Heavier Than Heaven: A Biography of Kurt Cobain

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Heavier Than Heaven: A Biography of Kurt Cobain

4.01 of 5 stars 4.01 · rating details · 8,619 ratings · 399 reviews

The art of Nirvana's Kurt Cobain was all about his private life, but written in a code as obscure as T.S. Eliot's. Now Charles Cross has cracked the code in the definitive biography Heavier Than Heaven, an all-access pass to Cobain's heart and mind. It reveals many secrets, thanks to 400-plus interviews, and even quotes Cobain's diaries and suicide notes and reveals an unr...more The art of Nirvana's Kurt Cobain was all about his private life, but written in a code as obscure as T.S. Eliot's. Now Charles Cross has cracked the code in the definitive biography Heavier Than Heaven, an all-access pass to Cobain's heart and mind. It reveals many secrets, thanks to 400-plus interviews, and even quotes Cobain's diaries and suicide notes and reveals an unreleased Nirvana masterpiece. At last we know how he created, how lies helped him die, how his family and love life entwined his art--plus, what the heck "Smells Like Teen Spirit" really means. (It was graffiti by Bikini Kill's Kathleen Hanna after a double date with Dave Grohl, Cobain, and the "over-bored and self-assured" Tobi Vail, who wore Teen Spirit perfume; Hanna wrote it to taunt the emotionally clingy Cobain for wearing Vail's scent after sex--a violation of the no-strings-attached dating ethos of the Olympia, Washington, "outcast teen" underground. Cobain's stomach-churning passion for Vail erupted in six or so hit tunes like "Aneurysm" and "Drain You.")

Cross uncovers plenty of news, mostly grim and gripping. As a teen, Cobain said he had "suicide genes," and his clan was peculiarly defiant: one of his suicidal relatives stabbed his own belly in front of his family, then ripped apart the wound in the hospital. Cobain was contradictory: a sweet, popular teen athlete and sinister berserker, a kid who rescued injured pigeons and laughingly killed a cat, a talented yet astoundingly morbid visual artist. He grew up to be a millionaire who slept in cars (and stole one), a fiercely loyal man who ruthlessly screwed his oldest, best friends. In fact, his essence was contradictions barely contained. Cross, the coauthor of Nevermind: Nirvana, the definitive book about the making of the classic album, puts numerous Cobain-generated myths to rest. (Cobain never lived under a bridge--that Aberdeen bridge immortalized in the 12th song on Nevermind was a tidal slough, so nobody could sleep under it.) He gives the fullest account yet of what it was like to be, or love, Kurt Cobain. Heavier Than Heaven outshines the also indispensable Come As You Are. It's the deepest book about pop's darkest falling star. --Tim Appelo

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Hardcover, 381 pages

Published 2001 by Hyperion

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Aug 02, 2007 Lorrie rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: no one

I just noticed the average rating for this book was 4 stars. Yuck. The author does a decent job putting together Kurt Cobains' life and rise to fame. In the last chapters he takes "creative license" in describing Kurts' last moments, all the way to his suicide. It's disgusting. No one was there (that we know of). He has no right.

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Mar 30, 2008 Desy rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Kurt Cobain's & Nirvana's #1 fans

Shelves: kurtcobain, indonesian, biography

Baru selesai baca kemarin malam. Akhirnya selesai juga baca kisah si motornya Nirvana ini :D. Meski yang gua baca itu versi terjemahan bahasa Indonesianya, kayaknya gua pengen beli juga yang versi aslinya.

Bytheway. Buku ini cukup rinci nyeritain kisah hidup Kurt Cobain. Tentu beserta Nirvana n keluarganya. Pokoknya semua yang dirasa pernah ada hubungan dengan Kurt, dituangkan secara kronologis di buku ini. Si penulisnya melakukan 400 wawancara selama empat taun dengan orang-orang yang pernah ber...more

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Mar 21, 2008 Kirk rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: medium-warm

Interesting fact No. 1: KC's first concert was not the Melvins or some such punk band, but Sammy Hagar, who has shown surprisingly restraint in not naming a brand of tequila after the now-Converse branded icon.

That's just one reason why this book about The Voice of Your Generation is valuable: it's proof that no one is born punk or even cool, but that it's an attitude one accrues by hanging around the right crowd. That's why the real heroines here aren't named Courtney but first girlfriend Trac...more

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Jul 18, 2008 Whitney rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Nirvana/Hole fans

Recommended to Whitney by: Patt McManus

I had read Michael Azerad's "Come as You Are," the story of Nirvana way back in the day so I knew quite a bit about Kurt's life and the history of the band. This went a lot deeper and was compiled of many sources, family members and friends of the band and was a lot more true to life. Michael Azerad's book was based on interviews with the band, so it was mostly how the band wanted to portray themselves. This book made me decide that if I had known Kurt I would have thought him a lazy, self-absor...more

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Dec 15, 2008 Kye Alfred Hillig rated it 5 of 5 stars

This booked disturbed me a bit. I know everyone wants to rape the corpse of Cobain but not me and admitting this is embarrassing but hey, we're all friends here. Reading it I saw a lot of myself in Kurt Cobain and it worried me. Am I going to blow my brains out? I certainly hope not. Maybe I related to him in the way that a lot of people did. Maybe he's just a common guy who was thrown into something bigger than him. At any rate Charles Cross really did his research and created a book that I ate...more

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Aug 14, 2007 Montgomery rated it 4 of 5 stars

