Hey Rob, great article. As a fellow member of Gen X, I was there when MTV was born and slowly watched it die. Growing up in the Midwest, it was our connection to the music scene. Like payphones and other uniquely 80s things, it's difficult to explain to a kid today what it was like to walk into school and have everyone talking about that Pearl Jam performance. They say you can never go back but I'm wearing a Headbanger's Ball shirt right now so, maybe we can visit... if only in our hearts and minds.
Thanks, Flack! We really were lucky when it came to how we consumed music and entertainment. That doesn't mean other generations didn't (or don't) experience great art but we were the last of the analog age and the first to be thrown into the digital world. It was a monoculture so we all shared the experience, and to your point, allowed us to discuss it in real time. It's up to us, those who came of age from the mid-80s through the mid-90s, to keep it all alive!
There's probably an argument to be made regarding being fed content like we were vs. today where people have access to literally the world's history of music, but have to find it. No way would any of us know Kajagoogoo or Flock of Seagulls if MTV hadn't fed it to us in constant rotation (and there's a second discussion there as to whether or not they should have!) but in a world where there are 11 million artists on Spotify... we just don't have those shared experiences anymore. I remember going to school the day after Thriller debuted and talking about it to my bus driver. Just doesn't happen anymore.
Great essay! I wish they’d create a streaming channel of 24 hours of Unplugged and VH1 Storytellers broken up with periodic episodes of Win Ben Stein’s Money.
The only other Unplugged I would add as a must see was Seal. I just picked up the r3crnt pressing of that on vinyl. Killer!
Thank you! Yeah, if they streamed them on a regular basis it would probably do very well! If the Clapton showing is successful maybe they will start showing others soon enough.
Amazing! I literally received a copy of Pearl Jam Unplugged on vinyl in the post today. Those three concerts you mention were amazing at the time but having rediscovered them 30 plus years later they have lost nothing in their impact. Sadly I don’t think we’ll see anything like this again.
You’re not going to get an argument from me! Watching and listening to music in that setting, particularly from bands you already love, is very hard to beat as far as I’m concerned.
I’m doubtful that we will see an era like that again but maybe we get surprised somewhere down the line. If we don’t, at least we have the memories and the records/videos from that unbelievable era to carry us along.
I was an Unplugged devotee from the start. I remember Elton's appearance, which was completely solo, where he said something to the effect of, "Welcome to MTV Unplugged, the show where poseurs dare not appear."
There were magical moments (Clapton's "Circus Left Town," which was left off the initial CD release, was heart-wrenching; 10,000 Maniacs; Arrested Development; Nirvana; the Black Crowes with an early version of what became "Sting Me" called "You're Wrong;" Stevie Ray Vaughan; Dylan's "John Brown;" etc) and not-so-magical (Damn Yankees; Poison; KISS) and rebellious moments (Springsteen "going electric" a la Dylan instead of sticking to format in '92). Man, I miss that show.
Great piece, and thanks for the trip down memory lane.
The Unplugged shows were such anticipated events. I've never bought one of the CDs, though, because I need the video, as well. Maybe I need to change that.
I can understand needing the video, I was the same way. Hearing Nirvana's Unplugged in a car, though, changed my mind back in the day. Now, due to the ease of streaming, having the Unplugged sessions available anywhere is a real gift!
That was an awesome series. Caught Nirvana and from what I’ve read 10000 maniacs was Natalie’s gift to the band before departing on her solo career. Live was also a good one and what I heard they made Ed’s parents sit in the back so the younger folks would be seen on film. Went and looked and I’m surprised at how many artists made an unplugged concert. Guess I was busy flying around the world playing Army in those decades but what an awesome show and concept.
I've heard the same about why 10,000 Maniacs did their set. I should research it because if true, it's a great story. As for Live's performance, it was one of the best as far as I'm concerned. It wasn't as popular as the others for some reason and I almost never hear anyone mention that show when discussing the Unplugged series so thanks for bringing it up. You're right about the band's parents being moved as well, Ed mentioned it during the taping and they kept the comment in on the final edit.
Rob.....Where do you think Jules Shear's credit lies in the show's creation? As he said on reddit a decade ago (and, I've read in many other places for years), Jules wrote: "I came up with the concept for MTV Unplugged when trying to promote my own acoustic record." Has history forgotten his role in the show's inception/creation, or has Jules over-blown his influence?
I notice that the show's Wiki page only mentions Small and Burns as co-creators, and I know Jules hosted the first baker's dozen of shows, but have you any thoughts about his "actual" contributions?
