Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain loved rock 'n' roll. Growing up in Aberdeen, Washington, in the '80s, he absorbed the classic-rock canon—from Creedence to Boston. But even after he discovered the Sex Pistols and Black Flag, he never lost his fondness for catchy melodies and crushing riffs. His love of quirky outsiders like Young Marble Giants and Daniel Johnston, meanwhile, spoke to his gentler side.