RIP Kurt Cobain – 20 Years Later

cobain_bench
Here I am sitting on the bench in the park near Cobain’s home in Seattle. The bench has been a memorial for fans for the past two decades.

Today marks the 20th anniversary of Kurt Cobain’s death. I’d say he was the Jimi Hendrix/Jim Morrison of my generation (it’s called Generation X – a term I despise but who am I kidding? That’s what it is). I became a fan the first few seconds of hearing Nirvana play ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit’ on Saturday Night Live. Goodbye, 80’s metal, this was the music I’d be listening to in high school and college. To this day, I hear this music and it’s suddenly the 90s again.

I believe 1991 was one of the best years for music in recent memory, when Nevermind, Pearl Jam’s Ten, Metallica’s Black album and Red Hot Chilli Peppers Blood Sugar Sex Magik all came out. Cobain and Nirvana rose to the top. Cobain’s death left a gaping hole as the 90s continued with related but not Nirvana acts like the Smashing Pumpkins, Soundgarden and Stone Temple Pilots.

It wasn’t just the music. I’m a huge fan of Iron Maiden and Def Leppard, and as much as I like Bruce Dickinson and Joe Elliot, those singers didn’t captivate me like Cobain. It was Cobain’s voice, singing those deep-yet-simple lyrics, and that tortured (aka grunge) look. Perhaps we even owe it to his drug abuse and inner demons that contributed to the aura around him that was more likely to fascinate folks than push them away. This was a far cry from the big-hair-glam rock of the 80s, which suddenly became an afterthought. Cobain hypnotized audiences in ways that other talented musicians didn’t. He spoke to us, even when we didn’t quite understand what he was saying.

I sometimes picture an alternate reality where I walk out of the rain and into a dark Seattle coffee shop. In the corner, I see the glow of a cigarette and the silhouette of a man with shoulder-length hair and an acoustic guitar. He waves me over, and I take a seat nearby. He strums the guitar and sings for me, perhaps Come as You Are, and I just sit and listen, in a virtual trance. As the song concludes, he fades away, but the image and sound stays with me for the rest of my life.

I am not writing anything today – 20 years after his death – that I wouldn’t have written ten or 15 years ago. In fact, the moment the news broke that he had died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, it was apparent to me that he was a man I would write about at some point, even two decades later.

Rest in peace, Kurt.

Scanning the Old Family Photos

The bikers of Quimby Ave. 1982

My mother took thousands of photos over the years, all stored in photo albums at my father’s house. I’ve volunteered for the tedious task of scanning as many as I can handle (not all – just the best or most meaningful ones). Needless to say, this is an extremely time-consuming process and I’m not even closed to being finished, but I know it’s making many friends and family members happy to see these photos.

Right now I’m posting them on Google, but the second phase of the project – if I ever get there – is to organize these by year, place, person and event. This could take the rest of my life.

See them here.

IMG_0205

The Enchanted Forest, Ellicott City, MD, 1970s Photos

enchanted-forest3-feb-1978

The Enchanted Forest in Ellicott City, Maryland, opened in 1955 and closed in 1995. I found these photos in an old album and wanted to share them with folks who want to remember how it looked back in the late 1970s. These photos are of me with a friend named Katie.

Check out photos of the park after it was abandoned on opacity.us, and also in the video at the bottom.

Dated Aug. 1979
1978-aug-1979-aug-slides-3 - - 063

1978-aug-1979-aug-slides-3 - - 066

1978-aug-1979-aug-slides-3 - - 058

1978-aug-1979-aug-slides-3 - - 067

1978-aug-1979-aug-slides-3 - - 065

1978-aug-1979-aug-slides-3 - - 061

1978-aug-1979-aug-slides-3 - - 060

Dated Feb. 1978
enchanted-forest1-feb-1978

enchanted-forest2-feb-1978

enchanted-forest4-feb-1978

enchanted-forest5-feb-1978

enchanted-forest6-feb-1978

enchanted-forest7-feb-1978
Check out this house many years later.

enchanted-forest8-feb-1978

enchanted-forest9-feb-1978

enchanted-forest11-feb-1978

enchanted-forest10-feb-1978