MTV Unplugged
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| MTV Unplugged | |
|---|---|
| Format | Music |
| Created by | MTV |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Production | |
| Running time | 60 minutes |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | MTV |
| Original airing | 1989 |
| Part of a series on MTV MTV channels MTV shows |
MTV Unplugged is a series showcasing popular musical artists playing acoustic instruments. It is produced by Viacom and was directed by Beth McCarthy.
Contents |
[edit] Unplugged
Unplugged refers to rock musicians primarily known for playing electric amplified instruments (usually the electric guitar & electric bass) performing live using primarily acoustic instruments.
The word became incorporated into the title of a popular MTV series that began in the 1989/1990 US 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.
[edit] Inspiration for MTV Unplugged
The inspiration for the Unplugged series has been attributed to the popularity among musicians of a variety of musical performances on stage, film, television and record in earlier decades. Elvis Presley's "In-the-Round" performance in his 1968 Comeback Special, and the Beatles informal studio jams in the 1970 film "Let It Be" were both precursors of the "Unplugged" concept.
Other more specifically "unplugged" performances occurred in the late 1970s and early 1980s including the June 1979 appearances by Pete Townshend at The Secret Policeman's Ball - a series of benefit shows in London for human rights organization Amnesty International at which the usually electric guitar-wielding Townshend was persuaded by benefit producer Martin Lewis to perform his hits Pinball Wizard and Won't Get Fooled Again on acoustic guitar. The performances were widely seen and heard on the 1980 live album and the UK-only movie of the benefit and inspired other rock performers to emulate Townshend.
Two years later in September 1981 Lewis produced a sequel benefit show The Secret Policeman's Other Ball that featured similar performances by other rock performers including Sting, Phil Collins and Bob Geldof. The 1982 live album of these performances and the US version of The Secret Policeman's Other Ball movie (which incorporated a 'flashback' of Townshend's 1979 performances) both became very successful and were widely seen and heard in the USA.
The phenomenon of rock stars re-creating their hits in an acoustic manner was thus well established by the early 1980s though the word 'unplugged' had not yet been applied to the concept.
In addition, the late 1980's saw a renewed interest in folk and acoustic music in general (accompanied by a wave of nostalgia for the music of the 1960's, which also had a significant folk/acoustic movement). Many new acts established during the period had a strong folk/acoustic influence, e.g. The Indigo Girls, R.E.M., Sinéad O'Connor, Suzanne Vega, Lyle Lovett, Michael Penn, Enya, and Bruce Hornsby and the Range. At the same time, many established folk and folk-influenced artists of the 60's and 70's experienced renewed success — some reaching the greatest commercial success of their careers — such as Paul Simon, The Grateful Dead, Jethro Tull, Bonnie Raitt, Dire Straits/Mark Knopfler, Yes, and Bob Dylan.
The first rock artists to perform in an "unplugged" mode on MTV were Jethro Tull, who, on November 17, 1987 as an acoustic trio, performed a bit of "Serenade to a Cuckoo" and "Skating Away (On the Thin Ice of the New Day)". XTC performed in May 1989, and Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora performing "Livin' On A Prayer" and "Wanted Dead or Alive" during the 1989 MTV Video Music Awards.
Following the popularity of the Bon Jovi performance, MTV began the Unplugged series of concerts.
It is common for the featured musicians to display their musical influences by covering other artists.
[edit] Memorable Moments on MTV Unplugged
When the series first aired on November 26 1989[1], it featured Squeeze, Syd Straw and Elliot Easton. The first 13 episodes were hosted by American singer and songwriter Jules Shear.
On 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 Coletti 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. 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 Robert Smith (one with his band The Cure, the other as a Korn guest), MC Lyte and Maggie Estep also appeared more than once in the show.
In 1992 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 almost to the point of 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 March 1992 setlist was never released. In the early days Unplugged was also used for young artists to gain exposure. It wasn’t financially responsible to release every show, let alone a show with an up and coming band like Pearl Jam was at the time. MTV has filmed over 100 Unplugged performances but less than 30 of them have been released. While many wish that a CD/DVD of Pearl Jam - MTV Unplugged will be released, this is unlikely. [1]
On February 13th 1993, swedish duo Roxette became the first non-English speaking band ever to perform at MTV Unplugged. During the show they covered songs from other artists such as Aretha Franklin, Neil Young and The Birds.
