Nirvana was an American rock band formed in Aberdeen, Washington, in 1987. It was founded by lead singer and guitarist Kurt Cobain and bassist Krist Novoselic. Nirvana went through a succession of drummers, the longest-lasting and best-known being Dave Grohl, who joined in 1990. Though the band dissolved in 1994 after the death of Cobain, their music maintains a popular following and continues to influence modern rock and roll culture.

In the late 1980s, Nirvana established itself as part of the Seattle grunge scene, releasing its first album, Bleach, for the independent record label Sub Pop in 1989. They developed a sound that relied on dynamic contrasts, often between quiet verses and loud, heavy choruses. After signing to major label DGC Records, in 1991, Nirvana found unexpected mainstream worldwide success with “Smells Like Teen Spirit”, the first single from their landmark second album Nevermind (1991), which sold over 30 million copies worldwide. Nirvana’s sudden success popularized alternative rock, Here is Nirvana’s albums ranked from worst to best.

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3. Bleach (1989)

“My favorite band. This album was recorded for $606.00 back in 1989. I heard Floyd The Barber on Seton Hall college radio station. Little did we know what was next from the late, great artist. A movement. A cultural change. Bleach was just the tip of the iceberg of what would become one of the greatest bands to bless rock! So powerful. So influential…in such a short span of time. I thank Nirvana everyday for their music, and their influence on my art. Work. And life.”

See More: MTV Unplugged in New York (Nirvana Album) Live

2. In Utero (1993)

“Amazing, even after 20+ years. The story of In Utero is truly amazing. Nirvana was the biggest band in the world, but did not want it (one of the few bands that truly did not want the title/publicity). In Utero was an attempt to return to their true form – closer to Bleach. There was so much interest from the record company to get another Nevermind, but at this point Nirvana was burnt out. Remastered several times, this album at the time was considered too edgy for release. All in all, this is a great album that is still amazing after 20+ years. I will continue to listen to this album in it’s entirety and will pass it down to my children when the time is appropriate.”

1. Nevermind (1991)

“It’s a sobering thought when you realize that this album is now 20 years old. I was a sophomore in high school when this came out and at the time, I wasn’t that crazy about it. I liked “Smells Like Teen Spirit” and “Come As You Are”, but that was about it. All I knew was that within a year, girls started wearing flannel shirts and combing their hair straight, and all of the guys quit trying to learn “Eruption” on their guitars and started bashing out distorted power chords. I didn’t like Nirvana (or any of the “grunge” bands) very much when they first came out, but as time went on, I really began to understand just how important they were to rock music. They changed everything. Hair bands were never really that cool, and for the better part of 10 years, we were stuck with pointy guitars, Marshall stacks, and boys that dressed up like girls. Some of the music, like Guns ‘n Roses, was very good, but most of it was over-the-top, cheesy and wasn’t really anything any common person could relate to. When Kurt Cobain’s distorted power chords first shot out of our speakers, we knew that something different was happening. Most of us didn’t know what the lyrics were, and we didn’t care. Rock music was taken out of the coke-infused culture of ’80’s Los Angeles, and put back in the hands of common people everywhere. No more spandex, no more Aqua Net, and no more two-handed tapping guitar solos on every video that MTV played.”