Endless, Nameless
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| "Endless, Nameless" | ||
|---|---|---|
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| Song by Nirvana | ||
| from the album Nevermind | ||
| Released | September 24, 1991 | |
| Recorded | January 1991 – June 1991 at Sound City, Van Nuys and Devonshire, North Hollywood | |
| Genre | Grunge | |
| Length | 6:48 | |
| Label | DGC Records / Sub Pop | |
| Producer(s) | Butch Vig | |
| Nevermind track listing | ||
| Something in the Way (12) |
"Endless, Nameless" (12 - hidden track) |
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"Endless, Nameless" is a song by the band Nirvana. It is widely considered the group's most disturbing song, containing distorted, loud vocals and siren-like guitars.
There have been four officially released versions of "Endless, Nameless":
- A studio recording of the song appeared as a hidden track on the band's second album Nevermind, released in 1991. Singer and guitarist Kurt Cobain was inspired to leave the song unlisted by the Beatles's "Her Majesty" from Abbey Road [1]. The song was not listed on the album sleeve, and begins following ten minutes of silence after "Something in the Way". The initial pressing of Nevermind (fewer than 50,000 copies) did not have the song due to a mastering error and all US pressings after 1994 omit the song (although is still present in many UK pressings[1]. The same version of the song was remixed and included as a b-side on some non-US versions of the Come as You Are single.
- A live performance of the song from the band's October 31, 1991, performance at the Paramount Theatre in Seattle, Washington, can be seen on the 1994 home video Live! Tonight! Sold Out!!. Just like on Nevermind, the track is not listed anywhere on the packaging.
- An in-studio performance recorded for Peel Sessions on the BBC was included on the 2004 Nirvana box set With the Lights Out. Fractions of the lyrics are taken from the Vapor's hit song "Turning Japanese" (specifically the lines,"turning Japanese, I really think so")
- The song was released on the single Come As You Are.
In addition, an MP3 clip with several other purported clips of live Nirvana performances includes a brief cut of the supposed first performance of this song, on January 18, 1991 at the Evergreen State College with bassist Krist Novoselic introducing the song as the band having a "technical difficulty" and Kurt Cobain proceeding to shout early lyrics completely different from subsequent versions.
[edit] References in popular culture
The British band The Wildhearts later used the title Endless Nameless for their 1997 album - fittingly the album was the band's noisiest yet and quite a departure from their previous more poppy outings. The Wildhearts claimed at the time not to know the origin of the title[citation needed].
"Weird Al" Yankovic parodied this song on his 1992 album Off The Deep End, itself a parody of Nevermind. "Bite Me", eight seconds of loud screaming and music, begins following ten minutes of silence after "You Don't Love Me Anymore."
