This page is Point of Interest page 8 of the Alternative Rock, Grunge and Seattle Tour,

click here to access the main tour page and introduction.

The Paramount Theatre

The impressive brick and stone building on the corner of 9^th and Pine is the renowned Paramount Theatre. The theatre was opened in 1928 as the 3,000 seat Seattle Theatre, and was renamed as the Paramount in the early 1930s. It was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in October 1974, and was refurbished as an elegant mid-sized venue in the 1990s. This is where Nirvana's famous "Live at the Paramount" concert video was filmed.

By the time Nirvana played the Paramount on Halloween night, 1991, the grunge phenomenon was just starting to explode into the commercial mainstream. Nevermind was released on September 24, 1991. It was their major label debut with Geffen, specifically the subsidiary DGC, which stands for David Geffen Company. Nirvana signed with DGC for its strong promotional department, for this would be the key to bringing the band to a large audience.

The album debuted at number 144, but unexpectedly, the record sold out in the Northwest, and the label actually had to put a hold on production of other albums to meet the demand of Nevermind in the region. On September 29, the video for Smells Like Teen Spirit aired on MTV's 120 Minutes. It proved to be so popular that the video started airing during the day as well. The song reached millions of kids, and eventually it became an iconic anthem for youth. The popularity of the video solidified the shift in music programming at MTV, with the exception of the music video 'Man in the Box' which broke down the first barriers a year before. Within a year of Smells Like Teen Spirit airing on MTV, bands like Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, and Stone Temple Pilots had all released music videos. All of these, like Teen Spirit, were much darker and had an angry vibe to them in comparison to previous music videos aired on MTV.

The album Nevermind was selling well, and the momentum kept increasing - primarily because of the popularity of the single, Smells Like Teen Spirit. Nirvana toured the United States supporting the album throughout September and October of 1991, and noticed a shift in their audience. According to music critic Michael Azerrad, the band initially attracted a college/indie crowd, most of whom were fairly intelligent, politically progressive, nonsexist, non-macho, and very much musically discerning. But as sales of Nevermind skyrocketed, the band was having difficulty dealing with more mainstream crowds who didn't necessarily understand the music. This lack of understanding started to get on the nerves of the band members, and as a result, instrument smashing reached an all-time high during the concerts of that period.

By the time they performed their homecoming show at the Paramount in Seattle on Halloween night, Nevermind had gone Gold, selling 500,000 units. The Paramount show was filmed by DGC, and was released in 2011 as a concert video called "Live at the Paramount". The show was opened by Mudhoney - a reversal of previous billings - and by Bikini Kill.

The band got only one day of rest before setting off on November 2, 1991, for a European tour. Nevermind was steadily climbing the charts, and when they set off for Europe, Nevermind first entered the Top 40 at #35.

The album was selling at an amazing rate, far exceeding the expectations of anyone at DGC, and probably the expectations of everybody else in Seattle. By January of 1992, it was selling at a rate of 300,000 copies per week.

The release of Nevermind was the tipping point for the hype surrounding "grunge" in Seattle. Nirvana left on another European tour in January of 1992, and soon Seattle and grunge exploded as a global pop culture phenomenon.

As if you've just walked out of the main entrance to the Paramount on the northwest corner of the building, cross Pine St and walk northwest along 9th Avenue. We are now on our way to Re-Bar, famous for where Nirvana had their record release party for Nevermind.

Azerrad, M. (1993). Come as you are: the story of Nirvana. New York, USA: Broadway Books

Azerrad, M (2001) Our Band Could Be Your Life: Scenes From the American Indie Underground 1981–1991. USA: Little Brown.

Cross, C. R. (2014). Heavier Than heaven: Commemorative edition. London, United Kingdom: Hodder & Stoughton

Henderson, J. (2010). Grunge Seattle. California, United States of America: Roaring Forties Press

List of Nirvana Concerts (2017). Retrieved (May 6, 2017) from the List of Nirvana Concerts Wiki: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Nirvana_concerts

Nevermind (2017). Retrieved (May 6th, 2017) from the Nevermind Wiki: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nevermind#cite_ref-72

Montgomery, J. (2011, September 23). Nirvana's Smells like Nirvana's 'Smells Like Teen Spirit' Video: Behind the MTV Premier. MTV.ca. Retrieved from http://www.mtv.com/news/1671285/smells-like-teen-spirit-nirvana-120-minutes/

Yarm, M. (2011). Everybody loves our town. Crown Publishing: New York, USA

This work was created by Kyle Huisman

Contact: seattlerock@outlook.com