Nirvana
Nevermind Super Deluxe Edition
(Geffen)

Nirvana’s second album, Nevermind, was more than just a musical achievement, it became a symbol both musically and culturally. To celebrate the twenty year anniversary, a re-mastered Super Deluxe Edition of the album has just been released.

The box set includes an astounding 70 tracks comprised of the original re-mastered album, an unreleased live show from the Paramount, and a wealth of mixes ranging from the early “Boombox” versions of songs, which sound like a garage band, to the very polished “Devonshire” mixes as well as producer Butch Vig’s “Smart Sessions.”  The collection does include a host of cool visuals and some unreleased tracks but it’s missing the big revelations being that most hardcore Nirvana fans are likely to have heard most of these tracks via bootlegs and the internet.  The overwhelming bulk of the tracks are mostly the same songs with slight variations, but it does underscore the enormous amount of hard work that the band put into creating and perfecting the album.

The special edition does have a few gems, most notably the b-sides and unreleased live tracks such as two great live versions of “Drain You,” great versions of “Sappy “ (the unnamed extra track from No Alternative) and “Here She Comes Now” from the Smart Sessions, as well as a couple of really scarce tracks from the Boombox Rehearsals like “Old Age” and “Verse Chorus Verse.”  Overall, the original album is a masterwork without question and while it’s definitely interesting to hear some of the stages of production for the songs, it’s not life-altering.