Kurt Cobain was a constant whiner and self-mythogist who constantly complained that fame was thrust upon him. Cross spends the first half of the biography debunking the Cobain myths and demonstrating how heavily Kurt courted mainstream success. The second half of the book documents Cobain's downward spiral- it's really amazing that he had to kill himself with a shotgun when he got so close so many times with his "heroine." Fucked up, sad read about a man I idolized when I wasn't yet old enough t...more

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Feb 09, 2009 Kristopher Jansma rated it 4 of 5 stars

I read these two Kurt Cobain biographies as part of some research for my new novel, which I wanted to have some tangential connections to Nirvana and Cobain. I read both books along with completely-legally-paying-for (read downloading) all of Nirvana's B-Sides and Rarities and Home-recordings, etc. Actually both the books were quite interesting for very different reasons. Azerrad wrote his book while Cobain was still alive, and so only the epilogue (added later) even addresses his suicide. Cross...more

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Mar 26, 2013 Aimee rated it 2 of 5 stars

Hmmmm... well, I don't read a lot of biographies. I didn't know a lot about Kurt Cobain even though I am a Nirvana fan. The book was interesting and the author seemed to have interviewed and researched a lot of facts. Mostly what I took from this book is that Kurt was a complex person plagued with self doubt, physical pain, issues of abandonment and a family history of mental illness. Oh and he made a conscious decision to be a drug addict. And, wow, did he do a lot of drugs.

The parts about the...more

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Mar 13, 2013 Charles rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Based on what I've seen so far, rock journalists are barely a half step above sports journalists in terms of writing quality. It's a low bar, but the author here does a better job than many of his peers. I was impressed with the amount of research and synthesis that went into this. The public record of Nirvana is full of myth, myths largely corrected here. And yet while he makes ample use of the archive of material at his disposal including first person interviews with relatives and friends and...more Based on what I've seen so far, rock journalists are barely a half step above sports journalists in terms of writing quality. It's a low bar, but the author here does a better job than many of his peers. I was impressed with the amount of research and synthesis that went into this. The public record of Nirvana is full of myth, myths largely corrected here. And yet while he makes ample use of the archive of material at his disposal including first person interviews with relatives and friends and some significant portion of Kurt's private journals, he also takes liberty with the story at points where he couldn't have had any real idea what was going through Kurt's mind. Apart from these episodes of fan fiction, I found the portrait of this troubled pop star full and convincing.

Kurt Cobain did too many drugs. That I can say for sure. Now whether he was an artistic genius or merely the right guy for the times, clever but childish and ultimately overrated, I can't say for sure. At points I truly admired his style, like these points specifically:

Interview with Sassy magazine - He and Courtney did this interview with the teen girl juvenile publication after turning down interviews with both Rolling Stone and the New York Times. Genius.

Nirvana on Top of the Pops - This BBC program invites chart topping acts to "perform" their current hit in front of a studio audience, but only the lyrics are live. Most acts approach this task with a seriousness entirely out of place. Nirvana was having none of it. Brilliant.

Nirvana at the Reading Festival of 1992 - The lead up to this concert was full of talk in the press of how Kurt Cobain was strung out and the band was breaking up. Kurt's response was probably even better than Jay Z's response to criticism from Oasis. Clever.

Nirvana wins 1992 best alternative video - At many points Kurt and Nirvana took great pleasure in messing with MTV, like this occasion when they sent up a Michael Jackson impersonator to accept their award.

Nirvana doesn't play Rape Me - Same awards show as before. This time Kurt wanted to play Rape Me which was a pointed criticism of the media machine that MTV was a big part of. MTV told him they'd cut to commercial if he did. This was their response. Kinda childish, but MTV was a deserving target.

Before reading this book the friend who loaned it to me told me I'd either love or hate Courtney after reading it. My opinion of her remains largely unchanged. I think they belonged together. It's too bad she wasn't able to save him from himself.

It's an easy read.
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Aug 22, 2012 Qaris Tajudin rated it 5 of 5 stars

Saya kira, Charles R. Cross adalah salah seorang penulis biografi terbaik. Itu dia dapatkan dari ratusan jam wawancara dan riset ribuan halaman dokumen. Kegilaannya dalam meriset itu membut biografi yang ditulisnya--termasuk buku tentang Kurt Cobain ini dan "Room Full of Mirrors" tentang Jimi Hendrix--hidup. Kita benar-benar melihat tokoh yang dia ceritakan secara utuh.

Cross, misalnya, bisa menggambarkan apa gambar di kotak makan Kurt Cobain ketika taman kanak-kanak. Ia juga bisa dengan detil me...more

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Jan 23, 2012 Lily rated it 4 of 5 stars

Being a huge Nirvana fan, I am always searching for the perfect stories that let me into the lives of the performers. Heavier Than Heaven was the perfect escape into the depths of Kurt Cobain (late frontman of Nirvana)'s life.

