lambchops's Full Review: Unplugged in New York by Nirvana (USA)
Of all the albums I grew to love and appreciate while in high school, one stand out. No, I’m not talking about Stone Temple Pilots or Alice in Chains. I’m not speaking specifically of Nevermind. Nirvana, in my humble opinion, was at the very top of their collective game at the recording and posthumous release of late 1994’s MTV Unplugged in New York.
The live album seemed to capture the inflection, pain, and sorrow that encircled singer/songwriter/guitarist Kurt Cobain before his untimely suicide. The usually unrelenting band seemed somehow softer and more real on the fourteen absolutely luminous tracks. Aside from Cobain’s excellence, Krist Novoselic’s bass is a perfect foundation on which to build a flawless song. Dave Grohl’s drums and Pat Smear’s guitars add even more intricate layers to the album.
But what really makes MTV Unplugged in New York an important piece of music and the stand out of Nirvana’s often lauded career revolves around the seamless combination of previously studio recorded original tracks, Meat Puppets classics, and a few other luscious covers. The album isn’t in the least bit pretentious…to hear Cobain, Novoselic, Grohl, and Smear on this release allows the listener to experience at least a little bit of what was for a blink in time musically important.
MTV Unplugged in New York has aged more gracefully than other so-called grunge albums. Why? Well, that’s the genius of it. The album is much more than just a genre. It is instead an exercise in creativity and in emotion that breaks down walls and bridges gaps. Nirvana was on the late 1993 day that this disc was recorded full of inspiration that will forever be ingrained in my psyche.
There’s no way that I would ever call Nirvana the best band of the decade. They had problems and they were swept up in the Seattle movement in the earliest 1990’s. But this album stands out among the vast majority as a result of its unabashed nakedness and universally appealing intelligence. At each listen of Unplugged I’m swept back to 1994/1995 and to the feeling that engulfed me during this nearly extinct musical movement. Unplugged is the standard by which all live albums should be judged on both an emotional and musical level.
If I weren’t already familiar with Nirvana and the Meat Puppets and some of the other original covers, it would be nearly impossible to distinguish the origin. The Seattle band managed to take each song—be it their own or somebody else’s—and make it their own. In fact, the song that stands out to me the most on the album is from the Meat Puppets (originally on II).
Lake of Fire is quite simply put a remarkable song. The other two Meat Puppets offerings Plateau and Oh, Me are also rather impressive, but it’s the sheer beauty of Lake of Fire that makes it dear to my heart. With the aid of the Kirkwood brothers (the force behind Meat Puppets), the song ambles along a dusty path populated by skillfully plucked guitars, thumping bass beats, and understated drums. Layers of guitars artfully surround the pensive and thoughtful lyrics performed by Cobain. These words are not only perfectly fitted to the melody and instrumentation, they are also poetically resonant. Here’s a quick sample:
Where do bad folks go when they die?
They don't go to heaven where the angels fly
They go to a lake of fire and fry
See'em again 'till the 4th of July
Also important on Unplugged are a few other covers. Where Did You Sleep Last Night?, The Man Who Sold The World and the strange selection Jesus Doesn’t Want Me for a Sunbeam manage to all be pleasant surprises and performances. Nirvana makes the folk song Where Did You Sleep Last Night? rather sad and dank. I can’t imagine the song performed by anybody except the Seattle band. David Bowie’s The Man Who Sold The World has never sounded better, and Jesus Doesn’t Want Me for a Sunbeam sounds as though it were first performed by Nirvana despite in actuality being a gospel track first adapted by 1980's Scottish indie pop band the Vaselines.
Unplugged is so much more than just covers. Consider the fact that favorite Nirvana songs ranging from Pennyroyal Tea and Something in the Way to Come as You Are and All Apologies make unforgettable appearances and in some cases surpass the original.
MTV has earned the reputation for making and breaking bands, for creating monsters and for stepping on egos. MTV Unplugged in New York remains in the top two albums ever created by the music station (the other being the Eric Clapton release). It captured a moment in time with grace and dignity. The recording caught Cobain at a calm, introspective moment. It also captured Nirvana working toward a musical breakthrough. Nevermind was just the beginning. What should have been to come was instead a continuation of Unplugged.
I wholeheartedly recommend MTV Unplugged in New York to fans of rock and fans of the band on the whole. If you are at all curious about learning more about Nirvana, start with this album and work backward toward the band’s earliest effort Bleach. As I’ve already mentioned, this release is perfect and worthy of millions more fans. If you haven’t already go buy MTV Unplugged in New York. It’s worth paying full price.
Rating: 5/5 stars
Track Listing:
1. About A Girl
2. Come As You Are
3. Jesus Doesn’t Want Me for a Sunbeam
4. The Man Who Sold the World
5. Pennyroyal Tea
6. Dumb
7. Polly
8. On a Plain
9. Something in the Way
10. Plateau
11. Oh, Me
12. Lake of Fire
13. All Apologies
14. Where Did You Sleep Last Night?
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