Fender Kurt Cobain Signature Jaguar
This year, to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Nirvana's groundbreaking album, Nevermind, Fender are releasing a special signature Jaguar, which has been modelled (down to a T) after Kurt Cobain's famously distinctive 1965 road worn Jag he prominently used during the early 90's, when Nirvana led the musically stunning and culturally subversive movement.
Nevermind is the second studio album by Nirvana, produced by Butch Vig, released on September 24, 1991. Despite worries and low expectations by the band and the label DGC Records, of which it was their first release under their management, Nevermind surprised all and became and a success later that year. This unexpected success was largely due to the popularity of it's first single and opening track "Smells Like Teen Spirit", released two weeks before the album. The song uses a simple verse-chorus form where the distinctive four-chord riff is used during the intro and chorus to create an alternating loud and quiet dynamic, something that was used by bands such as the Pixies, who greatly influenced Cobain.
Come January 1992, it had replaced Michael Jackson's album Dangerous and was number one on the Billboard Charts. The album has been certified as Diamond, with over 10 million copies shipped, has sold over 30 million copies worldwide. Nevermind was responsible for bringing alternative rock to a large mainstream audience, and is subsequently regarded it as one of the best rock albums of all time.
"Kurt Cobain's guitar sound on Nirvana's Nevermind set the tone for nineties rock music." - Guitar World
Fender craftsmen have reproduced Cobain's unique alder body Jag with the aged Road Worn finish and hardware treatment, stratocaster headstock with a 1950's style "spaghetti" logo, bound fretboard with pearloid markers, the red-swirl mother-of-bowling-ball pickguard, three position toggle switch, black chrome Adjusto-Matic™ Bridge and Gotoh® sealed tuners. And more importantly the dual humbucking pickups and unusual electronics and controls. DiMarzio® humbucking DP103 PAF 36th Anniversary neck pickup and DP100 Super Distortion bridge pickup and 'triple knurled chrome-dome' knob configuration (volume - volume - tone), which were already in place when Kurt acquired the guitar in the summer of 1991.
The guitar comes in a black textured vinyl hard-shell case and with an exclusive Fender Kurt Cobain book with photos and commentary by Charles Peterson and an insightful interview with Nirvana guitar tech Earnie Bailey.
According to Earnie Bailey, Kurt never polished it "He neverpolished the thing! It was disgusting. [In the] "Lithium" video it hits the stage hard. In Rio it gets soaked in cantaloupe juice and seeds, then dropped onto the camera rails when Kurt is spitting on the camera".
It was also played by Eric Erlandson in Hole's "Doll Parts" music video.
Click HERE to view Kurt playing 'Aneurysm' on his '65 Jag, Rome, 1991.