WE HAVE THE SAME HANDWRITING....

And Other Great Facts I learned From The KURT COBAIN JOURNALS

by Reggi Propst

"Don't read my diary when I'm gone
OK, I'm going to work now, when you wake up this morning, please read my diary. Look through my things, and figure me out." ~ Kurt Cobain


I've had my eye on his journal since it hit the shelves in 2002. And finally the library had a copy of it. I wanted to read it so bad, but somewhere in the back of my head, there was a little voice. It was telling me what one of my friends had told me. He had told me that the publishing of this book was wrong. That Cobain never wanted his journal read by the public. He never wanted anyone to read it. Then again my friend's father did buy it for him a couple months later and I doubt it just sat on the shelf. Just then someone bumped me and I realized I had been thinking in the middle of the library and people were just staring at me. In a sense I guess I checked the book out as an escape from the library of scary people.
        As I headed out to the car, I opened the book to discover Kurt and I have almost the same handwriting. Or so I thought. After further reading I noticed that many of his other pages were in a completely different handwriting, and sometimes were even un-readable. The publisher, thinking he was coming to the rescue, typed out the unreadable letters, in a notes section in the back, so that we could read them. Personally, I thought that stole away from the essence of the book. This is like finding a box of old letters. What they say isn't half as exciting or important as the fact you found them in the first place.
        The book opens with a letter. There are many of these, some were rough drafts of sent letters, some where just things Kurt would have loved to say to people, but never did. A lot of the letters were to members of other bands in Seattle and around the world. A few letters were to ex- drummers of NIRVANA. Some of these letters reveal Kurt's favorite songs at the time and the extent of his dream of being in a rock band as big as NIRVANA eventually became.
       Kurt was forever drawing doodles, mini-comics, and music video ideas in his journal. Most of the mini-comics are pretty funny, in a weird but cool sort of way. Many of his comics revealed Kurt's view on Society and many other interesting subjects. Judging from the book, Kurt was the creative genius behind many of the NIRVANA music videos. Mr. Cobain also created the cover for the Nevermind CD, which in his journals there are many doodles of. 
       This book is a real find for NIRVANA fans as well as Kurt Cobain fans because it shows many different versions of the band's fliers from when they were playing the Seattle bar scene. It also gives many of the names that the band went by before they officially decided on NIRVANA. Not to mention many of the original versions of the lyrics are in there (my personal fave is Floyd the Barber, seeing as I am from NC, its just soo funny) Not to mention the video ideas and cover art ideas mentioned in the previous paragraph.

KURT COBAIN JOURNALS is just plain out the best way to learn more on Kurt Cobain and NIRVANA. It has info that nobody else could give you but Kurt himself. I still feel bad about reading it, but I guess I could call it one of my guilty pleasures.