The 15 Most Memorable MTV Unplugged Performances

Perhaps one of Unplugged's most consistently intriguing aspects was that it so often inspired artists to step out of the confines of expectation. Nothing about Nine Inch Nails' 1994 megahit "Closer" screams "funky," but in Maxwell's hands the lockstep S&M anthem becomes a loose, funky jam. It seems an almost impossible re-imagining on paper, but Maxwell and his band sell it, playfully manipulating the original sound and lyrics to craft a piece capable of standing on its own, wholly apart from the original.

In a career of powerful, often soaring songs, perhaps none climbs as high as Alicia Keys' monument to the importance of love, "If I Ain't Got You." Effectively arranged to feature Keys on her piano backed only by a chorus of four and occasional percussive flourishes, the song's lyrics sit front and center, perhaps a bit earnest but made heartfelt by the singer's powerful performance. It's the pause prior to the first chorus, however, that reveals the subtle force of Keys' live rendition. It's a slight, breathy break before she digs deep down and pulls out that invincibly soulful hook as if from thin air, a reminder that a sometimes the little quirks are even more affecting than radical renovations.

After ABBA, Swedish pop doesn't get much bigger than the power ballad that is "Must Have Been Love." Roxette became the first band to take the MTV Unplugged series to Scandinavia with their set in Stockholm in '93, and even without the electricity, their biggest hit translated as the kind of song that could rock a stadium. The original version has synthetic stylings that didn't age so gracefully, but this acoustic version, even in its over-the-top dramaticism, is timeless.

When Alice in Chains took the stage for their episode of Unplugged on April 10, 1996, it marked their first live performance in three years, though the band had released a popular eponymous album the year prior. The set was marked largely by Alice's highest charting material, as a subdued Layne Staley sat side beside with guitarist Jerry Cantrell. Unsurprisingly, one of the most effective songs from the set is also one of the bands most familiar. With eyes closed or low, Staley imbued "Would?" with every ounce of anguish that his inimitable voice could muster, sounding as good as any recording and as combustible as ever. A fittingly visceral send off of sorts for a band that would go into a tacit hiatus at the end of 1996.

Almost exactly a year after the release of her stellar debut Tidal, ever-entertaining iconoclast-on-the-rise Fiona Apple took the MTV Unplugged stage to run through her much-praised original material. Dotted amidst cuts from Tidal, the young singer dove into a cover of Jimi Hendrix's "Angel." Introduced with Apple's trademark honesty ("If you're a fan of Jimi Hendrix, you're either gonna really like me, or really really not like me at the end of this."), the singer's balladic take is predictably pained and beautiful, replacing the original's swirling guitar and stomping drums for a more delicate, plodding piano arrangement. It's an effective recasting that sounds at home next to anything else in Apple's catalog, an effective class in how to own a cover of a song.

The cool thing about MTV’s Unplugged, is that for a channel that targets the 18-25 year old demographic, the show attracted artists of all generations. One of the best examples of this is Paul McCartney’s 1991 Unplugged appearance. The legendary rocker played an hour and a half of his catalogue, but one of his most memorable performances of the show was when he played his 1970 hit “Every Night.” Equal parts moving and rock n’ roll, in a way only McCartney can do, the rendition showcased how iconic he truly is.

Despite Mariah Carey’s commercial success in the beginning of her career, there were still many who doubted that the singer was much more than a studio artist. In an attempt to dispel these allegations and prove that she was more than just a manufactured musician, Mariah was booked on MTV’s Unplugged in 1992. What resulted was a performance so strong; it was released to the public as an EP and went on to become one of her best selling records to date. The standout of her appearance was her version of the Jackson 5’s classic “I’ll Be There.”

Stripped of the trademark maximalist production that typifies Florence + the Machine's recorded output, Florence Welch's stunning voices cuts through in all its bright, operatic glory--particularly when given excellent material to wrap itself around. With Kanye West watching from the front row, Florence performed a beautiful, stripped down cover of Otis Redding's "Try A Little Tenderness," bringing a delicateness and theatricality to a song that, in its original form, would provide the stomping sample for Ye and Jay-Z's "Otis." "Try A Little Tenderness" points to the soul always beneath the surface of Florence's typically baroque work, an excellent reminder of her range.