I've been wanting to write about Jules' singer/songwriter/recording career, and I'd be curious to get your thoughts on how history, generally, has remembered Jules' role in the show's creation, if it has at all! Thanks!
It’s a great question. As with many creative endeavors, the truth about who did what and when is usually a bit murky. I’ve been in studios where the idea for a song started with one person and someone else would receive the bulk of the credit so I could see how it might happen with television shows as well.
I honestly do not know much about Shear’s involvement other than being a host. I think it’s a very interesting story though. My gut tells me he was probably slighted a bit because musicians, especially then, didn’t have the power that music executives had.
Thanks for replying, Rob.......My guess was your last sentence, too! Since (I'm guessing) Small and Burns took that idea, and gave it legs and sustainability, Jules had no recourse to "fight for his piece"! Kinda like Tune Tag.....as we've documented, a gal came to me with something she called "Baton." Loving alliteration as I do, I came up with Tune Tag, and made it a weekly thing!
BTW, I'd love to have you do a guest spot, if you're game! Just DM me, and I'll give you all the deets; plus, feel free to check out a couple eps on the site, too! Thanks again!
great article. you make a lot of strong points. and i totally miss mtv unplugged lol. you are right about nostalgia though; there is a whole nostalgia circuit now where bands are doing 10 year album anniversary tours where they play an entire album start to finish. Also, mtv tried to re-do the unplugged magic. i believe they only tried one time though, it was with the band Unwritten Law, and it was a one-off live album with an accompanying video- It was called from Music In High Places - Unwritten Law - its from 2002 and it rips. It's probably one of my favorite Unwritten Law albums. https://open.spotify.com/album/1U6lBPiP02vU6UyY6wNZmI?si=H75nf_CdRRWQ5Ntu9KnFRQ
Hey Rob, great article. As a fellow member of Gen X, I was there when MTV was born and slowly watched it die. Growing up in the Midwest, it was our connection to the music scene. Like payphones and other uniquely 80s things, it's difficult to explain to a kid today what it was like to walk into school and have everyone talking about that Pearl Jam performance. They say you can never go back but I'm wearing a Headbanger's Ball shirt right now so, maybe we can visit... if only in our hearts and minds.
Thanks, Flack! We really were lucky when it came to how we consumed music and entertainment. That doesn't mean other generations didn't (or don't) experience great art but we were the last of the analog age and the first to be thrown into the digital world. It was a monoculture so we all shared the experience, and to your point, allowed us to discuss it in real time. It's up to us, those who came of age from the mid-80s through the mid-90s, to keep it all alive!
There's probably an argument to be made regarding being fed content like we were vs. today where people have access to literally the world's history of music, but have to find it. No way would any of us know Kajagoogoo or Flock of Seagulls if MTV hadn't fed it to us in constant rotation (and there's a second discussion there as to whether or not they should have!) but in a world where there are 11 million artists on Spotify... we just don't have those shared experiences anymore. I remember going to school the day after Thriller debuted and talking about it to my bus driver. Just doesn't happen anymore.
Great essay! I wish they’d create a streaming channel of 24 hours of Unplugged and VH1 Storytellers broken up with periodic episodes of Win Ben Stein’s Money.
The only other Unplugged I would add as a must see was Seal. I just picked up the r3crnt pressing of that on vinyl. Killer!
Thank you! Yeah, if they streamed them on a regular basis it would probably do very well! If the Clapton showing is successful maybe they will start showing others soon enough.
Can we add Remote Control and Austin Stories to the mix?
I never watched Austin Stories but absolutely Remote Control!
Amazing! I literally received a copy of Pearl Jam Unplugged on vinyl in the post today. Those three concerts you mention were amazing at the time but having rediscovered them 30 plus years later they have lost nothing in their impact. Sadly I don’t think we’ll see anything like this again.
You’re not going to get an argument from me! Watching and listening to music in that setting, particularly from bands you already love, is very hard to beat as far as I’m concerned.
I’m doubtful that we will see an era like that again but maybe we get surprised somewhere down the line. If we don’t, at least we have the memories and the records/videos from that unbelievable era to carry us along.
Missing also
I was an Unplugged devotee from the start. I remember Elton's appearance, which was completely solo, where he said something to the effect of, "Welcome to MTV Unplugged, the show where poseurs dare not appear."
