Kenan Hebert on Pete Townshend on Kurt Cobain. Whew!
A must-read. Thrill! to the sound of Townshend stroking his own ego. Laugh! at the presumptuous pomposity of his opinions. Cry! as you realize he's absolutely right.…
"A sinister cabal of superior writers."
Article comments
— go to most recent comments26 - Tom Johnson
Sophie, please do some research before you make ridiculous claims like that. Pete Townshend did NOT have any child porn on his computer. The police kept his computer for 4 months and couldn't turn up anything other than exactly what he'd already told them - long before he was even arrested - that he did. He informed the police that he was going to attempt access to a child porn site for research, when he did so it required a credit card number NOT to pay but only to provide some proof of age, which got him into a preview section of the site. This is as far as he accessed the site. He wanted to know how difficult it was for someone to access this material, and found out it's not very hard - meaning anyone could do it. It was, however, very, very stupid to do, even with informing the police. He also didn't do it again. Why is this important? Because someone interested in child pornography, like anyone interested in anything, isn't going to do something one time. If you're into it, you're going to have a stockpile of the stuff in your computer, stashed away in your house, etc. Maybe this is too logical for most people, but take a look at any interest people have. Do you know anyone who only has one item of whatever they're interested in? Of course not.
If you knew anything about the Who's music, you'd know that themes of child abuse have always run through their music. Tommy especially. Pete was abused as a child, and this album was him venting the pain he felt. I urge you to listen to it closely, read the lyrics, and discover what it's about - then maybe you'll understand what Pete Townshend's issue was about.
As for being "sick," yes, Kurt Cobain was sick. Mentally sick. Anyone who kills himself is sick. Suicidal thoughts are not normal, and taking action is beyond not normal. It's sick - and what it means is this person needs help.
27 - Trina
I Think NO ONE should read his journal thats what a journal is somewhere you can rite shit down that you dont want to say to people its supposed to be private, his secrets if he wanted people to read his journal he wouldve published it before he commited suicide dont ya think? I dont know do want you want but just think would you want people reading your journal? Your deepest secrets? i sure as hell wouldnt!
28 - holly
i think its terrible that his journal is out but for me thats fine i really wanna read it but its invadeing his privacy and if some one read mine ill be fucken pissed but kurts dead now and also he didnt commit suicide he was murdered
29 - ME
FUCK U, KURTS THE BEST FUCKEN ROCKER OF ALL TIMES AND I ACTUALLY THINK ITS KEWL THAT HIS JOURNAL HAS BEEN PUBLISHED HAY IF U SAY THAT U THINK THAT ITS WRONG....IT IS, BUT DONT U WANNA KNOW WHAT THE GRUNGE KING THOUGHT ABOUT IF U SAY U DONT SUPPORT IT ,DOES IT MEAN YOUR NOT GONNA LOOK AT IT....YEAH RIGHT JUST DO IT...
30 - millie
i love kurt and all of his music and (most of) his writing. iv read him journals and feel bad and really wish courtney had never realised them. i dnt trust her and feel that shes hiding lots of things which r important as she did not want 2 show if their marrige was 'failing'. i dnt think wot she did was fair. i would love to know bout frances thou and where she is now.
31 - fally
NIRVANAs the best fucken band of all time and guess what i couldent aford the journal so i read it in the shop and i fucken starved the whole day just cause i wanted to buy it well what im tryna say it u should starve for this cause its a fucken good book!!
32 - fally
Tom Johnson your fucken gay kurdt aint sick your fucken sick u fucken peice of shit... dont fucken ever talk about kurdt like that
33 - TDavid
Enquiring minds want to know: who is kurdt? Sounds like some new kind of cheese.
34 - beckie
i think that is it wrong for courtney love to take her husbands personal thoughts and letters and publish them because she cant handle that her wannabe rock star life has gone down the drain.. she just wanted the money.. i dont think she really cares about him!! at first i thought it was wrong to read them.. but the my human nature took over and i just had to.. i feel that what he says in most of his writings i can feel it.. and i think that we learn a lot from him by reading it.. although i think its wrong.. i still had to!
