Pennyroyal Tea

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

The song's history reflects Cobain's struggle with the album's sound. Recorded in February 1993 at Pachyderm Studios in Cannon Falls, Minnesota, the session was intense; engineer Steve Albini noted that "Pennyroyal Tea" and "Heart-Shaped Box" were the only songs requiring more than a couple of takes, recorded "several times in several aerations." Albini also replaced Dave Grohl's bass drum with a smaller one featuring a full-front head to achieve a "bouncy, jazzy sound" distinct from the rest of the record. By November 1993, Cobain told Rolling Stone's David Fricke that the song was "not recorded right" and should have sounded like Nevermind. Consequently, Scott Litt remixed it at Bad Animals in Seattle on November 23, 1993. This mix became the definitive version for censored Wal-Mart and Kmart copies of In Utero and the recalled single, which was originally planned with 'Pennyroyal Tea' as the A-side and 'I Hate Myself and Want to Die' as the B-side.

In Their Own Story

In late 1990, Cobain wrote "Pennyroyal Tea" in an Olympia apartment he shared with drummer Dave Grohl. As Cobain recalled to Michael Azerrad: "Dave and I were screwing around on a 4-track... I wrote that song in about thirty seconds. And I sat down for like half-an-hour and wrote the lyrics." The band first performed it live on April 17, 1991, at the OK Hotel in Seattle, debuting alongside "Smells Like Teen Spirit." Two unfinished instrumental takes were recorded by Jack Endino on October 26, 1992. By November 18, 1993, Cobain performed a solo acoustic version for MTV Unplugged in New York City. A full band version featuring second guitarist Pat Smear was recorded in Paris on February 4, 1994, during an appearance on Nulle Part Ailleurs. The final live performance occurred at Terminal Eins in Munich, Germany, on March 1, 1994.

Reader's Guide

"Pennyroyal Tea" features a sepulchral folk intro that contrasts with a "heaving, fuzz-burnt chorus," earning comparisons to R.E.M.'s Michael Stipe from Rolling Stone reviewer David Fricke. NME's John Mulvey called it a "terrific song" but critiqued the guitars for not screaming enough. The song was slated for release as a single in April 1994 with B-side "I Hate Myself and Want to Die," but the release was cancelled following Cobain's death that month. Only German retail CD copies were manufactured before the recall; some were destroyed, while others survived to become highly sought-after collectibles. A UK promotional CD, misspelling the title as "Penny Royal Tea," exists in even smaller numbers, with recent sales reaching $2,597. In April 2014, a limited edition 7-inch vinyl re-release for Record Store Day sold out quickly, reaching number one on the Billboard Hot Singles Sales chart.

Did You Know?

• Scott Litt remixed the track on November 23, 1993, at Bad Animals studio in Seattle.
• The song was first performed live on October 30, 1993, at the Aragon Ballroom in Chicago.
• Steve Albini replaced Dave Grohl's bass drum with a smaller one to create a specific "bouncy, jazzy sound" for this track.
• The cancelled single's A-side was 'Pennyroyal Tea', with 'I Hate Myself and Want to Die' as the B-side.
• A 2014 Record Store Day re-release limited to 6,000 copies reached number one on the Billboard Hot Singles Sales chart.