Nirvana – Pennyroyal Tea (Single Edit)

Here is some background information on “Pennyroyal Tea” from songfacts.com : This song is about making a tough decision, the difficult choices around it, and the guilt following it. Pennyroyal Tea can induce an abortion when drunk in large quantities. Due to its toxicity, however, drinking a lot of it is very dangerous. Nirvana played this on their MTV Unplugged special, which was recorded shortly before Kurt Cobain killed himself. The album was released about 6 months after his death, and went to #1 in both the UK and US. This was the only song during the MTV Unplugged performance that Kurt Cobain played solo, a decision which might have been made at the last minute given the dialogue by Cobain right before he starts playing. The reference to laxatives and cherry-flavored antacids implies the song is about heroin addiction. Many junkies have laxatives around to combat the chronic constipation that opiates bring. A remix of this was scheduled for release as a single, but it was pulled when Cobain died. The few copies that leaked out are now rare collector’s items. The lyrics could be Kurt thinking he’s a lazy, weak figurehead who is depressed and sad and wants a new life. Some lyric analysis: “I’m on my time with everyone” – He was usually late for interviews. “I have very bad posture” – Childhood Scoliosis made him appear hunched over. “Sit and drink pennyroyal tea” – This could be a drug he took to calm his stomach pains, but it is also a play on words with penny …