Featured Image Credit: Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic, Inc / Universal
Topics: Dave Grohl, Celebrity, Music, Entertainment
Ella Scott
Topics: Dave Grohl, Celebrity, Music, Entertainment
Dave Grohl once gave a scathing response to a journalist when he was asked to give his opinion the Spencer Elden lawsuit against Nirvana.
Without Kurt Cobain, Dave Grohl and Krist Novoselic there would be no Weezer, Chester Bennington may never have joined Linkin Park and Denzel Curry definitely wouldn’t have released the 2018 track ‘CLOUT COBAIN’.
After releasing their debut record Bleach in 1989, the band dropped their sophomore release the seminal album Nevermind - a 12-track album featuring a naked baby on its sleeve.
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The child on the Nevermind cover is a real person named Spencer Elden, who featured in the snap after allegedly being dunked into a Californian swimming pool by his father.
33-year-old Elden’s father was reportedly paid $200 (£152) for the iconic picture.
Let’s be frank though, it’s not too much considering how many fans credit Nirvana’s Nevermind as one of the greatest albums ever released.
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Three decades after the record was released, Elden tried to sue the band for child pornography.
In a lawsuit, he claimed he wasn't able to consent to the picture being used for the album cover.
He also claimed the artwork led him to experience 'extreme and permanent emotional distress' that had 'interfered with his normal development and educational progress.’
He sought a whopping £130,000 in damages.
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The initial filing was dismissed by a judge back in 2022 due to the statute of limitations on the case running out.
In court documents obtained by Billboard, the judge wrote: "Because it is undisputed that plaintiff did not file his complaint within ten years after he discovered a violation that could form the basis for his [child pornography] claim, the court concludes that his claim is untimely.”
But in 2023 things changed when the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals overturned the ruling that Elden had waited too long to bring his case against the band.
They found that the man could still sue over more recent replications of the cover, including a re-released version of the album in 2021.
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His lawyer Robert Lewis said his client was 'very pleased with the decision and looks forward to having his day in court.'
As for what Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl had to say about the whole thing, his response was brutal.
Speaking in an interview with Vulture, the 55-year-old said: "I don’t know that I can speak on it because I haven’t spent too much time thinking about it.
"I feel the same way most people do in that I have to disagree. That’s all I’ll say."
He also referenced the fact that Elden has recreated the cover a number of times over the years, adding: "Listen, he’s got a Nevermind tattoo. I don’t." Ouch.