Heavier Than Heaven: A Biography of Kurt Cobain unravels the shocking story of Kurt Cobain, frontman of Nirvana and grunge hero. The story starts with the rebellious acts of young Cobain, and quickly accelerates to adolescent years when punk bands were booming and teenag...more

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Dec 29, 2010 Jacobmartin rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: 1990s, music, running-in-the-90s, biography, depressing-but-important, american-literature, historical-perspective, morbid, nightmare-fuel, rock-stars, gen-x

Normally you would consider Kurt Cobain to be "the voice of a generation", as in, "the voice of Generation X" - when in reality, he's also A voice for various generations that came after him. The internet really destroyed the idea of a cohesive generational identity, and Kurt Cobain was one of the last pre-Napster rock stars to ever be exploited horribly by the music industry as he lay in poverty while touring in vans and generally getting high on heroin even though he was meant to be a father t...more Normally you would consider Kurt Cobain to be "the voice of a generation", as in, "the voice of Generation X" - when in reality, he's also A voice for various generations that came after him. The internet really destroyed the idea of a cohesive generational identity, and Kurt Cobain was one of the last pre-Napster rock stars to ever be exploited horribly by the music industry as he lay in poverty while touring in vans and generally getting high on heroin even though he was meant to be a father to his kid.

Kurt Cobain to me wasn't so much a man I idolised so much as being fascinated by. What drives a musician with his level of popularity to suicide when he had a lot he could have achieved beyond the morbid goal he set for himself at a young age to become a famous rock star and commit suicide?

Let me put it this way, as tragic as Hunter S. Thompson's death by his own hand was, he at least lived long enough to retain a legacy amongst several generations, and Thompson was barely MTV friendly - so he doesn't really have the same rock star burdens Kurt Cobain had. Thompson killed himself when he was round about sixty - Kurt Cobain was far younger which makes his death even more confusing because if he survived longer he could have been even more influential on the way music was made these days than the "he's popular because he's dead" vibe he tends to get picketed with by young people my age.

When I was around three or four, I heard the news of his death on the radio, but the euphemism "killed himself" registered in my brain as he had an accident rather than suicide. At least that's what I remember my parents telling me. It's probably what turned me into a graveyard visit loving baby-bat without makeup when I was a kid, I wasn't cool enough to be a goth but I certainly had the 'tude.

But to really immerse myself in the reading of this epic biography I listened to his music on my iTunes played on my computer nearby, all his albums I had were loaded into the player and I listened as I read, and soon enough I became immersed not just in the biography, but the music. The idea of Kurt Cobain as a musician really has to be separated from his tragic rock star legend for you to understand what this music really meant for alternative music and grunge in general. I don't mind grunge music, in fact, considering my limited musical experience I liked it in ways I couldn't appreciate properly as a teenager who listened to Nirvana played on late night Triple M radio (a Sydney rock station that in the early 2000s would play 1990s rock music like Metallica's Black Album and Nirvana stuff). At the time I had no idea Smells Like Teen Spirit was even a Nirvana song, they just played the tracks without telling you who the band was.

And I guess that was why I liked Nirvana's music better than I would have if I knew anything about that music going in - Kurt Cobain's music while heavily linked to his biographical details should be enjoyed in lieu of the tragedy his life really was. Especially since the details of his life exaggerated his actual experiences - a less polite way of saying it would be that Kurt just made shit up as he was going along to justify his experience as a tortured artist who wanted his parents to look bad.

Kurt Cobain may have been the Douchebag of the Decade as far as rock stars who treated their fans like scum when times were turbulent went, but he had a personality and a general style that's just fascinating to read about. Remember - this was a man who grew up without internet, so his experiences hunting down little artifacts of culture he enjoyed in his quieter moments really signify an age when you couldn't just order a realistic light up lightsaber off the internet like you can now. To be a cool dude who was into cool things, you had to know the right people and you had to really EARN it.

Cobain wasn't born cool, he gradually became cool because he lived through utterly bizarre circumstances. Don't even get me started about how angry I was at Courtney Love after reading this. If there was a Twilight-esque Team Whatever contest of people who allegedly ruined rock bands, between Team Yoko Ono and Team Courtney Love, I'm bloody sorry - but Yoko Ono wins out by default because she may have tried to secure her legacy by marrying John Lennon, but you know what? Yoko Ono never bonded with Lennon over drug abuse, nor was she anywhere near as controlling as Kurt's girlfriend who was referred to in the biography by one of Kurt's associates in the music biz as "a psycho hose beast".

I can honestly see why John Lennon liked Yoko a lot better than why Courtney and Kurt should have been together, because Kurt and Courtney are pretty much just as twisted a union and Edward Cullen and Bella Swan in the Twilight series. Thinking hard about it, "you're my personal brand of heroin" just got a whole lot creepier now I'm pondering it.

You can't really blame Kurt Cobain for being co-dependent on this woman though, he was very naive about his sexual politics to begin with, and I'm probably going to guess that poor Kurt was validated by Courtney's clinginess to him. Kurt's no saint either though - he did some pretty messed up things too. That's the problem with worshipping rock stars. They have feet of clay, and this biography portrays those feet very well crafted in the kiln that is the writing of a decent rock star bio.

I've never read a rock star bio before, and since Kurt Cobain in my mind was the one rock star I'd heard of that I knew was guaranteed to have a biography out on him, I chose this one for my brother's bookshop clerk girlfriend to send me for Christmas. I was not disappointed in this book in the least, it's a powerful study in how an artistically talented but kind of jerk-ass small town boy gets so famous without him even noticing how it affects people, because he withdrew inside himself so much nobody could really save him from himself.(less)

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Dec 01, 2010 tinabot rated it 5 of 5 stars

I published this on a music blog group called Future Rockstars of American (which is now dead I think):

I finished reading the biography of Kurt Cobain, Heavier Than Heaven written by Charles Cross, just in time for what would have been his 41st birthday. My conclusion?Kurdt (that’s how he liked to spell it) was a jerk!
Cortney Love had the crowd call him worse things when she read his suicide note to them.

