Their sawing strings on ‘Takeover’ are no substitute for the magisterial thump of the original track’s Doors sample, while ‘Izzo (HOVA)’ suffers from interminable doodling over which Jay-Z, tongue firmly in cheek, declares ‘Welcome to my poetry reading’. Call it nickpicking, but since when were the Hammond organ and Fender Rhodes piano acoustic instruments? And the band in question, conscious hip hoppers The Roots, smooth over the jagged edges of Jay’s most biting moments with overly slick muso efficiency. For a start, it’s about as unplugged as Blackpool illuminations. But ‘Unplugged’ goes too far in the other direction. It’s a good idea that goes way beyond the ancient (and usually disappointing) live rap template of two turntables and a microphone. Why not, some bright spark at MTV must have suggested, recreate those tracks with a live band instead of samples? But last year (well, virtually last month)’s ‘The Blueprint’ saw Jay-Z rapping over full-on 70s soul, to magnificently emotional effect.

Jigga‘s third and fourth albums had been beamed from the computers of producers like Timbaland, Swizz Beats and the Neptunes packed with state-of-the-art digital beats which Jay rode like a Playstation champion. The show wraps up with “All Apologies” and a cover of Lead Belly’s “In The Pines,” which they renamed “Where Did You Sleep Last Night.” It’s hard to think of a more powerful double shot from any live concert in the entire 1990s, or perhaps even the entire history of rock & roll.Just a year ago, the idea of Jay-Z making an acoustic LP would have had Biggie Smalls turning in his urns.

Near the beginning, Kurt delivered a chilling rendition of “Come as You Are,” repeating the line “no, I don’t have a gun” through gritted teeth, a moment that became very hard to watch in light of later events. Joined by touring guitarist Pat Smear and cellist Lori Goldston, the group skipped over nearly all of their obvious hits in favor of covers like David Bowie’s “The Man Who Sold the World,” The Vaselines’ “Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam” and no less than three Meat Puppets songs, where they were joined by bandleaders Cris and Curt Kirkwood themselves. The vibe was dark before they even walked on since Kurt Cobain insisted that the stage look like a funeral, complete with lilies and black candles. But in many ways, the show felt like their final statement to the world. Just one week after it wrapped they’d resume the American leg of the In Utero tour and then head to Europe early the following year for two months of additional shows. Putting this all out there for the public to see was an amazing act of courage and the most unique, unpolished Unplugged ever to see the light of day. It’s an artist battling a shredded throat, the crushing weight of industry expectations and her own fragility. “A lesser artist would’ve been shot and thrown out the window.” But 16 years later, things feel a little different, especially since there was no follow-up of any sort. “A lesser artist, it would’ve never been released,” an industry insider said. “I saw it with a roomful of professionals, and someone said, ‘I feel like jumpin’ out a window.'” But with her label desperate for new Lauryn Hill music of any sort, they released it as a double album. “Anyone with ears can hear there are only three chords being played on every song,” an anonymous industry executive told Rolling Stone in 2003. She had a ton of new songs, but was just learning to play guitar and clearly was in no position to be presenting them to the public. It had been three long years since Lauryn Hill released her debut LP The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill when she stepped onto the MTV Unplugged stage. Also, even Bruce Springsteen’s most die-hard fans probably feel that Plugged wasn’t exactly his finest moment. Before commenters go insane, we are excluding performances by the groups like the Eagles and Page & Plant that merely used the Unplugged name, or variations of it, for their concert specials. The new edition of the show kicked off September 2017 with Shawn Mendes to celebrate, here’s a chronological look at the 15 best Unplugged episodes of years past. It gave a new lease on life to veteran artists like Eric Clapton and Rod Stewart and offered newer groups like Pearl Jam and Nirvana a chance to strip their music back down to its essence and offer their fans some fun surprises.

For those not around in the Nineties, that’s the show where big musical acts played acoustic renditions of their songs. It also means they’re bringing back Unplugged. MTV’s latest reinvention scheme involved getting back to their roots, which means recreating their iconic Times Square studio for a revival of Total Request Live.

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