LIVE NIRVANA SESSIONS HISTORY November 25, 1991 - JPR 2, NOB Audio, Hilversum, NL View in Google Maps

  • NIRVANA
    • Kurt Cobain (vocals, guitar, bass)
    • Krist Novoselic (bass, guitar)
    • Dave Grohl (drums, guitar, vocals)
  • Leo Blokhuis (producer)
  • Lotje IJzermans (producer)
  • Berry Kamer (engineer)
  • Jan Douwe Kroeske (producer)
  • Flip Van Der Ende (producer)
  • [?] Unknown
  • [U] Jam Grohl solo
  • [U] Where Did You Sleep Last Night?
  • [U] Here She Comes Now
  • [X] Here She Comes Now
  • [U] Unknown part of instrumental Cobain on bass, Novoselic on guitar, Grohl on drums
  • [U] I Stand Horrified part of Cobain on vocals and bass, Novoselic on guitar, Grohl on drums
  • [U] Unknown instrumental Cobain on bass, Novoselic on guitar, Grohl on drums
  • 1991-??-??, VPRO Radio, Nozems-A-Gogo
  • 1991-11-26, VARA Radio, Twee Meter De Lucht In
Source ID Quality Complete Runtime Lowest Gen Tracks Featured Notes
SBD #1a 9.5 0:20:43 Master>RealAudio (96 kbps)
  • Jam
  • Where Did You Sleep Last Night?
  • Here She Comes Now
  • Unknown title
  • Released as an audio stream on VPRO's website.
SBD #1b 9.5 0:09:43 ADR>MD(1)>FLAC
  • Where Did You Sleep Last Night?
  • Here She Comes Now
  • Rebroadcast in 2003 on Kink FM. This source is less complete than SBD#1a, but is considered to be of superior sound quality. It has DJ banter on the outro to Here She Comes Now.
SBD #1c 8.5 0:09:19 FM>ANA(1)>FLAC
  • Where Did You Sleep Last Night?
  • Here She Comes Now
  • This source is less complete and of inferior sound quality to SBD#1a, but is not sourced from a compressed audio file. It is also less complete and of inferior sound quality to SBD#1b but is not sourced from a compressed broadcast and does not have DJ banter on the outro to Here She Comes Now. Where Did You Sleep Last night? cuts in.
SBD #1d 9.5 TBC Unofficial CD (Plugged And Unplugged)
  • Where Did You Sleep Last Night?
  • Here She Comes Now
  • This source is less complete than SBD#1c, but is considered to be of superior sound quality. Both songs cut in. Here She Comes Now is from a different broadcast.
SBD #1e 9.5 TBC Master>Opus 48kHz/16bit 99kbps, mono
  • Here She Comes Now
  • Released as part of an mini-documentary on the 2MeterSessies YouTube channel. Here She Comes Now cuts in.

This session was a co-production between two Dutch broadcasting organizations, VPRO and VARA, airing nation-wide on radio programs Nozems-A-Gogo and Twee Meter De Lucht In, respectively. (1)

I applied for a second session at their record company before Smells Like Teen Spirit was even released, says Nozems-A-Gogo DJ, Lotje IJzermans, who had previously played host to NIRVANA at Villa 65, November 1, 1989. I had heard an advance copy of Nevermind through a friend that had worked as their tour manager. I was thrilled. Then, when it became a huge hit record, of course everybody was interested and thus it became a co-production. (1)

I was present on behalf of VPRO Radio, IJzermans explains. The session itself was held on ‘neutral territory’—NOB Audio—as there has always been some slight rivalry between VARA and VPRO Radio. (1)

Berry Kamer, one of the NOB facility's engineers, recorded the session in studio NOB JPR2; ‘JPR’ standing for Jingle Production Room, explains Leo Blokhuis, co-producer of VARA Radio's Twee Meter De Lucht In. We used to record radio sessions in studios that were originally designed to record jingles and radio announcements. It all sounds like a primitive set up, and I can tell you that it was, but that was part of the fun! (2)

Twee Meter De Lucht In DJ, Jan Douwe Kroeske, remembers the afternoon spent with NIRVANA as anything but fun: It was kind of chaotic, he says. I had come prepared with a song-list proposing which tracks the band could perform, tracks like Polly and Teen Spirit. But when I tried to explain to Kurt what my preferences were, he wasn't in the mood to cooperate: ‘We play what we want.’ (3)

They were fiddling around for ages and sort of played three numbers, remembers IJzermans. Discernible numbers included a rendition of Leadbelly's Where Did You Sleep Last Night?, an attempt at The Velvet Underground's Here She Comes Now and a third song, which IJzermans describes as very quiet and miserable. It sounded like nothing and we could not recognize it at all. (3)

IJzermans found Cobain's demeanor worrying. Were the results of a grueling tour schedule—sleep deprivation, among other factors—taking their toll? The story at the time was that Kurt was addicted to drugs, so that could have been an influence, says Twee Meter De Lucht In co-producer, Flip Van Der Ende. In any case, he was restless and didn't feel like doing anything. (3)

After about 45 minutes it was over, recalls Kroeske. Kurt left first without saying goodbye to anyone, Dave ran after him and only Krist approached us. He was very apologetic, ‘We know when we fuck up.’ (3)

Further correspondence with VPRO has revealed that around an hour of material was recorded, including a second take of Here She Comes Now (which remains unheard). (4) When VPRO decided to put a more complete version of the session on their website in November 2002, only 20 minutes of the entire session was considered fit for broadcast. (4)

  1. IJzermans, Lotje, 2007. Personal communication with Alex Roberts.
  2. Blokhuis, Leo, 2003. Personal communication with Alex Roberts.
  3. Niehaus, Wim & van Adrichem, Pieter, 1994. Nirvana In The Netherlands, Oor 23.
  4. VPRO Radio, 2002. Personal communication with Paul van Haaften.

© Alex Roberts. Last modified: September 02 2022