On a Plain
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"On a Plain" is a song by American
rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
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.' ...
, written by vocalist and guitarist, Kurt Cobain. It is the 11th track on their second album, ''
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, '' ...
'', released in September 1991. The song was released as a
promo single A promotional recording, or promo, or plug copy, is an audio or video recording distributed free, usually in order to promote a recording that is or soon will be commercially available. Promos are normally sent directly to broadcasters, such as ...
in 1992, peaking at number 25 on ''Billboard'''s Alternative Songs chart.


Origin and recording


Early history

Written in 1990, "On a Plain" was first recorded in the studio on January 1, 1991 at Music Source Studios in
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,
Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...
, by the band's audio engineer, Craig Montgomery. The private session, the band's first with drummer Dave Grohl, led to the versions of "Even in His Youth" and "
Aneurysm An aneurysm is an outward bulging, likened to a bubble or balloon, caused by a localized, abnormal, weak spot on a blood vessel wall. Aneurysms may be a result of a hereditary condition or an acquired disease. Aneurysms can also be a nidus ( ...
" that were released as B-sides on the "
Smells Like Teen Spirit "Smells Like Teen Spirit" is a song by the American rock band Nirvana. It is the opening track and lead single from the band's second album, ''Nevermind'' (1991), released on DGC Records. The unexpected success of the song propelled ''Neve ...
" single in September 1991. However, the other five songs recorded during the session all featured unfinished lyrics and scratch vocals, such as "On a Plain", or were instrumental.


''Nevermind''

The song was re-recorded for the band's second album, ''Nevermind'', by
Butch Vig Bryan David "Butch" Vig (born August 2, 1955) is an American musician, songwriter, and record producer, best known as the drummer and co-producer of the alternative rock band Garbage and the producer of the diamond-selling Nirvana album ''Neve ...
in May 1991 at
Sound City Studios Sound City Studios is a recording studio in Los Angeles, California, known as one of the most successful in popular music. The complex opened in 1969 in the Van Nuys neighborhood of Los Angeles. The facility had previously been a production facto ...
in Van Nuys,
California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
. Vig later called it "a great pop song," remembering it as "a really new one" that "took a few takes" to complete. The final lyrics were written at Sound City shortly before the vocals were recorded, which led to the line, "What the hell am I trying to say?" The recording features wordless backing vocals by Grohl. Vig had wanted to end the recording with Grohl's harmonies repeated four times
a capella ''A cappella'' (, also , ; ) music is a performance by a singer or a singing group without instrumental accompaniment, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. The term ''a cappella'' was originally intended to differentiate between Rena ...
, and originally mixed the song that way, but upon hearing the mix, Cobain decided the song should end after only one pass of the harmonies. Cobain's lead vocals were done in one take. "On a Plain" was debuted live on May 29, 1991 at
Jabberjaw ''Jabberjaw'' is an American animated television series created by Joe Ruby and Ken Spears and produced by Hanna-Barbera which aired 16 original episodes on ABC from September 11 to December 18, 1976. Reruns continued on ABC until September 3 ...
in
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, the show at which Nirvana also debuted the future ''Nevermind'' single, " Come As You Are", before "an astonished audience," according to author Charles R. Cross. The show was Nirvana's first since completing work on ''Nevermind.'' Cobain ultimately expressed dissatisfaction with the ''Nevermind'' recording, telling '' Flipside'', "That song came out way too clean. I'm not happy with the way that came out at all. It should have been a lot rawer; we play it a lot better live I think." "On a Plain" was released as a
promo single A promotional recording, or promo, or plug copy, is an audio or video recording distributed free, usually in order to promote a recording that is or soon will be commercially available. Promos are normally sent directly to broadcasters, such as ...
in the summer of 1992, and became a moderate hit.


