"Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam" is a song originally recorded by the Scottish

alternative Alternative or alternate may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Alternative (''Kamen Rider''), a character in the Japanese TV series ''Kamen Rider Ryuki'' * ''The Alternative'' (film), a 1978 Australian television film * ''The Alternative ...

band

the Vaselines The Vaselines are a Scottish alternative rock band. Formed in Glasgow, Scotland in 1986, the band was originally a duo between its songwriters Eugene Kelly and Frances McKee, but later added James Seenan and Eugene's brother Charlie Kelly on b ...

. It was later covered by American rock band

Nirvana ( , , ; sa, निर्वाण} ''nirvāṇa'' ; Pali: ''nibbāna''; Prakrit: ''ṇivvāṇa''; literally, "blown out", as in an oil lampRichard Gombrich, ''Theravada Buddhism: A Social History from Ancient Benāres to Modern Colombo.' ...

in 1993 who renamed it "Jesus Doesn't Want Me for a Sunbeam".

History

"Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam" is a song originally recorded by the Scottish

band

for their EP '' Dying for It''. It is a parody on the Christian children's hymn " I'll Be a Sunbeam", which has the opening line "Jesus wants me for a sunbeam." The Vaselines re-released the song in 1992 on the compilation albums '' The Way of The Vaselines: A Complete History'', and ''All the Stuff and More''. The song was little-known outside the

indie-pop Indie pop (also typeset as indie-pop or indiepop) is a music genre and subculture that combines guitar pop with DIY ethic in opposition to the style and tone of mainstream pop music. It originated from British post-punk in the late 1970s and su ...

scene until Seattle grunge band

recorded the song in November 1993 for their live acoustic album ''

MTV Unplugged in New York ''MTV Unplugged in New York'' is a live album by American rock band Nirvana, released on November 1, 1994, by DGC Records. It features an acoustic performance recorded at Sony Music Studios in New York City on November 18, 1993, for the telev ...

'', re-titling it "Jesus Doesn't Want Me for a Sunbeam". Two more versions were released by Nirvana on their 2004 box set ''

With the Lights Out ''With the Lights Out'' is a box set by the American rock band Nirvana released in November 2004. It contains three CDs and one DVD of previously rare or unreleased material, including B-sides, demos, and rehearsal and live recordings. The title ...

''. These were an acoustic version recorded in

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

in 1994, and a live electric performance on the DVD section of the box set that was recorded at the Paramount Theatre in

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

on October 31, 1991. This version was re-released in 2011 as a bonus track on the 20th anniversary edition of the ''

Nevermind ''Nevermind'' is the second studio album by the American rock band Nirvana, released on September 24, 1991, by DGC Records. It was Nirvana's first release on a major label and the first to feature drummer Dave Grohl. Produced by Butch Vig, '' ...

'' album and on the '' Live at the Paramount'' DVD and Blu-ray. In the version featured on the ''MTV Unplugged in New York'' album, Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain refers to the song as "a rendition of an old Christian song, I think. But we do it the Vaselines' way." At a Nirvana concert that took place on December 30, 1993, at the

Great Western Forum Kia Forum (formerly The Forum) is a multi-purpose indoor arena in Inglewood, California, United States, adjacent to Los Angeles. Located between West Manchester Boulevard, across Pincay Drive and Kareem Court, it is north of SoFi Stadium and ...

in Inglewood, California, Cobain dedicated the song to the recently deceased

River Phoenix River Jude Phoenix (; August 23, 1970 – October 31, 1993) was an American actor, musician and activist. Phoenix grew up in an itinerant family, as the older brother of Rain Phoenix, Joaquin Phoenix, Liberty Phoenix, and Summer Phoenix. He ...

References

1987 songs Nirvana (band) songs The Vaselines songs Songs about Jesus {{1980s-rock-song-stub