Unplugged In New York - Nirvana (US) > Reviews

Advantages: Everything
Disadvantages: I can't think of any!

..."heavy" sound in an acoustic, unplugged set, the songs still come across well. Nirvana were geniuses at creating "pop rock"- namley heavy music with great melodies that still hold up when stripped bare to just the singing and basic guitars as on this album. I find the covers the most enjoyable part of the album. The cover of David Bowie's "man who sold the world" is outstanding, uplifting and a highlight of the album. There are also covers ... Read review

Advantages: Meaningful Lyrics, Packed with Emotion
Disadvantages: Could be too sad for some to take

For someone who had never payed much attention to the Seattle Grunge Rock Scene in the early to mid-90's, Kurt Cobain's sudden death nonetheless left me shocked and filled with wonder. Suddenly I wanted to get to know more about this oft-troubled rock icon. It was not long after his death that I purchased MTV's Nirvana...Unplugged in New York. I chose this CD as my introduction to Nirvana because I felt that it would give me an insight into the ... Read review

Advantages: Raw, Stripped, Classic songs
Disadvantages: None

...This is where the MTV unplugged series comes in and gives us some truly memorable performances. That's where Nirvana dispelled the opinion that they were just noise. In this stripped down enviroment Kurt Cobain's song take on a whole new element. The album starts off with the usual whooping and hollering before the words "this is off our first record...most people don't own it" lead us into 'About A Girl' from the Bleach album. This has always ... Read review

Advantages: Some great covers
Disadvantages: not what you may be expecting

...of the other Nirvana albums. MTV's unplugged series is designed to showcase bands acoustically, showing their true talents rather than studio wizardry. Although Nirvana's (read Kurt Cobain) talent lies in songwriting rather singing/performing, this is a well conceived and executed album. Although Kurt Cobain's singing isn't the greatest in the world and he makes mistakes while playing guitar - it doesn't at all on this album. This is an album of ... Read review

Advantages: great to see songs stripped down
Disadvantages: perhaps a bit hard for newcomers to connect

As a huge Nirvana fan, this is obviously going to be a somewhat biased review, but I hope you can bear with me as I try to do it justice. The most surprising thing for many people is the fact that the songs which Cobain tried to play as loud and as fast as possible really stand up to the test of an acoustic outing. 'Dumb' and 'Polly' are played with the same style as they are on album recordings, but 'Pennyroyal Tea' is beautiful in its stripped ... Read review

Advantages: so many I couldn't honestly list them all
Disadvantages: ????

...have heard the greatest MTV Unplugged performance in history (thats just my opinion). It was also said that MTV officials complained to Nirvana and wanted to know why certain songs (teen spirit, lithium etc) were not on the playlist. The simple answer is that there are certain songs that just would not sound right when done acoustically. When Kurt mentioned to MTV that he had plans for a couple of guests to take part in the performance, the MTV ... Read review

Advantages: Beautiful songs
Disadvantages: none

Compared to the other comilation album (on the muddy banks), I found this one to be alot more mellow, and calmer, and I must say I enjoyed it more for this. It has some covers, but these are done so well, so that I forgive them :). I have noticed that soem of my ops havn't been quite up to my usual grade, but I need to get back in to my op writing swing!!! Ill do my usual song by song review... About a girl. A really nice song, with kurt's usual ... Read review

Advantages: The soaring emotion
Disadvantages: Not a thing

In one word, Nirvana's MTV Unplugged performance was amazing. Before Kurt Cobain and his band graced the stage that night, no one could have thought that a bunch of Seattle grungers could possess the maturity or the talent to progress beyond the wall of distortion and the bindings of three chord rock. Not only did Nirvana do this, they created a milestone for agonised song writers everywhere. The pain of severe stomach ulcers combined with the pressure ... Read review

Advantages: Very powerful lyrics, with great music played by the Nirvana boys, plus special guests. A lovely, relaxing listen.
Disadvantages: (none)

Nirvana are a band that will always be remembered. Not only because the lead singer, Kurt Cobain, killed himself, but also because their music was so passionate, meaningful, and influential. They founded grunge with their first album, Bleach, and have advanced greatly to this album. Unplugged in New York was recorded live for MTV in late 1993, and was released as a CD in early 1994. It was the last release by Nirvana while Kurt Cobain was still ... Read review

Advantages: Different
Disadvantages: one or two tunes that drag out a little

MTV Unplugged in New York is a live album by the American grunge band, Nirvana. It was released in November 1994. featuring covers of songs by the Vaselines, David Bowie and the Meat Puppets, and Leadbelly" The CD includes songs that were not included on the live TV session! Which is a bonus! very different to all Nirvanas heavy stuff on the rest of the albums but theres some fantastic redemptions! Tracks:- 1. About A Girl - A very simple ... Read review

Advantages: Beautiful & Brilliant
Disadvantages: None

On November 18th 1993, the kings of 'grunge' stepped into a small studio filled with fans to perform an acoustic set. The traditionalist would have expected, or wanted, them to play the obvious likes of Smells Like Teen Spirit and Heart Shaped Box. But what Kurt Cobain had in mind was something beautiful enough to make the hairs on the back of your neck stand up. As I gradually review all Nirvana's releases, if anyones checked my other reviews....(hint!).... ... Read review

Advantages: Shows a new side to Nirvana
Disadvantages: None.

...it hard to imagine Nirvana Unplugged performance not being issued as an album, as not only is it a great performace, but also features six cover versions, and gives a totally different, stark representation of Nirvana distortion driven emotional rock. Kurts voice cuts through the gently played tunes like knive, and also shows emense personality and passion. Even the more heavy minded rock fan will love this record, and there really is little that ... Read review