I was not an active and avid fan of Nirvana when their singer Kurt Cobain killed glam rock...more

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Nov 16, 2010 Joshua rated it 3 of 5 stars

Not as incorrect as the movie "Last Days" likely was, but still leaves much to be desired. Regardless of whether or not I agree with the author's opinion that Kurt Cobain killed himself, this book was interesting to me because Kurt Cobain is.

It would have been impossible for anyone to create an accurate, chronological time-line of Kurt Cobain's life/experiences, given how spontaneous and dynamic he was, which is something this book makes apparent. In that regard this book is accurate. It painte...more

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Oct 04, 2010 Alex rated it 5 of 5 stars

Biography of Kurt Cobain:
A Troubled Genius
Is fame a blessing or a curse? Many people wonder what it is like to be famous. Kurt Cobain doesn’t need to.
One of the themes most prevalent throughout the Biography of Kurt Cobain was that you can achieve almost anything if you keep at it. You can achieve almost anything because Kurt’s record tops the charts, he becomes famous worldwide, and he never listened to anyone who said he couldn’t do it.
You can achieve almost anything if you really try becau...more Biography of Kurt Cobain:
A Troubled Genius
Is fame a blessing or a curse? Many people wonder what it is like to be famous. Kurt Cobain doesn’t need to.
One of the themes most prevalent throughout the Biography of Kurt Cobain was that you can achieve almost anything if you keep at it. You can achieve almost anything because Kurt’s record tops the charts, he becomes famous worldwide, and he never listened to anyone who said he couldn’t do it.
You can achieve almost anything if you really try because Kurt’s record goes number one. As the text says, “And then, as if things weren’t turbulent enough, the news came that in the next issue of Billboard magazine, Nevermind would hit the No. 1 spot, pushing out Michael Jackson’s Dangerous.” Nirvana’s album was the biggest in the U.S. at one point. Kurt Cobain went from not being able to afford gas money to being the biggest artist in the United States. He was making money and was extremely successful. If someone who was born poor and dropped out of high school can become a rock star, then many other people can do big things if they just keep trying.
Another reason you can achieve almost anything is that Kurt became famous worldwide. This was proved when one of Kurt’s old friends said, “You’re really famous now, Cobain. You’re on TV, like, every three hours.” To be on TV at all is not that common. Every few hours means that you really are very famous and successful. To become that famous is a very low chance. Out of several billion people, to become a celebrity is remarkable. With all his hard work, he became one of those very fortunate few. This shows that you can be very successful if you pursue your dreams.
Finally, you can achieve almost anything that you keep at because Kurt never listened to anyone who said he would fail, and never quit. Kurt’s mother Wendy told him that he should quit music. He wasn’t making money at the time, and she was unimpressed by his early material. Many others also said he should have a job to fall back on. But he didn’t listen. If he had listened, we wouldn’t have had one of the biggest rock bands of the 90’s. He didn’t give up and he achieved his dream of success and worldwide fame.
Anyone can achieve almost anything because Kurt had a number one record, he became famous worldwide, and he didn’t listen to those who tried to bring him down. I can personally connect to his story because there have been moments where I have been determined to accomplish something. Several years ago, I was planning to go on a 14 mile hike. All of my friends said I wouldn’t last that long. But I didn’t listen to them and I kept my head high. I walked it the next day and proved everyone completely wrong. Kurt did the same thing by becoming a rock star and an icon of his generation.
Overall, I have learned that anyone can achieve anything, no matter what background or heritage they come from, no matter what their story is. People who stay determined will achieve great things in the end.
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Feb 03, 2010 Retno rated it 4 of 5 stars

Kurt Cobain adalah pemusik jenius di masa hidupnya yang pendek: 27 tahun.
Karirnya dengan Nirvana membuahkan karya yang depresif dan salah satu band yang menandai kelahiran jenis musik grunge.
Jalan hidupnya tidak patut dicontoh, tapi orang bisa belajar dari biografi ini. Bagaimana pribadi yang sulit seperti Kurt menghadapi perceraian orang tuanya, perjuangannya menghadapi sakit perut kronis yang tidak bisa disembuhkan dan ketika semua orang men"cintai" musik dan dirinya, satu-satunya orang yang t...more

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Jan 25, 2010 Aenearisfine Gmailcom rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: collected

'Give Me A Leonard Cohen', Kurt Cobain (1967-1994)

Kurt Cobain yang tenar, dengan lingkaran lampu menyorot raganya di panggung merasakan kosong yang penat. Katakanlah, bahwa ia memiliki segalanya yang melekat hingga pantas tuk disebut Rock Star. Tentu bukan Rock Star yang sekadar liar, bukan aliran musik Rock, yg bukan genre musik ia turuti dengan nada2, yang menghentak dan TARAAAA, menjadikan ia mendapat gelar terhormat itu. Kontroversi, digarisbawahi sebagai hal substantif yang ia pahami dengan...more

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Jan 05, 2010 Josh rated it 1 of 5 stars

this book is almost equal parts fiction and Courtney Love approved versions of "actual events." it gives some information, but it should be taken with a grain of salt. there are TONS of proven historical errors. i don't blame the author for the misinformation, however, as he had to have everything cleared by Courtney Love. he did lose his credibility, though. i can't believe they used him on "busted circuits and ringing ears: the TAD story" dvd that came out a year ago.

if you are a Nirvana fan,...more

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May 15, 2009 M Mushthafa rated it 5 of 5 stars

URL: http://rindupulang.blogspot.com/2006/...

