LIVE NIRVANA SESSIONS HISTORY 1991–1993 - TBC, TBC, US

Set

• [X] Talk To Me
• [X] Talk To Me

Studio Banter

Best available sources

A recording is known to exist, but is not circulating.

Notes

While Talk To Me had been a feature of NIRVANA's live set circa November '91, the band apparently never saw fit to bring it into the studio.

Kurt Cobain may have intended to develop the song in collaboration with Mark Lanegan or Iggy Pop, but neither project ever got off the ground. (1) He left a message saying it was Kurt from NIRVANA and Why don't you call me and maybe sometime we can get in the studio or something and kick around some shit together? Iggy Pop told The Big Takeover. I don't really do that, though—that's not my trip. I didn't wanna be produced or done up or be a NIRVANA mascot or something, but I had enough respect for him to call him back. But when I called him back it was like This is The Four Seasons hotel… Mr Cobain is hanging upside-down like a bat from the ceiling for the next 32 hours or whatever. So I said Great, just leave a message that I called. That was the end of it. (2)

Unable to find a suitable use for the song himself, Cobain eventually offered it up to his wife's band, Hole, with whom he would often jam. (3)

Hole attempted to record a version of the song with Craig Montgomery at Hanzek Audio in 1993, but abandoned it before any vocals were laid down. (4) Kurt had this new wave throwaway, ‘Talk To Me,’ that I tried—it really sucked on us, Courtney Love confessed. It fit like a really bad Ann Taylor dress on me, she said, only Kurt could pull [it] off—it had Devo all over it. (5)

Cobain's demo was subsequently consigned to a drawer. It's still in the drawer, but it's getting cuter with age, Love teased. So, when you hear it, it'll be like fine wine from him—all his Oingo Boingo/Devo issues in one song. (5)

It is not clear when, where, or with whom this particular demo was recorded; all that is known is that it was found compiled on a cassette with demos of Opinion and Do Re Mi, and that it is said to be of poor sound quality.

References

1. Courtney Love: The Hole Story [TV] MTV Networks, 1994. ↑
2. Rabid, Jack, 2001. Iggy Pop: Still Loose, The Big Takeover issue # 49. ↑
3. Schemel, Patty, 2012. Personal communication with Alex Roberts. ↑
4. Endino, Jack, 2009. Personal communication with Alex Roberts. ↑
5. Love, Courtney, 2002. Posting on the hole.com forums, [online] Available at: http://www.hole.com/soapbox/?. ↑

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