There are some reports that say Killing Joke filed a claim against Nirvana at some point, but it was thrown away after Cobain’s death. When the time came to release the song as a single, Cobain was hesitant because of the similarity and they almost went with the banging “In Bloom” instead.
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The guitar part for “Come As You Are” was inspired by the popular Killing Joke song “Eighties”. Here Kurt Cobain suggests that the rules of society are making people crazy, himself included. Like “Lithium” and many other Nirvana songs, “Come As You Are” can find meaning as a commentary on mental health. “Take your time, hurry up / Choice is yours, don’t be late” They encourage folks to be themselves, but comment on society’s expectations that impact the way that people act and present themselves. The lyrics are contradictory, bringing to the table the frequent Nirvana theme of an unreliable narrator. “Come As You Are” was written by the late great Kurt Cobain, just like every other song on Nevermind. Still, “Come As You Are” had moderate success, peaking at number 32 on the Billboard Hot 100, and receiving a lot of radio airplay. The story goes that Nirvana manager Danny Goldberg, along with the folks at DGC Records thought “Come As You Are” would be the song that could see mainstream success, and were surprised when “Smells Like Teen Spirt” gained so much traction.
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“Come As You Are” was the second single released off Nirvana’s breakout album, Nevermind (1991), following the viral radio hit “Smells Like Teen Spirit” which propelled them into the stratosphere of success. Kurt Cobain live with Nirvana in December 1993 at Pier 28 in Seattle.