Post-''Nevermind''

"On a Plain" was performed during Nirvana's ''
MTV Unplugged ''MTV Unplugged'' is an American television series on MTV showcasing musical artists usually playing acoustic instruments. The show aired regularly from 1989 to 1999 and less frequently from 2000 to 2009, when it was usually billed as ''MTV Un ...
'' appearance at
Sony Music Studios Sony Music Studios was an American music recording and mastering facility in New York City. The five-story building was a music and broadcasting complex located at 460 W. 54th Street, at 10th Avenue, in the Hell's Kitchen section of Manhattan ...
in
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
on November 18, 1993. This version featured
Pat Smear Georg Albert Ruthenberg (born August 5, 1959), better known by his stage name Pat Smear, is an American musician. He is best known for being the lead guitarist and co-founder of Los Angeles-based punk band The Germs and for being a rhythm guita ...
on second guitar and
Lori Goldston Lori Goldston is an American cellist and composer. Accomplished in a wide variety of styles, including classical, world music, rock and free improvisation, she came to prominence as the touring cellist for Nirvana from 1993–1994 and appears on ...
on cello. The song was performed for the final time live at Nirvana's last concert, at Terminal Einz in
Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...
, Germany on March 1, 1994.


Composition and lyrics


Music

"On a Plain" was recorded in the key of
D major D major (or the key of D) is a major scale based on D, consisting of the pitches D, E, F, G, A, B, and C. Its key signature has two sharps. Its relative minor is B minor and its parallel minor is D minor. The D major scale is: : Ch ...
, with Cobain's guitar tuned to
drop D Guitar tunings are the assignment of pitch (music), pitches to the open string (music), open strings of guitars, including acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and classical guitars. Musical tuning, Tunings are described by the particular pitc ...
. The song starts with a noise intro played by Cobain, with an audible handclap. After a short pause the main riff comes in with the power chords D5-G5-F5-E5-F5-E5-D5 played twice then followed by the power chords D5-C5-B5-A5 followed by the first progression again. The chord progressions are played twice for all verses followed by the power chords D5-Gsus2-Bbsus2 for all choruses. After the second chorus a bridge is played with the power chords F5-E5-A5-G5. The song then goes onto the third verse followed by a final chorus which is treated as the outro with the words, "''I'm on a plain/I can't complain''" being repeated multiple times until all instruments and main vocals start fading out until the last thing that's heard is the repeating, wordless vocal harmony from the chorus.


Lyrics

In a July 1993 interview in New York City, Cobain told English journalist
Jon Savage Jon Savage (born Jonathan Malcolm Sage; 2 September 1953 in Paddington, London) is an English writer, broadcaster and music journalist, best known for his history of the Sex Pistols and punk music, ''England's Dreaming'', published in 199 ...
that "On a Plain" was about "classic alienation, I guess," although he then noted he had to change his explanation every time he was asked about the meaning to his songs, saying that his lyrics were largely taken from "pieces of poetry thrown together," and that his poetry was "not usually thematic at all." The lyric "Don't quote me on that" was a reference to a recurring joke at Sound City around the time it was written. As Grohl explained to biographer
Michael Azerrad Michael Azerrad is an American author, music journalist, editor, and musician. A graduate of Columbia University, he has written for publications such as ''Spin'', ''Rolling Stone'', and ''The New York Times''. Azerrad's 1993 biography '' Come a ...
, "Someone would say something like, 'Where's the mayonnaise?' And someone else would answer, 'It's in the fridge, but don't quote me on that.'" In his 1993 book '' Come As You Are: The Story of Nirvana'', Azerrad wrote that the lyric "My mother died every night" was a reference to an abusive relationship Cobain's mother was in while Cobain was a teenager. Azerrad also suggested that the " black sheep" in the song was a reference to Cobain himself. The lyric "One more special message to go" referred to the fact that "On a Plain" was the last song on ''Nevermind'' that Cobain had to complete lyrics for. Emily Parker of ''
NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...
'' described "On a Plain" as "Kurt's most meta moment: a song written about writing a song."


Reception

In her review of ''Nevermind'' for '' Spin'', Lauren Spencer cited the "beautifully harmonic" "On a Plain" as one of the songs "you be humming...for the rest of your life."