35 - beckie
and ohh.. NIRVANA IS THE BEST BAND OF ALL TIME!! there is no doubt about that.. and anyone who thinks differently should be poked with sticks.. and i dont agree with people who think that pete townsend is the greatest.. because hes not.. KURT is.. and pete is a stupid washed up rocker too.. and he should never write reviews for kurt.. or for anyone for that matter.. he belongs somewhere where he cant be touched by human kind.. i think that anyone who has the nerve to diss THE BEST ROCKER of all time should be hated.. i know i hate pete.. and i agree with kurt from his journals..
I WOULD RATHER DIE THEN TURN INTO PETE TOWNSEND!!
36 - jonny
no fukin shit have a look at it .thats all what we need to know about...
37 - Andrea
Kurt Cobain is a legend that needs to be remembered respectfully and not just as: "isn't he the singer from Nirvana who killed himself"
when we all know it was courtney love who did it.
38 - Douglas Mays
Andrea-
Courtney did it? That theory gets thrown around by those looking to blame. Well, she didn't do it (forensics proves that) except for being half the party in a volitile relationship. For all that matter, he probably lived longer because he was married to Courtney. He would have offed himself sooner otherwise.
Kurt was worth more to Courtney alive than dead.
Anyway, pay attention to Kurt's lyrics. That explains what killed him. Townsend using the term 'childish' in explaining Kurt's observations. Well, at Pete's age, everyone is a child.
39 - me
Kurt Cobain has NO PLACE criticizing Pete Townshend. Nirvana couldn't do in three albums what Pete Townshend did with one song... My Generation. Of course, none of you seem to get the "Hope I die..." reference as coming from that very song. If The Who suck so much, how come Nirvana covered songs of theirs, including "Baba O'Riley" in concert? Kurt Cobain was a selfish person. Killing yourself is always selfish. "Best rock star of the 90's" my ass. What did he ever do for anyone else? Look at Bono, for instance. How many charitable causes has he given his time and effort to? Axl Rose has given millions to environmental charities and charities to protect wildlife (of course you never heard about that because then, God forbid, Axl Rose wouldn't look like a complete and total asshole). Nirvana were a one-trick pony, Kurt Cobain especially. Courtney Love did not kill him. Pathetic losers like you just tell yourselves that to somehow justify and put some kind of martyr spin on Kurt Cobain's pathetic existence. Remember his little "accidental" overdose in Rome? If you can't even kill yourself right, then maybe you are better off being dead. Nirvana will never reach The Who's stature (or sales, for that matter). Everything Nirvana did, The Who did about 25 years earlier. And now, you people are turning him into Pete Townshend, as you would say, by idealizing him and everything he did and wrote, and putting him above reproach, making him a religious figure. How very pathetic.
40 - myra
Hey,
How dare you insult Kurt!!!!! Hes dead have you no self respect or respect for the dead? He meant so much to so many people the least you could do is respect him for what he was, an artist.Theres some musicians whose music i dont like or agree with but that dosent mean im gonna go out of my way to spit on their graves!!! THats just sad to have nothing better to do than to tear at the image his fans have of him let them belive that aliens killed him or whatever they loved him and are trying to deal with the fact that hes gone. i love you kurt wherever you are and hope you know you will always live on in outcasts like me ...just like you. Rest in peace.
41 - Francisco Laucirica
Here's the thing: Townshead probably felt guitly because Cobain was right, Pete's generation gave up after the media and establishment took a couple of cheap shots at them. So it's true what he said about them attempting to change the world and giving up before the last step had to be taken. And yes, Kurt was childish and personally I think that suicide takes more cowardice than courage. This is, however, none of our business: Townshead's entitled to his opinion and Cobain to his, so maybe we should just let them talk it out on their own someday at the end of days and butt out, huh?
42 - chief
Wake up people, Pete isn't saying anything bad about Kurt's genius or Nirvana's music (except perhaps in the ungrounded speculation that Kurt had "outside help"). He uses the adjectives "smart," "wonderful," "outstanding," and "beautiful" to describe Kurt's soul and songs. The article is about how heroin destroys people's minds and bodies, and how tragic it was that Kurt allowed himself to be overcome instead of defeating it like Pete did in the 1980's. So on the charge of insulting a rock legend, Pete himself delivers a verdict of "not guilty by reason of insanity."
