You Know You're Right
Encyclopedia
"You Know You're Right" is a song by the American grunge
band Nirvana
. It is the first song on its compilation album, Nirvana (2002), and one of the last songs recorded by the band.
compositions. For years, it was known from only a bootlegged live version, recorded on October 23, 1993 at the Aragon Ballroom
in Chicago
, Illinois
, and from a performance of the song by the American grunge band Hole
(fronted by Cobain's widow, Courtney Love
) during the band's MTV Unplugged
set in 1995.
A studio version of the song was recorded at Nirvana's final session, on January 30, 1994 at Robert Lang Studios
in Seattle, Washington, but remained locked away from fans for years following Cobain's death. This recording became the object of much legal wrangling between Love and surviving Nirvana bandmates Dave Grohl
and Krist Novoselic
. Grohl and Novoselic had wanted the song for a planned Nirvana box set, but Love blocked its release, and a battle over Nirvana's legacy ensued.
Love maintained that "You Know You're Right" would have been "wasted" on a box set, and would be better-suited to a single-disc collection similar to The Beatles'
1. Her lawsuit called the song a "potential 'hit' of extraordinary artistic and commercial value," and her manager asserted that a release with the song could sell 15 million copies. Novoselic revealed that he did not necessarily disagree with Love: "I've always considered everything she said. We've considered it and agreed and said, 'Hey, that's a great idea, Courtney.' I tried to get along with Courtney as best I could, but there's only so much you can do."
In September 2002, the lawsuit between Love and the surviving Nirvana members was settled, and it was announced that "You Know You're Right" would arrive on "a one-CD history of the band" called Nirvana later that year. An unmastered MP3
of the song was leaked on the Internet
almost two months prior to its official release, and the song was put in rotation by a number of alternative rock
radio stations, even after being sent cease and desist
letters from Nirvana's record label.
"You Know You're Right" was eventually released as a promo single
, and a Chris Hafner-directed music video
was made. The video used various footage of band performances pieced together to give the effect of the song actually being performed, including brief clips of Cobain singing. The song made No. 45 on the Billboard Hot 100 due to internet downloads and airplay, and charted at #1 on both the Billboard
Mainstream Rock Tracks
and Modern Rock Tracks
. The song was re-released on the band's second greatest hits compilation, Icon, in 2010.
demo
of the song was released on the box set, With the Lights Out
. It was re-released in 2005 on the band's compilation album, Sliver: The Best of the Box. This boombox
-recorded rendition is the third known version of the song.
at their MTV Unplugged appearance.
In the liner notes
to Nirvana, Rolling Stone
writer David Fricke
erroneously states that the song had gone under the previous titles of "Autopilot" and "I'm a Mountain." Actually, these names were accidentally invented by bootleggers, who had misheard Dave Grohl's comment at the beginning of the live version. Grohl had announced, "This is our last song; it's called 'All Apologies
,'" not realizing that Cobain had already started playing "You Know You're Right." Thanks to the poor fidelity of the live recording, bootleggers believed Grohl had introduced the new song, and tried to interpret what they thought was its title. Fricke also mis-represents the lyrics in his liner notes.
as "You've Got No Right" during their MTV Unplugged
appearance on February 14, 1995. The band's lead singer and Cobain's widow, Courtney Love
, introduced it as "a song that Kurt wrote; [the] last song, almost."
Grunge
Grunge is a subgenre of alternative rock that emerged during the mid-1980s in the American state of Washington, particularly in the Seattle area. Inspired by hardcore punk, heavy metal, and indie rock, grunge is generally characterized by heavily distorted electric guitars, contrasting song...
band Nirvana
Nirvana (band)
Nirvana was an American rock band that was formed by singer/guitarist Kurt Cobain and bassist Krist Novoselic in Aberdeen, Washington in 1987...
. It is the first song on its compilation album, Nirvana (2002), and one of the last songs recorded by the band.
History
"You Know You're Right" was written in 1993, making it one of the last known Kurt CobainKurt Cobain
Kurt Donald Cobain was an American singer-songwriter, musician and artist, best known as the lead singer and guitarist of the grunge band Nirvana...
compositions. For years, it was known from only a bootlegged live version, recorded on October 23, 1993 at the Aragon Ballroom
Aragon Ballroom (Chicago)
The Aragon Ballroom is the name of a ballroom in Chicago, Illinois.Located on West Lawrence Avenue approximately five miles north of downtown in the Uptown neighborhood, it was built in 1926 and designed in the Moorish architectural style with the interior resembling a Spanish village and named...
in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, and from a performance of the song by the American grunge band Hole
Hole (band)
Hole is an American alternative rock band that originally formed in Los Angeles in 1989. The band is fronted by vocalist/songwriter and rhythm guitarist Courtney Love, who co-founded Hole with former songwriter/lead guitarist Eric Erlandson...
(fronted by Cobain's widow, Courtney Love
Courtney Love
Courtney Michelle Love is an American rock musician. Love is the lead vocalist, lyricist, and rhythm guitarist for alternative rock band Hole, which she formed in 1989, and is an actress who has moved from bit parts in Alex Cox films to significant and acclaimed roles in The People vs...