Legacy

"On a Plain" was listed at number 26 on '' Rolling Stone's'' 2015 ranking of 102 Nirvana songs. In 2017, to mark what would have been Kurt Cobain's 50th birthday, the
Phonographic Performance Limited Phonographic Performance Limited (PPL) is a British music copyright collective. It is a private limited company that is registered in the UK. PPL was founded by Decca Records and EMI and incorporated on 12 May 1934, and undertakes collective ...
released a list of the top 20 most played Nirvana songs on the TV and radio in the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
in which "On a Plain" was ranked at number 10.


Live promotional versions


Nakano Sunplaza version

A live version, recorded at the Nakano Sunplaza in
Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, ...
, Japan on February 19, 1992, was released as a streaming single in November 2021, to promote the release of the 30th anniversary reissue of ''Nevermind''. The full Nakano Sunplaza performance appeared on the "Super Deluxe" versions of this release.


Reading 1992 version

Another live version, recorded during the band's headlining appearance at the 1992
Reading Festival The Reading and Leeds Festivals are a pair of annual music festivals that take place in Reading and Leeds in England. The events take place simultaneously on the Friday, Saturday and Sunday of the August bank holiday weekend. The Reading Festiv ...
in
Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of letters, symbols, etc., especially by sight or touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process involving such areas as word recognition, orthography (spelling ...
, England on August 30, 1992, was released as a promotional single in 2009, to promote the release of the live CD and DVD '' Live at Reading'', released in November 2009. The single was released in the United Kingdom on CD-R.


Charts


Other releases

*A boombox-recorded, full-band demo version, recorded in the spring of 1991 at a barn in
Tacoma, Washington Tacoma ( ) is the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. A port city, it is situated along Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, northeast of the state capital, Olympia, and northwest of Mount Rainier National Pa ...
the band had converted to a rehearsal space, appeared on disc two of the 20th anniversary "Deluxe" and "Super Deluxe" versions of ''Nevermind'', released in September 2011. *Video of another full-band demo version, recorded during the same period and at the same location, was released as after-credits bonus material on the DVD release of ''
Live! Tonight! Sold Out!! ''Nirvana: Live! Tonight! Sold Out!!'' is a live video by the American rock band Nirvana, directed by Kevin Kerslake, and released on November 15, 1994 on VHS and laserdisc. It was re-released on DVD on November 7, 2006. Background Conceived b ...
'' in November 2006. *An early "Devonshire" mix of the ''Nevermind'' version was released on the 20th anniversary "Super Deluxe" version of the albums. *A live version, recorded at the Paramount Theatre in Seattle on October 31, 1991, appeared on the live video, '' Live at the Paramount'', released on DVD and Blu-ray in September 2011. *A live version, recorded at the Paradiso in
Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...
, the Netherlands on November 25, 1991, appeared on the bonus disc included with the DVD release of ''Live! Tonight!! Sold Out!!'' The full concert was released on CD and Blu-ray on the 30th anniversary "Deluxe" and "Super Deluxe" versions of ''Nevermind'' in November 2021. *The 30th anniversary "Super Deluxe" version of ''Nevermind'' also featured the band's full performance at
The Palace ''The Palace'' is a British drama television series that aired on ITV in 2008. Produced by Company Pictures for the ITV network, it was created by Tom Grieves and follows a fictional British Royal Family in the aftermath of the death of King ...
in
Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
, Australia on February 2, 1992, which featured a version of "On a Plain". *A live version, from the band's appearance at the Roskilde Festival in
Roskilde Roskilde ( , ) is a city west of Copenhagen on the Danish island of Zealand. With a population of 51,916 (), the city is a business and educational centre for the region and the 10th largest city in Denmark. It is governed by the administrative ...
, Denmark on June 26, 1992, appeared on ''Live! Tonight! Sold Out!!'', released in November 1994. *The ''MTV Unplugged'' version of the song appeared on the live 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 ...
'', which featured the full show, in November 1994. The performance was released on DVD in November 2007, which featured both an unedited version of the performance and the original MTV broadcast, which was first broadcast in December 1993.


Unreleased versions

*The studio version recorded at Music Source in Seattle on January 1, 1991 remains unreleased.


References


External links

{{Authority control 1990 songs Nirvana (band) songs Songs written by Kurt Cobain Song recordings produced by Butch Vig