Satir Hidup tentang Popularitas

Popularitas menjadi impian hidup yang jamak menghinggapi kalangan muda yang menghirup udara awal milenia ketiga. Jika kesuksesan dapat didefinisikan, popularitas termasuk ke dalam salah satu ciri utamanya. Belakangan ini, di berbagai stasiun televisi kita gencar sekali disajikan tayangan-tayangan semacam reality show yang memikat kalangan muda dengan janji pemenuhan obsesi popularitas mereka.
Tak banyak orang yang berpiki...more URL: http://rindupulang.blogspot.com/2006/...

Satir Hidup tentang Popularitas

Popularitas menjadi impian hidup yang jamak menghinggapi kalangan muda yang menghirup udara awal milenia ketiga. Jika kesuksesan dapat didefinisikan, popularitas termasuk ke dalam salah satu ciri utamanya. Belakangan ini, di berbagai stasiun televisi kita gencar sekali disajikan tayangan-tayangan semacam reality show yang memikat kalangan muda dengan janji pemenuhan obsesi popularitas mereka.
Tak banyak orang yang berpikir tentang sisi gelap popularitas. Popularitas terlalu sering diidentikkan dengan tahap pencapaian yang memungkinkan seseorang dapat menikmati hidup dengan segala kemudahan dan kenyamanannya.
Kisah hidup Kurt Cobain—vokalis kelompok Nirvana yang oleh majalah Rolling Stones dimasukkan ke dalam kategori 50 artis terbaik sepanjang masa—yang berakhir dengan tragedi bunuh diri dan dipaparkan dengan baik dalam buku ini dari cara pandang tertentu menunjukkan kepada kita betapa popularitas ternyata juga menyimpan sisi-sisi kelam yang kadang terasa absurd. Dengan cara pandang semacam ini, kita akan semakin mengerti bahwa para idola termasyhur yang dipuja-puja itu juga tak lebih dari manusia biasa.
Kurt Cobain lahir di Aberdeen, sebuah kota yang khas dengan industri penggergajian di negara bagian Washington, 20 Februari 1967. Sejak kecil ia sudah memperlihatkan berbagai bakat dan kecerdasannya, baik di bidang olahraga maupun seni. Kurt masuk dan berperan besar dalam tim bisbol dan gulat di sekolah. Dia juga sangat menyukai pelajaran seni dan senang melukis.
Tapi kehidupan Kurt dalam keluarganya begitu suram, terutama sejak perceraian kedua orang tuanya ketika dia berusia sembilan tahun. Peristiwa ini menjadi bencana emosional terbesar dalam hidupnya. Kurt jadi membenci kedua orang tuanya. Apalagi ketika ayahnya menikah lagi dan ibunya berpacaran dengan pemuda yang umurnya hanya 7 tahun lebih tua darinya. Peristiwa ini mengubah Kurt menjadi sosok pemurung, tertutup, dan berandal. Kurt kemudian mulai berkenalan dengan dunia obat-obatan hingga akhirnya putus sekolah.
Jalan menuju popularitas Kurt di jalur musik juga tak mudah diraih. Di masa-masa awal sebelum sukses, Kurt bersama personel Nirvana lainnya kadang harus menempuh jarak ratusan hingga ribuan mil untuk melangsungkan konser promosi album pertamanya, Bleach. Penontonnya pun kadang cuma 20 atau belasan orang. Bayarannya hanya cukup untuk mengganti bensin.
Tapi semua perjuangan keras Kurt terbayar ketika album kedua Nirvana, Nevermind, hadir dengan hentakan dahsyat sehingga menggoncang peta musik internasional. Album yang dirilis September 1991 itu dengan cepat berhasil bertengger di puncak teratas tangga lagu Billboard, menggeser Dangerous-nya Michael Jackson. Seiring dengan itu pula, popularitas Kurt dan Nirvana mencuat luar biasa.
Pada titik inilah kemudian pelan-pelan mulai terlihat sisi-sisi suram popularitas sebagaimana dialami Kurt. Sikap dan gaya hidup Kurt yang memang penuh kontradiksi dan kontroversi, keterlibatannya dengan dunia narkoba, yang menurut pengakuan Kurt juga dipicu oleh penyakit perut yang dideritanya sejak lama, serta kisah kehidupan keluarganya dengan Courtney Love, semua menjadi bahan menarik untuk diangkat media. Pemberitaan dari tabloid The Globe dan majalah Vanity Fair tak lama setelah kelahiran anaknya, Frances, misalnya, bagi Kurt dan istrinya tampak seperti penghakiman bahwa keduanya tak berhak mengasuh anaknya itu, dengan mengabaikan kenyataan bahwa Frances lahir dengan sehat. Karena itulah, pada tingkat tertentu, Kurt kadang mengalami semacam paranoid terhadap media, khawatir bila ternyata apa yang diberitakan tentangnya justru sesuatu yang tak ia sukai—entah itu karena berupa fitnah maupun semacamnya.
Rasa putus asa dalam mengatasi problem kecanduannya serta untuk memperbaiki kehidupan keluarganya, baik dalam relasinya dengan kedua orang tuanya maupun keluarganya sendiri, mengantarkan Kurt pada satu kondisi depresi yang luar biasa. Akhirnya, di awal April 1994, Kurt ditemukan bunuh diri di rumahnya dengan meledakkan kepalanya sambil mengkonsumsi obat-obatan, setelah beberapa hari sebelumnya kabur dari rumah sakit di Los Angeles tempat ia dirawat untuk mengatasi kecanduannya.
Meninggalnya Kurt akibat bunuh diri ini menambah daftar panjang para artis dan orang-orang ternama lainnya yang mengakhiri hidupnya dengan cara yang tragis itu. Sebelumnya tercatat nama Jim Morrison, Jimi Hendrix, dan Janis Joplin, para musisi yang secara kebetulan sama-sama meninggal di usia 27 tahun—seperti juga Kurt.
Charles R Cross menyajikan kisah hidup Kurt Cobain dalam buku ini dengan cukup detail dan komprehensif. Dengan dibagi ke dalam dua puluh empat bab, Cross mengimbuhkan catatan keterangan waktu dan tempat di tiap awal bab, sehingga pembaca akan cukup mudah menelusuri alur hidup Kurt. Cross, yang menjadi editor di majalah musik The Rocket ini, cukup berhasil memperlihatkan berbagai segi manusiawi Kurt, seorang artis terkemuka yang gema pengaruhnya hingga kini masih terasa, terutama di kalangan muda. Segi-segi manusiawi yang penuh lika-liku dari jejak kehidupan Kurt disampaikan dengan keahlian bertutur yang indah dan menawan; tentang perjuangan Kurt yang berkreasi dengan penuh kerja keras di dunia musik, bagaimana karya-karya musiknya itu lahir, Kurt kecil dan remaja yang merasa terabaikan dan terbuang di keluarganya, Kurt yang merasa dieksploitasi oleh media dan para penggemarnya, serta hubungan-hubungan kemanusiaan yang rumit antara Kurt dengan orang di sekelilingnya. Cross cukup berhasil menuturkan semua itu dengan keterlibatan emosi yang mendalam, sehingga pembaca buku ini dapat berempati dan masuk ke relung suasana setiap peristiwa.
Kelebihan utama buku ini lebih terlihat karena Cross berhasil menghimpun dan mengolah segudang data yang cukup berharga tentang kehidupan Kurt itu sendiri. Cross dalam buku ini tidak sedang bergosip atau sekadar menyajikan isu-isu murahan tak berdasar tentang kehidupan Kurt. Empat ratus wawancara dengan berbagai pihak yang terlibat dengan kehidupan pribadi dan karier Kurt di dunia musik dilakukan Cross selama sekitar empat tahun. Belum lagi berbagai arsip dan dokumen penting berkaitan dengan Kurt yang ditelusuri Cross, seperti catatan medis dan kepolisian, serta catatan harian yang ditulis Kurt sendiri. Kegigihan menelisik dan mengolah data inilah yang sebenarnya memang sangat dibutuhkan seseorang dalam menulis sebuah buku berjenis biografi, karena hanya dengan begitu sebuah buku biografi akan dapat tampil bertenaga dan tersaji secara baik—seperti buku ini.
Meski diterjemahkan secara keroyokan oleh tiga orang, buku ini cukup enak dibaca. Pilihan kata dan strukturnya sengaja dibuat lebih populer, sehingga dalam dialog-dialognya kita akan banyak menjumpai kata-kata yang tidak baku, seperti “kalo”, “ancur”, dan sebagainya. Beberapa ungkapan bahasa Inggris yang dalam konteks Indonesia saat ini juga sedang populer dan sering digunakan sehari-hari, seperti ungkapan “so what?”, oleh penerjemahnya tetap dibiarkan dalam bahasa Inggris. Dengan cara ini, suasana dan karakter tokoh-tokoh di buku ini, yang kebanyakan memang anak muda, menjadi lebih kental terasa.