A more interesting question is what Kurt meant by "I hope I die before I become Pete Townshend." For the uninitiated (who seem to be numerous on this board), Kurt is twisting the line "I hope I die before I grow old" from the Who's "My Generation." I'm unsure why Kurt had a specific problem with Pete, since he never sold out or gave up his credibility. I think the line just popped into Kurt's head one day for no reason and he wrote it down because he found it funny.
43 - Alex
Kurt Cobain.Everytime someone hears that name they either think of a man with a child-like and loving heart or a man who killed himself and has horrible music.Well the people who think of Kurt as a person who killed himself, don't know him and his bandmates music.I personally think it expresses things in peoples lives when they make mistakes and are heart-broken,or when people try to hide their mistakes through their music and express everything they have to give.You may not agree with me and I understand that.You may have your own beliefs.This website should not be about why people don't like each other or people fighting about Kurt's music and Pete Townshend.Kurt is long gone.Him and his music are a LEGEND whether people agree with it or not.he has changed peoples lives.I think he was murdered but, there's no evidence of that.Yet!Whoever reads this, don't judge a person on how loud their music is or how much screaming the music has.Kurt made his music with feelings and did it damn well,unlike most artists today!Kurt had his own problems with his life and nobody but him, will know what they were.Enjoy his music and if you don't like it then don't say anything because how are you going to discriminate against a person that is dead and a band that's a legend.Think about that one.Peace,Love,Empathy.Alex
44 - Katfish
Fair enough, Pete Townshend. After reading your review, I find you bitter and judgmental. I've listened to Nevermind's music, read the lyrics, and enjoyed it a lot. Of course, I can say the same thing for Tommy - and you were on drugs at that time too, weren't you? Kurt Cobain's vocals are rough and at the same time melodic, but most important of all, it's sincere - something sorely missing from most of the lead singers of today's "hard rock" bands, who don't really sing, but scream and shout. Hell, anyone can do that. Only Layne Staley of Alice in Chains comes close (oh, I forgot - he's dead, too).
Mr. Townshend can rail all he wants about addiction and how it affected Cobain, but even if Kurt got clean, it's a sure bet that Nirvana would cease to exist anyway. Did it ever occur to Pete that the demons that drove Kurt to shoot up is what help create those great songs in the first place? Take a look at Aerosmith, Eric Clapton, and James Hetfield (Metallica) for other examples. I defy anyone to say that these guys put out better music after they sobered up.
I think Journals is nothing but a blatant attempt to cash in on Kurt Cobain's fame. There's nothing really profound about his writings that has not been already said in Nirvana's music. Let the man rest in peace.
45 - Tommy
I think Pete knows what he is talking about. He has been an drug addict and knows where that leads you. So don't criticize Pete Townshend for what he said.
46 - jon d
pertaining to cobains journal if you really respect kurt cobain you will Not read it, because would you want every one who you didnt know to read your shit that was supposed to be privite. BAN THE BOOK!!!
47 - Myself
Kurt Cobain changed my life. i was the kind of person who followed the crowd and did what was "normal" to people where i live. but i was never happy with who i was until i discovered rock music and Kurt Cobain. He has really influenced my life and has helped me find who i am. i really want to read his journals because i admire him and his views of the world and the media, but i would feel so guilty because he didnt want people to read them. i think its ok if people read them but keep in mind its his personal thoughts not meant for other people to read, so they shouldnt judge him on them.
As for his death, it was not proven a suiced, there is a lot of evidence contradicting that. but it wasnt proven to be murder either, although thats what i believe. Someone else who posted something on here mentioned respect. why do you people come and say shit like that about him, do you just have nothing better to do with lives so you feel teh need to post things that are totally disrespectful to Cobain and people he meant a lot to. does it just make you feel better about your pathetic lives? And Pete Townshend has no right to say stuff about Kurt, cuz he sure isnt a better person.
48 - Petey
Funny, The Who does suck. Townsend apparently has nothing better to do other than wack off while looking at 3 year olds.
49 - Shane.
When it really comes down to it, you have several options involving this "Journal" situation.
I personally Would not buy it for 2 reasons. 1. I'm poor and 2 I don't really care.
