Smells like a reunion! The remaining members of Nirvana got together on Thursday, April 10, in Brooklyn, NYC for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony at Barclays Center — with a cameo by none other than Courtney Love.
Dave Grohl, Pat Smear, and Krist Novoselic hit the stage at the star-studded event, playing Nirvana songs together for the first time in decades. While the trio has performed together in recent years, until last night, they hadn’t played one of the band’s original songs since the untimely death of frontman Kurt Cobain in 1994.
The Nirvana members enlisted some special guests for the occasion, teaming up with New Zealand teen sensation Lorde, veteran rocker Joan Jett, Sonic Youth alum Kim Gordon, and acclaimed alternative musician St. Vincent.
Born Anne Clark, St. Vincent performed the band’s “Nevermind” single, “Lithium,” while Jett lent her talents to the classic “Smells Like Teen Spirit,” Gordon railed on “Aneurysm,” and Lorde wrapped the set with a rendition of the “In Utero” track, “All Apologies.”
The event seemed to be a thrill for all involved, as Lorde, 17, took to Twitter, writing, “So honored and happy I got to help celebrate Nirvana’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction tonight. True f—ing rock stars all, forever. And man, Joan, Annie and Kim give a healthy display of Coolest Women You Will Ever Meet behavior.” Novoselic thanked the female rockers for their participation, while Jett simply tweeted a black-and-white photo of the performance and St. Vincent called the event the “f—ing best night of my life.”
The induction ceremony also played host to a sweet moment between Cobain’s widow, singer Courtney Love, and Grohl. In the years since Cobain’s death at the age of 27, tensions have run high between Love and Nirvana over Cobain’s estate and rights to the band’s music. Love and Grohl embraced in a hug onstage, burying the hatchet. “This is my family I’m looking at right now,” Love said of her former husband’s band members. “I just wish Kurt could have been here. Tonight he would have really appreciated it.”
After the event, Love tweeted a photo of herself hugging Grohl, writing, “The most magical part of the evening. Thank you Dave, love you. I know this made him smile up there.”
While Love’s daughter with Cobain, Frances Bean, 21, was not a part of the event, Love dedicated the honor to her, saying, “I just want to give this to our daughter Frances Bean, who couldn’t be here because she was ill.”
The Nirvana alums were inducted into the Rock Hall along with Daryl Hall and John Oates, KISS, Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band, and Linda Ronstadt, among others. Watch a video from the band’s performance above.
