“Dumb” by Nirvana

"Dumb" sits sixth on In Utero, the September 1993 album that turned out to be Nirvana's last in the studio, and it's the quiet one in a room full of screaming. Kurt Cobain wrote it and sings it, with Krist Novoselic on bass and Dave Grohl on drums and vocals, and Steve Albini recorded and mixed it with the same unvarnished touch as the rest of the record.

What lifts it is the cello. Kera Schaley, a Chicago musician and a friend of Albini's, wrote and played the part, and its low, aching line turns a simple, sweetly strummed tune into something bruised and lovely. Cobain told Melody Maker in 1993 that the song was about people too dim to be unhappy, and he admitted to envying them at times.

It was never released as a single, yet it still reached number 37 on Radio & Records' Alternative National Airplay chart. On the In Utero tour the cello stayed: Lori Goldston played it on the American dates and Melora Creager in Europe. For the album's 30th anniversary in October 2023, RuffMercy made an animated video for it.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.