Nirvana's 'Bleach' Ranked Among 'Best Debut Albums' of All Time

Although Kurt Cobain is now considered one of the most iconic rock frontmen of all time, and Nirvana is widely recognized among the most important music groups of the 1990s, there was a time when this wasn't the case.

The band's debut album, Bleach, received strong reviews from critics upon release in 1989, but failed to make a dent on the Billboard 200 and didn't come close to the commercial success that Nirvana would later enjoy.

Prior the record's release, Nirvana released their debut single: an alt-rock cover of Shocking Blue's "Love Buzz". The song received praise from the few people who heard it, but failed to push the band into the spotlight as they'd hoped. Instead of wasting more time on little-heard singles, the band decided to jump straight into their first full-length record.

Bleach included tracks such as "Blew", "About a Girl", and "Negative Creep", which are now considered some of Nirvana's most impressive and forward-thinking tracks. They lack the deep grunge influences that would come later in their career, but they show the band working on top form in a more familiar alt-rock sound.

Bleach sold roughly 40,000 copies in its first two years, as the band continued to gradually find more success with the singles that followed. When the band later broke into mainstream radio with Nevermind, fueled by singles like "Come as You Are" and "Smells Like Teen Spirit", fans went back in their catalog and finally gave Bleach the attention it deserved.

When Bleach was re-released in 1992 following the success of Nevermind, it finally broke into the Billboard 200 at No. 89. It found even more success in the United Kingdom, where it peaked at No. 33 on the U.K. Albums chart. Fans were beginning to realize what they'd originally missed out on-it had taken an international success story like Nirvana to finally introduce them to Bleach.

In the years since, Bleach has only become more popular among rock fans. The album was later ranked No. 13 on Rolling Stone's list of the 50 Greatest Grunge Albums, recognizing the album's contributions to the genre despite its relative lack of popularity at the time. Tracks like "Blew" and "Negative Creep" display some of the band's earliest grunge influences, with the distorted guitars and heavy drums, which would later become their signature sound.

Rolling Stone also ranked Bleach No. 8 on their readers' poll of the 10 Greatest Debut Albums, narrowly beating The Killers' Hot Fuss and The Beatles' Please Please Me.

This story was originally published by Men's Journal on Jun 15, 2026, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Men's Journal as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

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This story was originally published June 15, 2026 at 7:00 AM.