Kurt Cobain was a musician (as am I)
and a successful one. But, He is not someone whom I would ever strive to be like. I am a fan of Nirvana's music but I also feel that most of the people I've met who Identify with his music
are annoying and spend too much time feeling sorry for themselves.
Kurt Cobain, In my opinion was a selfish crybaby who abandoned his daughter. And Before I get scolded by all you angry, angst ridden Cobain fans,
(who can't spell)
Understand that I love Nirvana's music just as much as you but don't Idolize the man. I hope Cobain and many of the other Musicians that left us rest in peace. P.S. to be honest, I think Kurt would have wanted you to steal the damn book.
R.I.P. James Lynn Straight.
50 - Cheralyn
I just bought the book online off of amazon.com.. and i havnt received it yet, but i am looking forward to it.. i say.. u know what? just read the book, what have u got 2 lose? if u like kurt cobain or Nirvana.. it'll help u idenify w/ him better.. im sure since courtney put the book out that alot about their marriage has been taken out..because it was deffinately a rocky marriage at that, and shes trying 2 hide it probably so ppl dont hate her even more but.. frankly i hate her anyways..even if she didnt kill kurt she had a big impact on it.
RIP kurt!
Peace love and empathy ~ Cheralyn
51 - wrh
read and you'll judge
52 - Ruben
You know what... fuck that muthafucker Pete... ur nuthin but a lil bitch that aint got a life of his own.... which is why he's being a nosy ass with Kurt... Kurt Cobain was murdered and its obvious... Pete just worry about ur own fucking business and let Kurt rest in peace .....u dumb bitch!!!! Aint nobody judging my idol... Fuck you Pete u stupid wannabe.... hater!!!!! LOL
53 - Blair
Umm yep, to Ruben and 90% of the people who felt compelled to post a comment here. You're Idiot(s) ... this was a waste of time.
54 - Shaun
It's absoultely silly to compare the work of Townshend with Cobain as a result of this review. (And also because Cobain wasn't fit to carry Townshend's guitar picks.).What's relevant is that Townshend himself is a survivor of drug abuse, and therefore knows where Cobain was coming from, and doesn't sugar coat his comments to be politically correct. Life is for the living, and if anyone thinks Cobain was playing with a full deck may as well follow his lead. This doesn't mean Cobain wasn't a great musician. He clearly was. But drug induced thinking is just that. Furthermore, anyone who comes on this or any other board accusing Townshend of evil regarding children should look at the details following his very brief detainment as well as his record involving children's charities. BUT idiots will always be prevalent on the net......its so easy to hide behind a screen...
55 - fan of kurt
you now he wrote a song called rap me well hes been dead for how long now and its like you guys are digging up his corps and still fucking him and ask for courtny love this was just another way for her to get rich even in death shes like a fuckin hemrode on his ass you all still rap him any one who reads his journal is a discusting humin being if you ask me just let him rest in peace hes done entertaining all of us there will never be another like him and he was wright about humanity you cant love every one and think every one is just a good person there not there all out for money i dont mind courtny love but i think this was wrong and i dont think kurt killed himself allot of peaple say courtny did it but i dont think so i did but i dont anymore ohhh fuck it mybe this is a good thing like cause i always wanted to know more about him and mybe if i read that book it wouid show me the state of mind he was in and then i would know if he killed himself and then i could stop feeling really bad about the hole thing but as i read abouve if you do get the book for kurt steal it thats how he would wont it dont pay for his insights he never wonted that dont judge me bye my spelling but bye my words if you can read them
56 - kate
i was really confused about whether to read the journals or not, because i am a huge fan of kurt cobains, but i think it is a total invasion of his privacy. courtney love needed money for drugs so she sold out her own husband. im not going to read the book, but i wouldnt hold it against anyone who would. everyone is entitled to their own opinion, and mine is to leave kurt with some respect, its what he deserves, and what you should want for him.
57 - kate
p.s. pete townsend is an ass he must have known he was alienating half the goddamn world by calling kurt stupid and pathetic.
58 - Douglas Mays
hhhmmm...well, Pete is an old British guy. (lol) Pete says he's been there, done that. Not quite, clinical depression is a whole different story.
At least Pete admits that he was "childish, petulant..." also. So I hope he is getting down on himself about the whole thing. And is it wrong to be that way for a phase?
