MTV Unplugged

MTV Unplugged is a series showcasing popular musical artists playing acoustic instruments. It is produced by Viacom and was directed by Beth McCarthy.

Unplugged

Unplugged refers to rock musicians primarily known for playing electric amplified instruments (usually the electric guitar & electric bass) performing live using only acoustic instruments.

The word became incorporated into the title of a popular MTV series that began in the 1989/1990 TV season, MTV Unplugged, on which musicians performed acoustic or "unplugged" versions of their familiar repertoire. Many of these performances were subsequently released as albums, often featuring the title Unplugged.

Inspiration for MTV Unplugged

The inspiration for the Unplugged series is solely attributed to Bon Jovi's performance at the music awards. However, many music experts have cited both Elvis Presley's "boxing ring" performance in his 1968 Comeback Special, and the Beatles filmed performances in the 1970 film "Let It Be" as "unplugged type" sessions that were ahead of their time, and many consider them "pre-cursors" to the later "Unplugged" concept.

Memorable Moments on MTV Unplugged

When the series was first aired in November 26 1989^[1] featuring Squeeze, Syd Straw and Elliot Easton.

December 13, 1990 at the MTV Studios New York Poison recorded some of their top ten singles of which four of them appear on the Crack A Smile...And More! album.

When Paul McCartney himself appeared on the show in January 25 1991, he chose to release the set as Unplugged (The Official Bootleg). Show producer Alex Colletti has gone on record in an interview stating his view that had McCartney not released the album and its subsequent popularity, the concept would have never gained the cult status that it went on to enjoy.

In 1992 TNT were featured doing an acoustic version of their songs Lionheart and What I Need.

10,000 Maniacs were the first act to perform on the show twice. They were featured on the February 4 1991 show as well as their more well-known performance in 1993, which was released on album (see MTV Unplugged (10,000 Maniacs album)). R.E.M. was the second band to have performed twice, in 1991 (see MTV Unplugged: R.E.M. (1991)) and 2001 (see MTV Unplugged: R.E.M. (2001)). Other artists like MC Lyte and Maggie Estep also appeared more than once in the show.

Mariah Carey performing on Unplugged in 1992.

Mariah Carey performed some of her greatest hits from the first successful years of her career on Unplugged in 1992. She also sang a version of "I'll Be There", originally recorded by The Jackson 5, with Trey Lorenz. The song scored Lorenz with his own recording contract and another number-one single on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 for Carey. Her Unplugged set list was released on the EP MTV Unplugged. That year, Eric Clapton recorded an Unplugged performance at Bray Studios in London (see Unplugged (Eric Clapton album)). His was widely praised and criticized for heavily reworking many of his famous songs so they would work in an acoustic context, in some to the point of almost unrecognizability. Clapton's Unplugged album went on to become the bestselling Unplugged album in the U.S., with sales of 10 million. Pearl Jam's full 1992 setlist was shortened to fit in the 30 minute airtime of the show. They also performed the songs "Oceans" and a cover of Neil Young's "Rockin' in the Free World" which were not aired.

In Neil Young's 1993 performance (see Unplugged (Neil Young album)), two of the songs were played twice after Young was dissatisfied with them. He gave the drummer grief both times for playing too fast. Four songs from the performance were cut from the final broadcast. Perhaps the best known preformance was by grunge band Nirvana, whose 1993 performance on Unplugged was one of the last televised performances by Kurt Cobain, recorded just a few months before his death. Nirvana's performance consisted mostly of little-known material from themselves, the Meat Puppets, and David Bowie (see MTV Unplugged in New York). It is a contrast to other Unplugged concerts, where artists largely perform their own songs. Bruce Springsteen also performed in 1993, and in a twist on the program's theme, most of set was performed with amplified instruments (see In Concert/MTV Plugged).

Some songs from Midnight Oil's 1993 performance on Unplugged appear on their album The Real Thing.

On August 9 1995, hard rock legends Kiss performed on MTV Unplugged in what fans consider a historical concert (see Kiss Unplugged). Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons contacted former members Peter Criss and Ace Frehley and invited them to participate in the event. Fan reaction to Criss and Frehley at the Unplugged show was so positive that, in 1996, the original lineup of Kiss reunited, with all four original members together for the first time since 1979. Bob Dylan had an Unplugged concert in 1995 as well. The CD included the 1963 song "John Brown," which is the first time the song has ever been published. Also in 1995 on Valentine's Day the grunge band Hole performed on "Unplugged" with memorable performances of "Miss World," and "Doll Parts," and covers of the Nirvana songs "You Know You're Right" (as "You've Got No Right") and "Old Age" also the Duran Duran song "Hungry Like the Wolf."

On April 10, 1996, Alice in Chains would give their first performance in three years and one of their last concerts as a group for 9 years on the show (see Unplugged (Alice in Chains album)). Lead singer Layne Staley was visibly in poor health from his heroin addiction (which eventually claimed his life). Scott Olson, a recording engineer from London Bridge Studios in Seattle, was included as a rhythm guitarist for this concert to enhance the acoustic quality of the originally heavy metal songs. A band considered as alternative metal, the acoustic arrangements were clearly distinguishable from the previous versions of their songs, including "Down In A Hole". On July 30 of the same year, Alice in Chains released an Unplugged album from the performance, with the new song, "Killer Is Me," being released as a new track introduced at the performance. The songs "Angry Chair," "Frogs," and "Killer Is Me" were not broadcast on the original show, but were included on Alice in Chains' Unplugged album.

Britpop giants Oasis were due to play for the show at the Royal Festival Hall on August 23, 1996, but at the 11th hour lead singer Liam Gallagher pulled out, citing a sore throat (The real reason being that prior to the show, Noel and Liam got into an argument in which Liam proclaimed Oasis were nothing without him, the lead singer, and wished to prove this by letting Noel and the remaining three members perform without him)^{[citation needed]}. Main songwriter and guitarist Noel Gallagher then took over for vocals and sang for every song during the concert. Liam watched the performance from a balcony with cold beer and cigarettes and openly mocked the group.

In 2001, Japanese Pop Singer Utada Hikaru became the youngest singer and the third Japanese Pop Singer, the first and second being Chage and Aska, to be featured on MTV Unplugged .

Lauryn Hill unveiled her much-anticipated new material on a 2002 MTV Unplugged special, and later released it on the album MTV Unplugged No. 2.0. It had been three years since the release of Hill's The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill. Hill appeared with her hair cut off and performed in a stripped-down, minimalist style. Her set included her playing an acoustic guitar, spoken word segments, and occasionally breaking down in tears.

MTV revived the series when Alicia Keys' Unplugged special aired on MTV on September 23 2005. It was the first Unplugged for MTV in nearly three years, and special guests for Keys' performance included Mos Def, Common, Damian Marley and Maroon 5's Adam Levine. The show was released on CD and DVD in October 2005 (see Unplugged (Alicia Keys album)).

On March 2, 2007, MTV aired Korn Unplugged. Featuring Amy Lee of Evanescence and Robert Smith of The Cure, the show featured a selection of the band's hits including "Got the Life", "Falling Away from Me", "Freak on a Leash", and "Blind".

See also

• MTV Unplugged albums

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