Nirvana played its first concert ever in March 1987, and 28 years later photos of the basement gig have been unearthed by an unlikely source, 19-year-old Maggie Poukkula, the daughter of Seattle musician Tony Poukkula. The Laytem musician went to high school with and had a history of jamming alongside Kurt Cobain, hosting the cellar concert in his very own home.
Young Poukkula took to Twitter last week to share a photo strip of the 1987 gig in Raymond, Washington, posted with the caption: "Pictures of my dad and Kurt Cobain playing together back in the day." During the time of the jam session, Nirvana's lineup included Kurt Cobain, bassist Krist Novoselic and drummer Aaron Burckhard (pre-Dave Grohl days). That night, however, Poukkula picked up the slack on guitar and jumped in for two covers of Led Zeppelin classics.
"I had no idea that those were during Nirvana's first concert," Poukkula told Rolling Stone. "My dad showed me them a while back, but he never mentioned that's what was going on in the photos. I found out because of all the articles. I didn't realize it was such a historical thing. I thought they were just cool pictures of my dad and Kurt jamming together." Poukkula came across the photos tucked inside of her dad's copies of Cobain and Nirvana biographies, notes NME.
As an incomplete set list notes, Nirvana performed covers of Led Zeppelin's "How Many More Times" and "Heartbreaker" while executing blossoming renditions of "Aero Zeppelin," "Pen Cap Chew," "Spank Thru," "If You Must," "Hairspray Queen" and "Mexican Seafood."
Poukkula uncovered the photos trailing the release of dozens of unearthed Cobain artifacts dug up by Montage of Heck director, Brett Morgen. Morgen was given access to Cobain's archives where he found unreleased footage, never-before-heard tracks and an endless supply of notebooks. After making its HBO debut and gaining praise from most of its viewers, the film will see a theatrical release on Aug. 7. The latest conspiracy documentary, Soaked in Bleach, points the finger at widow Courtney Love for the death of the Seattle rocker. Naturally, she's petitioned for a cease and desist but in the end, nothing could stop the film from making its debut.
Pictures of my dad and Kurt Cobain playing together back in the day pic.twitter.com/y7lXh6acVn
— Maggs (@mjpoukkula) July 16, 2015