After releasing her classic solo debut The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, the multitalented Ms. Hill largely receded from the spotlight, spurring all sorts of rumors and occasionally ugly speculation about her motivation and mental stability. In 2002, her meteoric ascent four years in her past, Lauryn re-emerged on MTV's Unplugged, providing a raw and divisive performance. Though the performance featured several emotional peaks, the arresting "Mystery of Iniquity" is perhaps its most memorable moment, a reminder of her spectacularly sharp rapping and the gorgeous grit of her voice, still apparent even as it quavered a bit. And, of course, a portion of the song's refrain would be immortalized in one of Kanye West's earliest hits, "All Falls Down."

It’s hard to imagine the early 90s music scene without R.E.M’s smash hit “Losing My Religion” immediately coming to mind. Released in early 1991, the track spent the better part of the year dominating airwaves and topping charts, and in the process, began to define the sound of a new breed of alternative rock. A legacy that is only further cemented with their MTV Unplugged performance, where they put on a haunting rendition of the track. The stripped down setting provided the right platform to show that the “Losing My Religion” was more than just a popular song at the time; it embodied the feel of an entire generation.

Few are more equipped for an entire set holding an acoustic guitar, but it actually took Neil Young two tries. During the first go at MTV Unplugged, the unsatisfied Neil walked off stage and into the NYC streets before returning, but he eventually decided to scrap the entire taping and do it over. Two months later in Los Angeles, he tried it again. According to first-hand accounts, Neil still didn't seem too happy with his Unplugged set and had a couple do-overs before he finally decided it was alright, but if you watch the final product, you wouldn't know it. Moments like "Needle and the Damage Done" make it seem like this acoustic format was made specifically for Neil.

In the past few years--perhaps even dating back to his Fade to Black concert--Jay-Z has developed a deserved reputation as one of hip-hop's greatest showmen. Perhaps his greatest achievement in live performance, however, came well before he sold out a residency at his Brooklyn palace, the Barclays Center. A year after releasing his seminal album The Blueprint, Jay-Z took the stage of MTV's Unplugged with the legendary Roots crew and singer Jaguar Wright in tow. Though hip-hop's finest live band breathed new life into Jay classics like "The Takeover" and "Hard Knock Life," the Roots and Wright the sampled soul of Kanye West's original Bobby "Blue" Bland-sampling beat on "Heart of the City" to new heights. Accenting Jay's bittersweet nostalgia with a roiling performance--when Jay says "take 'em to church" and Jaguar Wright belts, try not to feel it--an a touch of their typical creativity (the second verse features a seamless interpolation of Smif N' Wessun's "Sound Bwoy Buriell"), the Roots helped produce a cover that stands firmly on its own two feet.

With fiery 1991 single "Mama Said Knock You Out," LL Cool J announced his ferocious return to form (or, as he famously put it, "don't call it a comeback/I been here for years"). Though the single and its iconic video would have been more than enough to cement the rap pioneer's second coming, it was his raucous, shirtless performance on "Unplugged" that elevated the song to greater heights, creating a wider cultural moment out of what might otherwise have lived largely within the confines of hip-hop lore. Beginning with that famous opening line repeated as a call to action to his backing band, "Mama Said Knock You Out" is a five minute explosion and perhaps the pinnacle of Cool J's career.

Over its years, MTV Unplugged has had a way of revealing often hidden power within familiar songs. Eric Clapton's signature song "Layla" provides a perfect example. Trading the sweltering, electric-guitar driven burn of the original for a laidback, swung groove, Clapton transforms one of his classics into something breezier and bluesier, shifting its weight from raw, rippling energy to something almost coy, perhaps a sly nod to the mellowing of age that separated the Clapton of 1992 from the Clapton of 1971.

Ever the ones to buck trends, Nirvana decided to forego much of their famous material in favor of lesser known material and covers when they took the stage for MTV's Unplugged in 1993. Chief among the latter is the band's performance of "The Man Who Sold the World." Equal parts scorching and melancholy, Nirvana's take on Bowie's song remains remarkably true to the source material, faithful to a favorite while imbued with enough of the band's sound and Cobain's passionate rasp to afford at least partial ownership of the song to its new performers. The show first aired on December 14, 1993, but was played constantly throughout 1994 in the wake of Cobain's untimely death, giving added resonance to the already striking performance.