Nirvana

Nirvana is a "best-of" compilation album by the American grunge band Nirvana, released in October 2002. Nirvana was released following the settlement of a long-standing legal dispute between Cobain's widow, Courtney Love, and surviving Nirvana members Krist Novoselic and Dave Grohl. Much of the dispute centered around the song "You Know You're Right" which was recorded during the band's final studio session, in January 1994. Novoselic and Grohl had wanted to release it on a long-delayed Nirvana rarities box set. However, Love blocked the song's release, and sued Novoselic and Grohl over control of Nirvana's legacy. Love's lawsuit maintained that "You Know You're Right" was a "potential 'hit' of extraordinary artistic and commercial value." She believed that "You Know You're Right" would be "wasted" on a box set, and instead belonged on a single-disc compilation similar to The Beatles' 1. In September 2002, it was announced by the Nirvana camp that the lawsuit had been settled, and that "You Know You're Right" would be released on "Nirvana, a one-CD history of the band. Several critics believed that Nirvana was too brief, and omitted key tracks. Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic wrote that "the presence of a few more tracks, along with placing "You Know You're Right" at the end where it belongs, would have made this collection not just stronger, but possibly definitive. As it stands, it feels like a bit of a cheap compromise and a wasted opportunity." Will Bryant of Pitchfork praised the album as "an artful selection of the band's most seminal material," but also dismissed it as "a party mix for parents who want to appreciate Cobain's Lennon-esque knack for great melodies without having to click past "Scentless Apprentice" or "Territorial Pissings"...utterly inoffensive: an impulse buy from Columbia House, perhaps, with no more artistic value than The Eagles' Greatest Hits or the Beatles' 1."