* Tulisan ini dimuat di Harian Media Indonesia, Sabtu, 8 April 2006
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May 15, 2009 Daniel Solera rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: biography-memoir, pop-culture

For a long time, I have wanted to read about the life of Kurt Cobain. Not only was he one of the most important pop-culture figures of my adolescence, but his enigmatic personality, cryptic lyrics and almost mythical status piqued my curiosity. Charles Cross' biography does the man and his work justice.

At 365 pages, it's a little longer than I had anticipated, but not a single chapter is worth skipping. Cross describes Cobain's life with careful attention to detail, even cross-referencing specif...more

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Sep 26, 2012 Finn Campbell rated it 2 of 5 stars

I read this book because I am a huge fan of Nirvana and Kurt Cobain, and even though I already knew lots about him I was interested to hear what Charles Cross had to say.

This book fits onto the bingo board under the category of "A diary, autobiography or biography. This was interesting because there were parts of the book where the author just decides that he knew exactly how Kurt felt at a particular time....

My favorite quote from the book is "Kurt was undoubtedly one of the best musicians of h...more

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Apr 30, 2013 Todd Janko rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: music-auto-biographies

Charles Cross (excellent writer, and researcher on this biography) gets 5 stars for all the work he puts in this "can't put down" biography about the genuis, sometimes disturbed, drug fueled, Kurt Cobain.
If you are a Nirvana fan, and not have read this yet, I suggest you pick this up! There is a lot of tid bits, and information that is quite intriguing, especially before Nirvana took off to super "seattle scene" stardom.
An interesting story, is how he breaks out of rehab, a few days before he d...more

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Jun 26, 2011 C.V. Hunt rated it 4 of 5 stars

This book is compilation of a man’s life from interviews and speculation. But… it is the only way to compile 27 years of the unknown into 365 pages. At the end of every beings life, the only person that truly knows what happened is the being that is living that life.