And not taking responsibility? Pete, do you have any answers to the problems that your childish, petulant and resentful mind have discovered?
peaceloveguidance
59 - Natalie
ok my time. :) kurt cobain is my idol...as of many's. his songs and lyrics helped me through bad times. but what i love mostly about his music is that the lyrics relle keep me guessing. Kurt Cobain had relle strange thoughts (as proven in the journals, which i too wasnt sure if i should read). BUT I DID! i had to the freggin cover sucked me into it. "read u'll judge" ugh WHY! lol. let me tell TDavid something... Kurdt is Kurt's little getaway. he used the name for himself Kurdt Kobane. i duno why...but neways. i think everyone should be respectful of Kurt, he was pure art himself. and he inspired millions, including me. one thing i cannot stand is ignorant ppl like the ones in my school. whenever they see me wearing my Nirvana shirt some1 pretends like theyre shoving a needle up their vein...and then pretending like they r shooting myself. that just brings tears to my eyes. not for me but for the pathetic losers who have nothing else to do but judge My Idol. someone i can look upto...some1 that inspires me day to day :) i love u kurt. peace love empathy Nat
60 - some guy
man Pete Townshend is a bastard for calling kurt cobain "sick" he has no right cuz kurt cobain was a very deep and tallented man and he should be recognized for that to tell u the truth i was afraid to read his journals cuz i figured hey would i like other people snooping around in my private life, f*ck no but then i read the statemet above where it sayed that courtney and the rest of his astate felt it needed to get out there to the pubic so then i felt better about reading it ......... and plus i really,really wanted to read it cuz i'm such a huge fan!!!!
61 - BrIaN
First off Kurt Cobain is a genious, like that guy from shine. I say read the journals, because it makes you happy. I'm sure Kurdt Kobain, doesn't mind that much he's playing a gig in heaven with Jimi Hendrix and John Lennon.
62 - anonymous passerby
"Funny, The Who does suck. Townsend apparently has nothing better to do other than wack off while looking at 3 year olds."
How dare you! It's judgemental, ignorant people like you who make the world a bad place.
Anyway, I have a deep respect for Pete, being a personal hero of mine, but also for Kurt. The review Pete gave was not out of line at all.
Hey, has anyone noticed that the people who are criticizing Pete with no valid arguments are also the ones who can't spell? Interesting. . .
63 - amy
Pete and The Who have been loads more important to music than Nirvana or Kurt ever will be, they wouldn't have stood a chance if The Who hadn't been there.
True, Pete and the others all went downhill and I'm not sure if they'll ever be able to release something good again, but anyway.
And about his crybabay-comment: as Pete said, growing old turned out to be the hard bit, which Kurt never had to experience.
64 - Andrew
I think kurt was one of the top three artists of time. Kurt loved music and hated life. I think Pete is wrong for judging kurt. He should be judged. He was never a good musician anyway. Kurt rules and Grunge will never die. And courtney should be killed.
65 - DAVE
FUCK PETE, THE STONES, BLACK SABBATH, THE WHO, GUNS N ROSES, AEROSMITH, THE SEX PISTOLS, THE BEATLES, JOHN LENON, AND THE OTHER BANDS THAT ARE SUPPOSE TO BE SO GREAT. THEY AINT WORTH A FUCK. KURT WAS THE GREATEST MUCISIAN EVER AND THAT WILL EVER BE. NOONE CAN REPLACE HIM. NIRVANA WENT OUT WITH A FLAME OF GLORY. WHICH IS WHAT KURT WANTED. COURTNEY IS GAY.
66 - Tim Hall
A good mucusian is hard to find!
Zappa's "Nasal Retentive Calliope Music", anyone?
67 - Robbie
none of you know anything or understand anything.
