Generally speaking, Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit”, off their 1991 album Nevermind, is usually considered the most popular and successful grunge song in history. Second place is anyone’s guess – plenty of songs from Soundgarden, Alice In Chains, Pearl Jam, Mudhoney, and more could qualify – but Nirvana’s “Come As You Are” might be a solid candidate. The second single and also the one that followed up the meteoric success of Teen Spirit, the song helped Nevermind continue to shift tens of thousands of copies a week. In fact, by the time of the single’s release and promotion in March 1992, Nevermind was selling over 100,000 copies a week and dethroning the likes of Michael Jackson at the top of the charts.
“Come As You Are”, which garnered similarities to a song by Killing Joke, has now reached one billion streams on Spotify. The song joins “Smells Like Teen Spirit” as the second Nirvana song to reach the milestone, the track’s shift in dynamics became a hallmark of their sound. What a classic tune, honestly.
.@Nirvana's "Come As You Are" has now surpassed 1 billion streams on Spotify. pic.twitter.com/i290NiJXxJ
— chart data (@chartdata) June 1, 2023