I’m reminded of a line from the movie Donnie Darko, “Every living creature on earth dies alone.”

Kurt was unhappy. There are not too many people that I know that can truly say that they are 100% happy with their lives. Everyone choos...more

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May 03, 2011 Cara Ellison rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: biography

Well, now I'm obsessed. To be totally objective, I was hovering on the obsession line for a while. I love Nirvana, and Kurt Cobain specifically, so when I picked up Heavier Than Heaven, I thought I'd just get a better understanding of the subject.

Newp. Not so easy. This book reads like a novel. It sucks you in, chomps down on your guts with shark jaws, shakes you around, and then suddenly releases you into the calm black depths of total obsession.

This portrait of Kurt Cobain is not objective. O...more Well, now I'm obsessed. To be totally objective, I was hovering on the obsession line for a while. I love Nirvana, and Kurt Cobain specifically, so when I picked up Heavier Than Heaven, I thought I'd just get a better understanding of the subject.

Newp. Not so easy. This book reads like a novel. It sucks you in, chomps down on your guts with shark jaws, shakes you around, and then suddenly releases you into the calm black depths of total obsession.

This portrait of Kurt Cobain is not objective. Of course. But I found the point of view agreeable; it seemed to reinforce my idea of Cobain's internal workings. There were one or two parts where I could practically hear Courtney Love screaming her editorial suggestions in the background. These parts were just slightly too favorable to her. For instance, when Courtney Love told Vogue that she did heroin while she was pregnant. When Frances was born, she was taken away from her parents for several long weeks. There is a quote about the anti-drug culture that cracked me up because it was so absurd: that there was a "mistaken impression" that one could not be a heroin addict and a good parent. No, sorry, Courtney, it isn't a mistaken impression. If you're doing heroin while pregnant, you're by definition not a fit parent.

In any case, I was very happy when they got Frances back; the love both parents had for the child was evident. The loving commitment and the perfect fit between Kurt and Courtney also surprised me - in many ways they reminded me of Sylvia Plath and Ted Hughes because they borrowed each other's lines, sang each other's songs, and seemed to be deeply compatible. The artistic symbiotic relationship was the hallmark of the Plath-Hughes union. It was a pleasure to read about another similar relationship.

The author takes a few liberties at the very last of the book; he could not possibly know Cobain's tortured thoughts while he pondered while shooting up and then holding the gun to his mouth. But man, when he did pull the trigger, the words on the page scorched me to the bone, and I wept. I wept for the sweet boy Cobain was, the brilliant artist, the husband and father. I wept because it was a shame to lose it all.

And I wept because, like Plath, I believe that it was inevitable. A date with destiny.

This was a moving, illuminating book. Anyone who loves stories about complex, complicated artists will appreciate it. Those who already like Cobain will be seduced -- then obsessed.(less)

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Jan 21, 2013 Mary rated it 3 of 5 stars

I was introduced to Nirvana's music by the television show My So Called Life ( a great show cancelled after one year). So, I was curious about Kurt Cobain. I knew he committed suicide (but some people believe he was murdered.)

Cross' biography seems very well documented. It's full of quotes from Kurt's friends, band members, family, ex-girlfriends, and of course (no one can shut her up) Courtney Love. Cross treats Love very sympathically in this book. It seems pretty clear from the book that Love...more I was introduced to Nirvana's music by the television show My So Called Life ( a great show cancelled after one year). So, I was curious about Kurt Cobain. I knew he committed suicide (but some people believe he was murdered.)

Cross' biography seems very well documented. It's full of quotes from Kurt's friends, band members, family, ex-girlfriends, and of course (no one can shut her up) Courtney Love. Cross treats Love very sympathically in this book. It seems pretty clear from the book that Love decided that she wanted Kurt and went after him. Cross also deals with her drug addiction smypathically -- she had to deal with Kurt, she had a terrible childhood, and she is an artist. Her relastionship with Kurt was not a positive thing for either of them. Lots of drugs and lots of fighting.

Kurt's drug addiction is what killed him. There is some discussion in the book about whether Kurt sufferred from depression and whether his stomach pain was psychosomatic. According to the book, he saw lots of doctors for his stomach pain but never found much relief except from nacarotics. Or maybe his stomach pain was the excuse he used to obtain and use drugs. Based on the information in this book about his childhood and growning up, he had lots of reasons to be depressed.

His early girlfriend Tracy is probably one of the best people in the book. She worked for years at Boeing and supported Kurt while he stayed home and wrote songs and began to use drugs. His father also seemed like a good person although Kurt spent years not speaking to him.

Probably the biggest event in Kurt's emotional life was his parents divorce when he was in grade school. Initially, he went to live with his Dad, but eventually his father remarried and this upset Kurt and the advent of his baby stepbrother stole his only son status. But at least in his father's house he had to follow rules and had some structure.

His mother Wendy is a definitely not a model mother. She decided she wanted the divorce. When Kurt finally moved in with her during his early high school years, she would embarrass him by making out with her boyfriends infront of him. Never really able to support herself, she had two later marriages that ended in divorce. When Kurt was still in high school, she kicked him out. He also lived with some other people who tried to help him, but Kurt was his own worst enemy and did things for attention that caused him to be asked to leave. He ended up living on the streets as a high school student.

