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The New Biographical Book Reveals Mark Lanegan Co-Wrote Nirvana’s “Something in the Way”

The late singer Mark Lanegan, known as the frontman of Screaming Trees and his work with Queens of the Stone Age, was a close friend to Kurt Cobain during his lifetime. Cobain performed on Lanegan’s debut solo album, and anecdotes from Lanegan’s memoir illustrated just how tight the two grunge artists were.

Turns out their collaborative efforts went both ways. In the new biographical oral history, Lanegan, the singer’s former Queens of the Stone Age bandmate Nick Oliveri revealed that Mark helped write lyrics for Nirvana’s stark masterpiece “Something in the Way,” but went uncredited. Therefore Lanegan — who often struggled to make ends meet while coping with drug addiction — didn’t receive what would have been massive royalties for the sales of Nirvana’s mega-selling album Nevermind.

“Mark said he wrote some lyrics on ‘Something in the Way’ with Kurt on Nevermind,” Oliveri told author Greg Prato. “But Kurt had played on some of Mark’s solo stuff, The Winding Sheet. So, instead of getting paid, they just did this thing where, ‘Hey man, I added a lyric on your song and you added a lyric on my song. Let’s just call it even. Whatever happens, happens.’

Credit to Consequence.