) during the band's MTV Unplugged
MTV Unplugged
MTV Unplugged is a TV series showcasing many popular musical artists usually playing acoustic instruments. The show has received the George Foster Peabody Award and 3 Primetime Emmy nominations among many accolades.-Unplugged:...
set in 1995.
A studio version of the song was recorded at Nirvana's final session, on January 30, 1994 at Robert Lang Studios
Robert Lang Studios
Robert Lang Studios is a recording studio in Shoreline, Washington, United States, just north of Seattle. Numerous bands have recorded at Robert Lang Studios including Alice in Chains, Candlebox and Bush. Perhaps the most famous recording session at Robert Lang Studio was in late January 1994 when...
in Seattle, Washington, but remained locked away from fans for years following Cobain's death. This recording became the object of much legal wrangling between Love and surviving Nirvana bandmates Dave Grohl
Dave Grohl
David Eric "Dave" Grohl is an American rock musician, multi-instrumentalist, and singer-songwriter who is the lead vocalist, guitarist, and primary songwriter for Foo Fighters; the former drummer for Nirvana and Scream; and the current drummer for Them Crooked Vultures...
and Krist Novoselic
Krist Novoselic
Krist Anthony Novoselic II is a Croatian-American rock musician, best known for being the bassist and co-founder of the grunge band Nirvana. After Nirvana ended, Novoselic formed Sweet 75 and then Eyes Adrift, releasing one album with each band...
. Grohl and Novoselic had wanted the song for a planned Nirvana box set, but Love blocked its release, and a battle over Nirvana's legacy ensued.
Love maintained that "You Know You're Right" would have been "wasted" on a box set, and would be better-suited to a single-disc collection similar to The Beatles'
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
1. Her lawsuit called the song a "potential 'hit' of extraordinary artistic and commercial value," and her manager asserted that a release with the song could sell 15 million copies. Novoselic revealed that he did not necessarily disagree with Love: "I've always considered everything she said. We've considered it and agreed and said, 'Hey, that's a great idea, Courtney.' I tried to get along with Courtney as best I could, but there's only so much you can do."
In September 2002, the lawsuit between Love and the surviving Nirvana members was settled, and it was announced that "You Know You're Right" would arrive on "a one-CD history of the band" called Nirvana later that year. An unmastered MP3
MP3
MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 Audio Layer III, more commonly referred to as MP3, is a patented digital audio encoding format using a form of lossy data compression...
of the song was leaked on the Internet
Internet leak
An Internet leak occurs when a party's confidential information is released to the public on the Internet. Various types of information and data can be, and have been, "leaked" to the Internet, the most common being personal information, computer software and source code, and artistic works such...
almost two months prior to its official release, and the song was put in rotation by a number of alternative rock
Alternative rock
Alternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
radio stations, even after being sent cease and desist
Cease and desist
A cease and desist is an order or request to halt an activity and not to take it up again later or else face legal action. The recipient of the cease-and-desist may be an individual or an organization....
letters from Nirvana's record label.
"You Know You're Right" was eventually released as a promo single
Promotional recording
A promotional recording, or promo, is an audio or video recording distributed for free, usually in order to promote a recording that is or soon will be commercially available...
, and a Chris Hafner-directed music video
Music video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
was made. The video used various footage of band performances pieced together to give the effect of the song actually being performed, including brief clips of Cobain singing. The song made No. 45 on the Billboard Hot 100 due to internet downloads and airplay, and charted at #1 on both the Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
Mainstream Rock Tracks
Mainstream Rock Tracks
Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks is a ranking in Billboard magazine of the most-played songs on mainstream rock radio stations, a category that includes stations that play primarily rock music. Modern rock tracks are counted in the Alternative Songs chart.This chart began with the March 21, 1981, issue...
and Modern Rock Tracks
Modern Rock Tracks
Alternative Songs is a music chart in the United States that has appeared in Billboard magazine since September 10, 1988. It lists the 40 most-played songs on modern rock radio stations, most of which are alternative rock songs...
. The song was re-released on the band's second greatest hits compilation, Icon, in 2010.
Other versions
In 2004, an acousticAcoustic music
Acoustic music comprises music that solely or primarily uses instruments which produce sound through entirely acoustic means, as opposed to electric or electronic means...
demo
Demo (music)
A demo version or demo of a song is one recorded for reference rather than for release. A demo is a way for a musician to approximate their ideas on tape or disc, and provide an example of those ideas to record labels, producers or other artists...
of the song was released on the box set, With the Lights Out
With the Lights Out
With the Lights Out is a box set, containing three CDs and one DVD, of previously rare or unreleased material, including b-sides, demos, rough rehearsal recordings and live recordings, from the American rock band Nirvana. It was released in November 2004...