There were magical moments (Clapton's "Circus Left Town," which was left off the initial CD release, was heart-wrenching; 10,000 Maniacs; Arrested Development; Nirvana; the Black Crowes with an early version of what became "Sting Me" called "You're Wrong;" Stevie Ray Vaughan; Dylan's "John Brown;" etc) and not-so-magical (Damn Yankees; Poison; KISS) and rebellious moments (Springsteen "going electric" a la Dylan instead of sticking to format in '92). Man, I miss that show.
Great piece, and thanks for the trip down memory lane.
I remember some of these as well, thanks for shaking them loose from my memory.
Music is at its purest form when it’s stripped down in this way…Elton John was absolutely right!
The Unplugged shows were such anticipated events. I've never bought one of the CDs, though, because I need the video, as well. Maybe I need to change that.
I can understand needing the video, I was the same way. Hearing Nirvana's Unplugged in a car, though, changed my mind back in the day. Now, due to the ease of streaming, having the Unplugged sessions available anywhere is a real gift!
All right, you convinced me. I still play CDs in my car. Nirvava U plugged will join the stack.
That was an awesome series. Caught Nirvana and from what I’ve read 10000 maniacs was Natalie’s gift to the band before departing on her solo career. Live was also a good one and what I heard they made Ed’s parents sit in the back so the younger folks would be seen on film. Went and looked and I’m surprised at how many artists made an unplugged concert. Guess I was busy flying around the world playing Army in those decades but what an awesome show and concept.
I've heard the same about why 10,000 Maniacs did their set. I should research it because if true, it's a great story. As for Live's performance, it was one of the best as far as I'm concerned. It wasn't as popular as the others for some reason and I almost never hear anyone mention that show when discussing the Unplugged series so thanks for bringing it up. You're right about the band's parents being moved as well, Ed mentioned it during the taping and they kept the comment in on the final edit.
I loved this show!! And divas live. Or was that VH1?
I think Divas Live was towards the end of the 90s, I don't remember the exact year but it was definiately a VH1 show.
Rob.....Where do you think Jules Shear's credit lies in the show's creation? As he said on reddit a decade ago (and, I've read in many other places for years), Jules wrote: "I came up with the concept for MTV Unplugged when trying to promote my own acoustic record." Has history forgotten his role in the show's inception/creation, or has Jules over-blown his influence?
I notice that the show's Wiki page only mentions Small and Burns as co-creators, and I know Jules hosted the first baker's dozen of shows, but have you any thoughts about his "actual" contributions?
I've been wanting to write about Jules' singer/songwriter/recording career, and I'd be curious to get your thoughts on how history, generally, has remembered Jules' role in the show's creation, if it has at all! Thanks!
It’s a great question. As with many creative endeavors, the truth about who did what and when is usually a bit murky. I’ve been in studios where the idea for a song started with one person and someone else would receive the bulk of the credit so I could see how it might happen with television shows as well.
I honestly do not know much about Shear’s involvement other than being a host. I think it’s a very interesting story though. My gut tells me he was probably slighted a bit because musicians, especially then, didn’t have the power that music executives had.
Thanks for replying, Rob.......My guess was your last sentence, too! Since (I'm guessing) Small and Burns took that idea, and gave it legs and sustainability, Jules had no recourse to "fight for his piece"! Kinda like Tune Tag.....as we've documented, a gal came to me with something she called "Baton." Loving alliteration as I do, I came up with Tune Tag, and made it a weekly thing!
BTW, I'd love to have you do a guest spot, if you're game! Just DM me, and I'll give you all the deets; plus, feel free to check out a couple eps on the site, too! Thanks again!
The Nirvana unplugged set is incredible. Their version of man who sold the world is sublime
I agree both Nirvana and Alice In Chains were the best. Regarding Headbanger’s Ball, at least we can catch the reruns on AXS.
great article. you make a lot of strong points. and i totally miss mtv unplugged lol. you are right about nostalgia though; there is a whole nostalgia circuit now where bands are doing 10 year album anniversary tours where they play an entire album start to finish. Also, mtv tried to re-do the unplugged magic. i believe they only tried one time though, it was with the band Unwritten Law, and it was a one-off live album with an accompanying video- It was called from Music In High Places - Unwritten Law - its from 2002 and it rips. It's probably one of my favorite Unwritten Law albums. https://open.spotify.com/album/1U6lBPiP02vU6UyY6wNZmI?si=H75nf_CdRRWQ5Ntu9KnFRQ
I only saw part of the SRV one once. It was great. Aerosmith was awesome, only saw it once. The KISS one was terrific!