The lawsuit contends that the album cover photo chosen by Nirvana’s late leader Kurt Cobain suggests a “sex worker grabbing for a dollar bill.”Įlden’s suit alleges the defendants “used child pornography depicting Spencer as an essential element of a record promotion scheme commonly utilized in the music industry to get attention, wherein album covers posed children in a sexually provocative manner to gain notoriety, drive sales, and garner media attention, and critical reviews. Just a couple of quick observations here, gleaned from MTV’s exposé on Spencer Elden, the so-called Nirvana baby. “To ensure the album cover would trigger a visceral sexual response from the viewer, (photographer Kirk) Weddle activated Spencer’s ‘gag reflex’ before throwing him underwater in poses highlighting and emphasizing Spencer’s exposed genitals,” the suit alleges. Nevermind is the second studio album by the American rock band Nirvana, released on September 24, 1991, by DGC Records. It is among the best-known album covers in rock. The naked swimming baby from the cover of the groundbreaking Nirvana album Nevermind re-enacted the image for the record’s 25th anniversary this time wearing. The cover of Nevermind - released in 1991 by the Geffen/UMG label - depicts a naked baby swimming underwater, seemingly towards a fish hook with a dollar bill attached.
Spencer Elden, the baby on Nirvanas Nevermind. The cover art, a naked baby underwater swimming towards a 20 bill, is about as recognizable as the opening riff.
Vivendi's Bid To Sell 10% Universal Music Stake To Bill Ackman SPAC Collapses Deal Transfers To Ackman's Hedge FundĪccording to the suit, the defendants “knowingly produced, possessed, and advertised commercial child pornography depicting Spencer, and they knowingly received value in exchange for doing so…Despite this knowledge, defendants failed to take reasonable steps to protect Spencer and prevent his widespread sexual exploitation and image trafficking.”Įlden’s parents never signed a release authorizing the use of the photos taken of the four-month-old baby in a Pasadena aquatic center in 1990 and Elden received no compensation, lawyers for the plaintiff allege. And agin, in 2016, at 25 years of age, Spencer recreated that infamous shoot for a second time, this time with some very grunge-like long hair. Nirvanas iconic album Nevermind turns 30 next month.