. It was re-released in 2005 on the band's compilation album, Sliver: The Best of the Box. This boombox
Boombox
Boombox is a colloquial expression for a portable cassette or CD player. Other terms known are ghetto blaster, jambox, or radio-cassette. It is a device capable of receiving radio stations and playing recorded music , usually at relatively high volume...
-recorded rendition is the third known version of the song.
Title
"You Know You're Right" may not have had a proper title at the time of Cobain's death in April 1994. According to a 2004 Seattle Times article by Gillian G. Gaar, it was listed simply as "Kurt's Song #1" on the tracking sheets from the Robert Lang Studios recording session. In 1995, it was performed as "You've Got No Right" by HoleHole (band)
Hole is an American alternative rock band that originally formed in Los Angeles in 1989. The band is fronted by vocalist/songwriter and rhythm guitarist Courtney Love, who co-founded Hole with former songwriter/lead guitarist Eric Erlandson...
at their MTV Unplugged appearance.
In the liner notes
Liner notes
Liner notes are the writings found in booklets which come inserted into the compact disc jewel case or the equivalent packaging for vinyl records and cassettes.-Origin:...
to Nirvana, Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
writer David Fricke
David Fricke
David Fricke is a senior editor at Rolling Stone magazine, where he writes predominantly on rock music. In the 1990s, he was managing editor before stepping down.-Background:David Fricke is a graduate of Muhlenberg College in Allentown, Pennsylvania...
erroneously states that the song had gone under the previous titles of "Autopilot" and "I'm a Mountain." Actually, these names were accidentally invented by bootleggers, who had misheard Dave Grohl's comment at the beginning of the live version. Grohl had announced, "This is our last song; it's called 'All Apologies
All Apologies
"All Apologies" is a song by the American grunge band Nirvana, written by frontman Kurt Cobain. It was released as the second single from the band's third album, In Utero, which was released on September 21, 1993...
,'" not realizing that Cobain had already started playing "You Know You're Right." Thanks to the poor fidelity of the live recording, bootleggers believed Grohl had introduced the new song, and tried to interpret what they thought was its title. Fricke also mis-represents the lyrics in his liner notes.
Chart positions
| Chart (2002) | Position |
|---|---|
| Finland Airplay Chart Mitä hittiä The Official Finnish Charts is a national record chart in Finland composed by Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland.The singles chart was started in January 1991 as Radiomafian lista and was broadcast on the radio station Radiomafia of the Finnish Broadcasting Company, YLE. This chart is based on a... |
45 |
| US Billboard Hot 100 Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
45 |
| US Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks | 1 |
| US Hot Modern Rock Tracks | 1 |
Accolades
The information is adapted from Acclaimed Music.- Chosen as one of All Music Guide's "Singles of the Year" (2002)
- Ranked #9 in Eye Weekly'sEye WeeklyEye Weekly was a free weekly newspaper published in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was owned by Torstar, the parent company of the Toronto Star, and was published by their Star Media Group until its final issue on May 5, 2011. The following week, Torstar launched a successor publication, The Grid.-...
"Singles of the Year" (2002) - Ranked #5 in Spin's "Best Singles of 2002" (2002)
- Ranked #8 in Village Voice'sThe Village VoiceThe Village Voice is a free weekly newspaper and news and features website in New York City that features investigative articles, analysis of current affairs and culture, arts and music coverage, and events listings for New York City...
"Singles of the Year" (2002) - Ranked #49 in Rock de Lux's "Singles of the Year" (2002)
- Ranked #20 in NME'sNMEThe New Musical Express is a popular music publication in the United Kingdom, published weekly since March 1952. It started as a music newspaper, and gradually moved toward a magazine format during the 1980s, changing from newsprint in 1998. It was the first British paper to include a singles...
"Top 20 Nirvana Songs" (2004) - Ranked #9 in Q's "10 Greatest Nirvana Songs Ever" (2004)
- Ranked #20 in Uncut'sUNCUT (magazine)Uncut magazine, trademarked as UNCUT, is a monthly publication based in London. It is available across the English-speaking world, and focuses on music, but also includes film and books sections...
"Nirvana's 20 Greatest Songs" (2004)
Covers
The song was performed by HoleHole (band)
Hole is an American alternative rock band that originally formed in Los Angeles in 1989. The band is fronted by vocalist/songwriter and rhythm guitarist Courtney Love, who co-founded Hole with former songwriter/lead guitarist Eric Erlandson...
as "You've Got No Right" during their MTV Unplugged
MTV Unplugged
MTV Unplugged is a TV series showcasing many popular musical artists usually playing acoustic instruments. The show has received the George Foster Peabody Award and 3 Primetime Emmy nominations among many accolades.-Unplugged:...
appearance on February 14, 1995. The band's lead singer and Cobain's widow, Courtney Love
Courtney Love
Courtney Michelle Love is an American rock musician. Love is the lead vocalist, lyricist, and rhythm guitarist for alternative rock band Hole, which she formed in 1989, and is an actress who has moved from bit parts in Alex Cox films to significant and acclaimed roles in The People vs...
, introduced it as "a song that Kurt wrote; [the] last song, almost."