68 - peter v
even hedrix clowned on how much townsend sucked.i think he knew fewer chords then Cobain and he couldn't hold up as a lead singer either.pete smashed his guitar on accident stumbling onto something new however Kurt had more of a purpose behind expressing his agressive punk antics of destroying everything in his path which was pure entertainment.Kurt could never forsee Nirvana dragging on for 20 years coasting on auto pilot like mechanical robots.imagine him in his 60s wearing adult diapers trying to play smells like teen spirit at some sold out arena rock show.kinda scary I think.I'm glad he went out with a bang.I just wish I knew him personaly and got to jam with.I truly miss him. pete you old dirty bastard time to retire
69 - shawn
I think it is very rude to publish kurt cobains journals. that is his personal thoughts who the fuck wants people to read there journal I mean cmon.... courtney love had someone murder kurt ITS OBVIOUS. I think it was axl rose or someone who hated kurt so pationetly. anyways fuck guns and roses they are a bunch of racist homophobes. my point is courtney should not have control over kurts diarys I mean who the fuck is she she only knew him for like 4 years or so.
Why couldnt a close family member hold his journals that way they would stay away from publishers. nobody knows what went on in kurts head and no one ever will some believe he wasnt even that deppressed of a guy others believe he was so fucked up with deppression he couldnt control himself...my point is leave him to rest in peace...Some people are just disgusting i heard they were gonna sell a soiled piece of toilet paper of kurts in an auction thats fuckin distgusting.....leave him alone!!1
70 - Steve Dean
It's funny to hear the different age groups fighting amongest one another. I'm 38, so I'm in-between.
The people vilifying Pete, apparently never read a lyric of his. Much of Townshend's early writing runs a parallel course to Kurt's writing: alienation, frustration, and a strong wonder of tomorrow.
Hey, hate The Who's music if you wish, a lot of it sounds very dated now, so that's only fair. But don't confuse indifference with ignorance.
Pete Townshend was the perfect person to review these diaries. Pete doesn't hate Kurt--read a little closer people--he clearly sees a lot of himself in Cobain.
Perhaps, looking at Cobain, Pete can see what would have happened if he died before he got old.
No one, Townshend included, denies the enormity of Cobain's talent. Hard as it is for some people to believe, many of us who loved everything Cobain did, still find it hard to forgive Cobain for taking the easy way out of life.
Suicide is the single most selfish thing a human being can do. I bet Frances Cobain might agree.
71 - bryan
steve dean has a point'im a big nirvana fan'but i will never forgive kurt for killing himself'life sucks'and we all have times when we feel like we want to kill ourselves'but thats just a feeling'it must be controled'courtney was a bitch'but kurt could have simply devorced her'kurt had a daughter'kurt wrote songs about his childhood'about his neglect'about his alienation'so i think it was mighty selfesh for the man to take his own life and allow the same thing to happen to his daughter.
72 - Eric Olsen
I agree entirely with Steve and Bryan, other than I don't find much of the Who dated at all - the collection of their earliest hits, "Meaty Beaty Big and Bouncy," is probably still my favorite single disc if I had to choose
73 - Vern Halen
I don't know what all the fuss is about - I like the Who & Nirvana both. It's a little like comparing apples & oranges. Maybe if Pete had died first, Kurt would have got to do a review on him instead.
I guess this thread says more about every generation's need for heroes more than it does anything else.
74 - Harv
Ok, anyone who goes on about "oh my god Nirvana were the greatest band ever and fuck the rest", isn't it now past your bedtime? To be fair, every band contributes to everything, its one big melting pot and they all help to influence the oneanother, so to say that The Who, The Beatles, The Stones, The Sex Pistols etc are shite compared to Nirvana is retarded, these bands helped to incite the rock revolution and paved the way for Nirvana. Please engage your simple little two-dimensional minds before you post drivel. As for Townshend's review, its a review, an opinion piece in which people voice their opinions. Not YOUR opinions, theirs. If you dont like it, read one that is pro kurt/nirvana, its very simple. Take this for example, this is my opinion and I expect people to slate me after I've posted it, thats the idea of forums, free speech is great.
And as for the references to the child porn, Pete was acquitted and cleared, so thats the end of that!
Rant over, have fun debating!
75 - hailey
i agree that there have been many amasing bands out there besides just Nirvana, but in my opinion, they have made one of the most substantial impacts in music since...forever. The reason that people like me say that Nirvana is the best band is becasue they have made the most impacts in their lives.i know for me, no matter what shit was going on in my life, i just turn on some Nirvana, and they bring me to a new place. they almost made a new world for me to step into where nobody could hurt me. And no other band has been able to do that. That is why i say they are the best band ever.