John Lennon Drawings Get Exhibit at Milwaukee Museum

A rare collection of John Lennon's drawings is set to display at a Milwaukee museum. Starting this Saturday until September 1st, "Coming Together Through the Art of John Lennon" will be open to the public at the Waukesha County Historical Society Museum. Among the items in the collection are 27 pencil and pen drawings as well as five lithographs and serigraphs. This is the first time the drawings have been open to the public, as Yoko Ono has prevented the artwork from being photographed in full because of possible counterfeiting. The collection is estimated to be worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. An anonymous donor loaned the artwork to the museum, as well as other memorabilia like the microphone Lennon used to record "Imagine." Ono herself owns roughly 1,700 Lennon drawings.

• 
  MUSIC The Top 25 Teen Idol Breakout Moments
• 
  MOVIES & TV 'Game of Thrones': The Show Vs. the Books
• 
  POLITICS Matt Taibbi: Facebook IPO vs. Shareholders
• 
  VIDEOS Exclusive: Garbage Rip Through 'I Think I'm Paranoid'

Song Stories

“Smells Like Teen Spirit”

Nirvana | 1991

"Smells Like Teen Spirit," named after a brand of deodorant marketed to girls, was Kurt Cobain's attempt to "write the ultimate pop song," he said, using the soft-loud dynamic of his favorite band, the Pixies. Cobain "had that dichotomy of punk rage and alienation," the song’s producer, Butch Vig, told Rolling Stone, "but also this vulnerable pop sensibility. In 'Teen Spirit,' a lot of that vulnerability is in the tone of his voice." Sadly, by the time of Nirvana's last U.S. tour, in late '93, Cobain was tortured by the obligation to play "Teen Spirit" every night. "There are many other songs that I have written that are as good, if not better," he claimed.

More Song Stories entries »

Twitter