An awesome piece of memorabilia has been put on Tumblr by the folks at Seattle music label Sub Pop. The piece of paper seems to be the original contract signed by Nirvana when it joined the label in 1988 (the contract was signed in '88, the actual term began in 1989).
The contract stipulates that the "artist" would record for Sub Pop exclusively during '89, with an option for another year in 1990 if all went well. The names written at the top might throw off some lite-core Nirvana fans: Kurt Cobain, Chris Novoselic (his legal and preferred name is Krist; whether this was a mistake wasn't mentioned by the label), as well as original second guitarist Jason Everman and Chad Channing, the man who Dave Grohl would replace at drums.
"Nirvana's original contract with Sub Pop," the label captioned its post. "Six hundred bucks well spent - not that we had it at the time." Sub Pop's bush league approach to operating a label during its origins is notorious/renowned, and the Short Form Blog notes on the Tumblr image "Is that pencil?" All's well that ends well.
Nirvana didn't stick with the label for too long. The lineup listed above recorded "Bleach," an album that merited respect but not nearly as much critical acclaim (or sales) as its follow-up "Nevermind." By that time, the band had left Sub Pop for DGC. Sub Pop had the unfortunate distinction of serving as the jumping off point for many future grunge icons, including Mudhoney and Soundgarden, who both jumped ship for bigger labels. The label has found renewed success in the "indie" rock scene, releasing records for bands such as The Shins and The Postal Service.
