The title of this article might be a case of wonder; after all, what is the difference between these two rock legends? Well, anyone with a bit of knowledge might say, ‘easy,’ and state that Townshend is a British gentleman and Cobain was your usual American rocker with a bit of a dislike of society.
However, the difference runs deeper than just nationalities, and trust us; it’s not just a case of musical differences too. You see, even though both bands are considered rock legends, the Who may fall into the category of ‘dad rock,’ while Nirvana embraces the smell of the usual, edgy teen spirit. Not the best pun, I know.
You might wonder what the difference between Kurt Cobain and Pete Townshend was if it wasn’t for their musical styles and nationalities. Well, if the previously given differences might seem a bit funny, then you must hear what Townshend believed separated him from Kurt.
You see, Townshend likes Cobain, but he also enjoys humor and a bit of self-degradation. So, the fusion of these facts made the perfect potion for the rocker to disclose what differed between the two rockers; when he was asked while chatting with Rolling Stone in 1996 if Cobain had connected with him, he knew the answer.
“Very much,” said Townshend while responding to whether Kurt had bonded with him. “I mean, there’s only one difference with him and me, and that was he was pretty, and that gave him a lot of problems. The pretty people tend to blow their brains out.”
So, Pete thought that the only difference between the two rock legends was neither their nationalities nor their music but simply their physical appearances. Well, Townshend thought of himself as ‘not pretty’ and emphasized that as a mediocre-looking person, he very much loved to live, and sadly, Cobain had the usual ‘pretty people problems,’ such as dealing with a lot of media attention, fans, and criticism, which must have affected his approach to life.
