Nevermind - Release

Release

Nevermind was released on September 24, 1991. American record stores received an initial shipment of 46,251 copies, while 35,000 copies were shipped in the United Kingdom, where Bleach had been successful. The lead single "Smells Like Teen Spirit" had been released on September 10 with the intention of being a base-building cut among alternative rock fans, while the next single "Come as You Are" would be the song that would possibly garner more attention. The band set out on a short American tour four days before the release date to support the album. Geffen Records hoped that Nevermind would sell around 250,000 copies, which was the same level the record company had achieved with Sonic Youth's Geffen debut Goo. The best estimate was that if all involved worked hard, the record could possibly be certified Gold by September 1992.

The album debuted on the Billboard 200 at number 144. Geffen shipped about half of the initial US pressing to the American Northwest, where it sold out quickly and was unavailable for days. Geffen reputedly put production of all other albums on hold in order to fulfill demand in the region. Nevermind was already selling well but, over the next few months, the momentum increased significantly as "Smells Like Teen Spirit" unexpectedly became more and more popular. The song's video had received a world premiere on MTV's late night alternative show 120 Minutes but it soon proved so popular that the channel began playing it during the day. The record was soon certified gold, but the band was relatively uninterested in the achievement. Novoselic recalled, "Yeah I was happy about it. It was pretty cool. It was kind of neat. But I don't give a shit about some kind of achievement like that. It's cool—I guess."

As the band set out for their European tour at the start of November 1991, Nevermind entered the Billboard Top 40 for the first time at number 35. By this point, "Smells Like Teen Spirit" had become a genuine hit and the album was selling so fast none of Geffen's marketing strategies aimed at different sales levels could be enacted. Geffen president Ed Rosenblatt told The New York Times, "We didn't do anything. It was just one of those 'Get out of the way and duck' records." Nirvana found as they toured Europe during the end of 1991 that the shows were dangerously oversold, television crews became a constant presence onstage, and "Smells Like Teen Spirit" was almost omnipresent on radio and music television.

Nevermind became Nirvana's first number one album on January 11, 1992, replacing Michael Jackson at the top of the Billboard charts. By this time, Nevermind was selling approximately 300,000 copies a week. "Come as You Are" was finally released as the second single in March 1992; it peaked at number 32 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart. Two more singles, "Lithium" and "In Bloom", were released from the album, which peaked at number 11 and 28 on the UK Singles Chart respectively.

Nevermind was certified Gold and Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America in November 1991, and was certified Diamond in March 1999. It was also certified Diamond in Canada (1,000,000 units sold) by the Canadian Recording Industry Association in March 2001 and two times Platinum in the United Kingdom. In 1996, Mobile Fidelity Sound Labs released Nevermind on vinyl as part of its ANADISQ 200 series, and as a 24-carat gold Compact Disc. The CD pressings included "Endless, Nameless". The LP version quickly sold out its limited pressing but the CD edition stayed in print for years. Universal Music Enterprises further released a 4-CD/1-DVD Super Deluxe Edition of Nevermind in September 2011.