Come As You Are is the official biography of Nirvana. It focuses mostly on Kurt Cobain, including his childhood and teenage years in Aberdeen, Washington leading up to his burgeoning interest in music and trying to put a band together in what would eventually become Nirvana.

It’s also a very detailed account of Nirvana’s story and their rise to fame. Michael Azerrad talked to all of Nirvana’s former members: Jason Everman, Dale Crover, Chad Channing and what their thoughts were at the time they were in the band, and their reactions to Nirvana’s fame and success. He was given unlimited access to the band, especially Kurt, whom he had a friendship with. From their conversations, and how much access Azerrad had, it seems Kurt really trusted him. The book was originally published before Cobain died, so the focus is more on what the band accomplished rather than how tragically it ended.

Of course, all the Nirvana controversy with Courtney Love’s pregnancy is also discussed, and how much of an emotional toll it took on Kurt and Courtney, especially Kurt, who was practically murderous in his rage about the Vanity Fair hit-piece on Courtney and having a social worker looking over their shoulders after Frances was born.

Now that we know that Dave Grohl is a capable songwriter, it’s unfortunate that Kurt and Dave never got a chance to collaborate more in the songwriting aspect of the band. Dave saw himself as the drummer and the new guy and never put too many of his ideas out there, even though Kurt apparently wanted more creative input from both Chris and Dave, and expressed frustration that the pressure was always on him to write all the songs.

The birth of Sub-Pop Records is also talked about, and the key role they played in Nirvana’s success and the grunge scene in general.

If you have any interest in the Seattle music scene of the late 1980s and 1990s, Come As You Are is a very complete telling of Nirvana’s story with quotes and thoughts from just about everyone who had anything to do with the band. It’s a great read and highly recommended.