A rare test pressing of Nirvana's cover of "Love Buzz," produced three years before the band's iconic "Nevermind" album, just sold for a staggering amount.
One of Only Six Known Copies in Existence
The test pressing fetched $58,560 at Goldin Auctions on Nov. 12, and was one of only 10 copies made and one of six documented examples known to exist today.
Goldin Auctions describes the test pressing as being issued “three years before ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit’ would ignite a cultural revolution,” marking “the true beginning of the band’s recorded legacy.” The auction house characterizes it as “a cornerstone artifact of rock history.”
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These test pressings were produced in extremely small quantities by the pressing plant for Seattle’s indie label Sub Pop as part of the quality-control process before mass production, according to Goldin Auctions. This exact copy is documented as “Test Pressing #6” on the authoritative reference site LoveBuzz7.com, which tracks all known examples of the Love Buzz 7″ single.
First Radio Play of a Nirvana Song
The copy comes from Scott Vanderpool, an employee of Sub Pop, Goldin Auctions said. “I met (Sub Pop co-founder) Jon Poneman at KCMU, where all three of us were volunteer DJs,” Vanderpool said in a letter provided to Goldin Auctions. “It was handed to me by Jon seconds after it arrived in the mail from the pressing plant."
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Vanderpool told Goldin Auctions the test pressing, from November 1988, was then put on the air at University of Washington's KCMU, marking the first time one of the band’s songs appeared on the radio. “While I was working at Sub Pop, any test pressing that came in I immediately took to the radio station to play on that show (Audioasis), so your Nirvana test pressing has the distinction of being the first Nirvana studio recording played on the radio anywhere," Vanderpool added, elaborating on the significance of the test pressing in his letter.
The record label bears handwritten inscriptions in blue felt-tip pen, with “Love Buzz” on the A-side and “Big Cheese” on the reverse, each showing light discoloration consistent with age, Goldin Auctions reports. The item was graded E (Excellent) Open with Subgrades: Packaging: 0, Media: 8, by AMG (50008056).
Growing Market for Cobain Memorabilia
The sale adds to the growing market for Kurt Cobain memorabilia, which “can be a hot ticket on the auction marketplace,” according to online rock music magazine Loudwire, especially when it comes to the tangible goods the late Nirvana frontman touched in his life.
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Cobain wrote a setlist on a paper plate, which netted a higher final price of $22,400 than a sheet containing the Nirvana members’ signatures, which sold for $8,750. A signed Cobain painting sold for $17,500 in 2017, and the Nirvana singer’s “Mr. Mustache” drawing went for $18,750 after two bids in the same year, Loudwire reported.
A stage-used Marshall speaker cabinet from Cobain’s 1993 concert filmed for Nirvana’s "Live and Loud" video sold at auction for $19,200 in 2020, according to Loudwire.
A 1993 amendment to Nirvana's recording contract, signed by a Geffen Records representative and the band's members, fetched $21,875 in 2019, according to Loudwire. In 2014, a white Sonic Youth T-shirt worn by Cobain onstage during a 1994 performance sold for $25,000.
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