Entertain Us

 The Rise of Nirvana – Entertain Us

Nirvana are one of the most influential bands in rock history, and even now, nearly 20 years after Kurt Cobain’s death, the reverence in which they are held is undiminished.

Books have been written about Nirvana before, but they tend to concentrate on the band’s superstar period and Kurt Cobain’s demise, while skating over the early years. In Entertain Us, Gillian Gaar redresses the balance by examining in forensic detail the band’s rise to fame, and their first album, Bleach. Drawing on archive material and interviews with many key people in the story, she traces Nirvana’s formation, its early recordings and many personnel changes, and the arrival of Dave Grohl to complete the familiar three-piece line up. By critiquing every song the band recorded in this period, tracing influences and unpicking complex relationships between band members, associates and record labels, Gaar gets to the heart of a compelling story.

Gillian G. Gaar is the author of several books about music, including Return Of The King: Elvis Presley’s Great Comeback, She’s A Rebel: The History Of Women In Rock & Roll, Green Day: Rebels With A Cause and The Rough Guide To Nirvana. She has also written for Mojo, Rolling Stone, Record Collector, Goldmine, and the Experience Music Project museum, among others, and served as project consultant on Nirvana’s 2004 box set With The Lights Out. She lives in Seattle, the home of grunge.