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.
Nirvana's performance on Unplugged was one of the last televised performances by Kurt Cobain, recorded about five months before his death. Nirvana's setlist consisted of several covers and some of their lesser known originals. The only real "hit" played during this performance was "Come As You Are" (see MTV Unplugged in New York). This contrasts with other Unplugged performances, where artists largely perform their hit singles and other original material.
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.
Bob Dylan recorded an Unplugged concert in 1994 over two nights that was combined into one show.
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. 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 would eventually claim his life six years later). Scott Olson, a recording engineer from London Bridge Studios in Seattle, was included as a rhythm guitarist for this concert to help flesh out the songs and match the layered guitar sounds of the band studio records. 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 and openly mocked the group. Alanis Morissette rounded out the decade with her performance in 1999 featuring songs from her mega-hit album Jagged Little Pill and her recently released Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie. Her unplugged show was also turned into an album featuring 12 performances from the night.
In 1999, Colombian singer-songwriter Shakira's concert on MTV unplugged became the first episode of the program to be broadcast entirely in another language; her native Spanish.
In 2001, Japanese Pop Singer Hikaru Utada became the youngest singer and the third Japanese Pop Singer, the first and second being Chage and Aska, to be featured on MTV Unplugged.
Jay-Z: Unplugged is rapper Jay-Z's 2001 music album that contains some of his past songs with live acoustic instruments performed by Jay-Z himself with the hip-hop group The Roots. The album was recorded during the taping of an MTV Unplugged 2.0 episode on November 18, 2001. It sold more than 600,000 copies.
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)).
Ricky Martin performed in October 2006. The album was issued on separate CD and DVD releases on November 6, 2006, and reissued on May 2, 2007 in a combo-package CD+DVD format. In addition, Wal-Mart exclusively carries the bonus DVD "Making of Ricky Martin MTV Unplugged."
On March 2, 2007, MTV aired Korn Unplugged. Featuring guest appearances by Amy Lee of Evanescence and also The Cure, the show's setlist was comprised of a selection of the band's hits including "Got the Life", "Falling Away from Me", "Freak on a Leash", and "Blind", as well as a cover version of The Cure's In Between Days, which was performed with The Cure themselves.
Mexican Grammy and Latin Grammy award-winning artist Julieta Venegas' MTV Unplugged session premiered on June 5, 2008. She collaborated with Spanish rapper La Mala Rodriguez on her classic hit "Eres Para Mi", sang along with Juan Son on her song "De Mis Pasos", and released new material such as "El Presente", "Algún Día" featuring Gustavo Santaolalla, and "Ilusion" featuring Marisa Monte. This performance marks the first time a Mexican female artist is featured in the series. Her audio CD and DVD of the performance is set to be released on June 17, 2008.
[edit] Performances Inspired By "Unplugged" Format
The success and popularity of the series has inspired artists to emulate the format in other venues.
Tesla released one of the first unplugged albums in 1990, Five Man Acoustical Jam.
Jethro Tull had a semi-unplugged European tour in 1992; the tour and subsequent album were both titled A Little Light Music.
MTV's sister channel, VH1, made the format even more intimate by interspersing semi-acoustic performances with the artists discussing the history and memories of the songs, in VH1 Storytellers.
Bon Jovi performed unplugged in 2007 on CMT. The Police, Mary J. Blige, Kenny Chesney and John Mayer were scheduled to perform, but it appears these were scrapped.[2]
The fourth season of Canadian Idol featured an Unplugged night which was held at Toronto's Masonic Temple. This episode of Canadian Idol was a tribute to MTV in two ways: a direct tribute to the Unplugged Format, and to celebrate the recent licensing of the new MTV Canada which is, to this day, still located in the Masonic Hall. The highlight of the night was Eva Avila who wowed the judges, the nation and even the back-up singers. She would continue to build on this standout performance and claim victory of Canadian Idol's fourth season.