His music reflects alot of his childhood and adolescent pain. The book contains lots of quotes from Kurt's journals which offers readers alot of insight into his character and his song writing processes. He was a gifted wordsmith. This book is a good read if you want to learn about Cobain but beware the author was indebted to Courtney because she gave him access to Kurt's journals before they were published so his portrait of Love is very sympathic.

There are also some photographs in the book that span Kurt's short life. Kurt was truly the key man in Nirvana. He wrote the songs and most of the music. The other band members were talented musicians but did not contribute much to the songwriting. Nirvana became very successful very quickly, created gold records, and won music awards. Nevermind and Inutero are the two albums discussed in the book,(less)

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Feb 26, 2013 Danielle rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

A refreshing read, this book is well researched and written by someone who is clearly a fan but who doesn't let that fandom cloud their vision. It is not backward in telling the stories which illustrate Kurts flaws (which were abundant) it doesn't try to throw blame for Kurts death OR addiction anywhere except where it belongs, with Kurt. I myself am a fan, I remember where I was when I heard that KC had died and I remember crying about it as my cousin teased me for caring about a stupid junkie...more

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Nov 25, 2012 Ale rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: american-authors, drug-theme, nonfiction, biography

A book on the life of Kurt Cobain, who always talked about going out in a blaze of glory. There are things that have now become part of the Nirvana mythos, and Cross does produce a good work. I loved his insights about Kurt's childhood, his need for love and approval, and his struggles in high school. It's a wonderful look at the life of this rockstar and legend, but two things keep this book from a five star rating: the huge lack of Dave Grohl, and the incredible amount of fiction surrounding C...more

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Apr 18, 2012 Jen rated it 4 of 5 stars

Less bombshells and more sad realizations in this book.
I've been devouring a lot of information about Kurt lately, and no matter how badly I wish that he was still around, making music...the less it seems that could have ever happened, no matter what.
If it weren't for this event he would not have been a star, if it weren't for that event he wouldn't have been a heroin addict, if it weren't for ALL these events, he would not have been so profoundly, emotionally ill-equipped for the level of fam...more Less bombshells and more sad realizations in this book.
I've been devouring a lot of information about Kurt lately, and no matter how badly I wish that he was still around, making music...the less it seems that could have ever happened, no matter what.
If it weren't for this event he would not have been a star, if it weren't for that event he wouldn't have been a heroin addict, if it weren't for ALL these events, he would not have been so profoundly, emotionally ill-equipped for the level of fame that hit him...at the same time he became a father.
But it took all those things to make him the person who made the music he did.
A happier childhood would have led to a different musical path - so he might still be alive, but would he still have turned out a song like 'Something in the Way'? I personally don't think so.
While I disagree with his choice (as a person who has loved a friend who felt that a bullet to the head was the only way out - I cannot and will not embrace it, obviously), I think about what would have happened if he had not died the way he did.
This is not to be inflammatory - although I know how it sounds - but he said what he felt, he said what he meant, he knew what he wanted, and he followed through on it. Because of that, he is not some disingenuous douchey rock star, who says he doesn't want fame but no one believes him. I cannot even imagine a middle-aged Kurt Cobain, and it's not for lack of trying.

I read this book and wanted to find some place, some crossroads where he could still have been the same, but happier. Different. It doesn't exist. We are not, as he assumed, better off with him gone, but you can't help feel that HE is.

I know this is less review and more life-commentary, but the truth is that if you are going to read this book, you know how it ends and you might be wanting to get a better sense of WHY and/or looking for answers for yourself, like I was.
I was not entirely pleased with them, but ultimately satisfied.
I don't expect you to understand that.
This is a very thorough, seemingly unbiased picture of Kurt - from birth all the way to the end.
If you loved him & his music and feel a sense of loss whenever you listen to it, this deserves your attention.
He should be remembered as a whole, not just for his last, selfish act on this planet. (less)

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Jan 10, 2010 TwilightNewborn rated it 4 of 5 stars

First off, what i really liked about this book was that didn't let the "legend" of Kurt Cobain get in the way of the hard truths that led to his downfall. The psychology of Cobain that Charles Cross presents makes a lot of sense to why this man spiraled into drugs and death (i.e., suicidal thoughts in his teens, chronic homelessness, family history of suicide). Most importantly, it dispelled in lingering notion I may have had about a murder conspiracy (which were mostly the result of watching th...more

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Aug 02, 2009 Maggie Tiojakin rated it 4 of 5 stars

The other day I was telling a good friend of mine about this book and how she should read it, because she's a big fan of Kurt Cobain -- or Nirvana, to be exact -- by summing up my experience in two short sentences / expressions: "It's so fucked up, it's cool!" And which later drew laughter from us both because we knew that we are the only two people we know who understand what that phrase means, or supposed to mean. I wish I had come up with something better, more intellectual, analytical, whate...more

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About Charles R. Cross

Charles R. Cross is a rock music journalist and author based in Seattle. He is the founder of Backstreets magazine, a periodical for fans of Bruce Springsteen, editor of "Springsteen: the Man and His Music," a compilation of Backstreets articles, and is also author of a biography of Kurt Cobain, titled Heavier Than Heaven. His most recent release is entitled Room Full Of Mirrors - A Biography Of J...more

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Books by Charles R. Cross

Room Full of Mirrors: A Biography of Jimi Hendrix

Backstreets: Springsteen, the Man and His Music

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