock band Foo Fighters until their dissolution in 2006. From Krist Novoselic, it was complete radio silence.

Radio silence it was not from Courtney Love. Her band, Hole, released Live Through This on April 8th. Debuting at #65 on Billboard, the album received wide critical acclaim, being far more melodic than its predecessor Pretty on the Inside. She made multiple appearances on television throughout the month, in part due to the release of her album, in part due to the hectic media frenzy in the aftermath of the previous months events.

It is relatively unknown what happened for the few days after he returned to Seattle, but it is said he met with Krist Novoselic multiple times from the 12th to the 27th. The media and their fans, well aware of this fact, speculated on what would come from the band. Were they preparing a new album? another round of touring?

On June 1st, they would find out, and they would be sorely let down.

----------------------------------------------

Nirvana going on hiatus ​

Neil Strauss
New York Times:
June 2nd, 1994

The future of Seattle outfit has been wildly debated since the entry of its frontman, Kurt Cobain, to a rehab facility in Los Angeles. Now, we have finally gotten an answer, and it has wrought the attention of the media and the sorrow and disappointment from Nirvana's loyal fan base instantly since the news broke.

Nirvana is on a hiatus. Very few details were given to the press, and there is no current timescale to how long this hiatus will last, if not indefinitely.

The band members have largely refused to comment.

It is widely speculated that a side project involving Drummer Dave Grohl and Touring Guitarist Pat Smear has been in the works, but there has been no comment on or confirmation of this rumor from either.

Nirvana was set to appear at Lollapalooza, the Travelling Music Festival featuring numerous Alternative Rock and Metal groups throughout the duration of the summer before Kurt Cobain was admitted to Exodus Recovery Center in...

-----------------------------------------

The month of June, as well as most of July, would be equally uneventful from Cobain. Only talking to the press twice, it was clear he was more interested at being with Courtney and his daughter, Francis Bean, than interacting with the Entertainment industry or writing new music. However, this would change as a few months passed.

 

[Mango Soup]

Hey, i'd love to read any feedback. Im not sure if I am going to keep using a mix of both 1st person, 3rd person, and the News excerpts in the TL. What style do you like better?

1.2 Very White
​

If there was anyone in the music industry who could understand Kurt Cobain, it was Michael Stipe. In many ways, the rise of R.E.M paralleled Nirvana. It was not as abrupt, breaking through to the mainstream only by their seventh album, but the connections could still be made.

So it was no surprise that Cobain and Stipe had such a healthy relationship. Hell, Stipe was the godfather of his child. And like many who were close to Cobain, he were worried for his safety. The incident on only his second day at rehab had cemented the idea that he was a generally unstable person. So Michael Stipe set out to help Cobain by giving him a change of scenery, as well as a new outlet musically. In March, he had proposed Cobain fly down to Georgia and meet him. This, obviously, never happened. Now in August, the offer was extended again. This time he took it.

On August 4th, Kurt boarded a plane to Atlanta, where he would then drive to meet his longtime friend in his hometown of Athens.

For the next few months, he would make repeated visits to Athens, Georgia. There he met with Michael Stipe and Peter Buck, producer John Keane, Amy Ray of the Indigo Girls, and even briefly met with Gibby Haynes of the Butthole Surfers (Ironic, since the members if said band stalked R.E.M only a little over 5 years prior). Near the end of September, rumors of the Kurt Cobain solo album began to circulate. These rumors would be confirmed on October 10th, 1994, when Kurt Cobain had one of the longest meetings with the press he had since the turbulent events in March. He described the album as "folksier, artsier, and very different from what people expect of me". A date was also set, the 22nd of January.

While Kurt Cobain worked on his project, Dave Grohl was also hard at work. Writing primarily by himself, but also with help from Pat Smear and Bruce Fairweather, then from Love Battery. Krist Novoselic joined the stage with many bands with members he knew personally, but unlike Grohl and Cobain, was not planning any major project.

------------------------------------------------------------

Kurt Cobain - Very White Album (1995)
Genre: Folk Rock, Alternative Rock
Tracklist:
1. Do Re Mi
2.Yahweh
3...And I Love Her
4. Should I Stay or Should I Go? (The Clash Cover)
5. Good Riddance
6. Desire
7. Where Did You Sleep Last Night?
8. My Best Friends Girl (The Cars Cover)
9. Beauty
10. The Yodel Song


​

Written By:
Kurt Cobain
Michael Stipe
Additional Musicians:
Peter Buck
Courtney Love
Amy Ray
Juan Molina
Produced by:
John Keane

​

 

[Unknown]

I don't prefer any of them, TheReal54. Good TL; wonder how the butterflies affect other events...

 

[Mango Soup]

I don't prefer any of them, TheReal54. Good TL; wonder how the butterflies affect other events...

Music wise? A Lot. US Political Wise? Slightly. and a few other differences that I will show as the TL progresses.

Im probably going to keep using all three when the times are right for them.

 

[Unknown]

Hope the butterflies save a certain Corpus Christi-based singer...

 

[Mango Soup]

Hope the butterflies save a certain Corpus Christi-based singer...

If you are referring to Larry Norman, I believe he had his major heart attack a few years before POD, so those health problems cant be avoided entirely :/

 

[Unknown]

No, I'm referring to Selena, TheReal54...

 

[Mango Soup]

No, I'm referring to Selena, TheReal54...

Holy shit forgot about her. I'll see

EDIT: someone else will get shot though