"...Dimitri...He talks to me...'.."The Ghost of Greece..".
"..That's One Happy Fuckin Ghost.."
“..That came up on the Pillow Case...This is for the Greek, With Our Apologies.....”
Out of curiosity, does anyone rank the MTV performance as their favorite "unplugged" from Pearl Jam's career? I personally would take Benaroya Hall, Mansfield III, and all seven Bridge School appearances (92, 94, 96, 99, 01, 06, 10) over the MTV Unplugged any day of the week. In light of those other "unplugged" shows, the MTV performance seems one dimensional and lacking a lot of the elements that ultimately make Pearl Jam so engaging in a setting like that.
I can understand if someone says they prefer the MTV appearance for nostalgic or emotional reasons, but I'm genuinely curious as to whether or not anyone truly thinks it's their finest "unplugged" hour, and if so, why?
Great point...Benaroya proves that with a deeper catalog, a far more complete drummer and more years playing together that the MTV comparisons between Dave Grohl's old backup band and Pearl Jam is not an apples-to-apples comparison.
Having said that, I would rank Nirvana's MTV performance as my favorite of all their albums. I never really "got" Nirvana...always thought Bleach was a better album than Nevermind, and with the exception of the MTV Unplugged album, I cannot listen to any of their albums from start to finish. That's not saying their unplugged album isn't good - quite the contrary, I find it brilliant - rather, I just don't think their studio albums are anywhere as complete (or good) as any of Pearl Jam's albums.
Would agree with a couple other cats on here by saying the AIC Unplugged was even better than Nirvana. On any given day I'd pick Pearl Jam, but the next I'd pick Nirvana...both brilliant for different reasons.
Out of curiosity, does anyone rank the MTV performance as their favorite "unplugged" from Pearl Jam's career? I personally would take Benaroya Hall, Mansfield III, and all seven Bridge School appearances (92, 94, 96, 99, 01, 06, 10) over the MTV Unplugged any day of the week. In light of those other "unplugged" shows, the MTV performance seems one dimensional and lacking a lot of the elements that ultimately make Pearl Jam so engaging in a setting like that.
I can understand if someone says they prefer the MTV appearance for nostalgic or emotional reasons, but I'm genuinely curious as to whether or not anyone truly thinks it's their finest "unplugged" hour, and if so, why?
Great point...Benaroya proves that with a deeper catalog, a far more complete drummer and more years playing together that the MTV comparisons between Dave Grohl's old backup band and Pearl Jam is not an apples-to-apples comparison.
Having said that, I would rank Nirvana's MTV performance as my favorite of all their albums. I never really "got" Nirvana...always thought Bleach was a better album than Nevermind, and with the exception of the MTV Unplugged album, I cannot listen to any of their albums from start to finish. That's not saying their unplugged album isn't good - quite the contrary, I find it brilliant - rather, I just don't think their studio albums are anywhere as complete (or good) as any of Pearl Jam's albums.
Would agree with a couple other cats on here by saying the AIC Unplugged was even better than Nirvana. On any given day I'd pick Pearl Jam, but the next I'd pick Nirvana...both brilliant for different reasons.
+1
6/27/98 - East Troy, WI
6/29/06 - Milwaukee, WI
9/25/11 - Vancouver, BC
11/4/12 - (Eddie Vedder) Phoenix, AZ
11/1/13 - New Orleans, LA
11/19/13 - Phoenix, AZ
11/21/13 - San Diego, CA
10/12/14 - Austin, TX
10/22/14 - Denver, CO
8/22/16 - Chicago, IL (Wrigley 2)
PJ's much better in my opinion. I'd put STP's unplugged up there above Nirvana's as well. Wish that one would have been released, anyone have a copy?
I actually have the STP Unplugged on VHS somewhere. Weiland was in his prime with the bleached hair and rocking chair
My all-time favorite is AIC. That whole show was unreal, raw, and emotional. From the first performance of Nutshell to the end, Layne was on another level. I frequently listen to that CD. Nirvana's was great too, I just have never really dug Nirvana. So for me:
the show is great for so many reasons. they sound amazing, their setlist is perfect, the covers they did were brilliant... need i go on? it's also great on a more somber level, too, because i've always considered this nirvana's farewell performance. yes i'm aware that they played dozens of shows after this lol but it just seems like everything went right that night.
the show is great for so many reasons. they sound amazing, their setlist is perfect, the covers they did were brilliant... need i go on? it's also great on a more somber level, too, because i've always considered this nirvana's farewell performance. yes i'm aware that they played dozens of shows after this lol but it just seems like everything went right that night.
eric clapton owns the #2 spot : )
I was skimming this thread to see if anyone mentioned Clapton's performance. This performance was a big deal for the Unplugged fanchise.
It wasn't awful, but the cymbals, oh, the cymbals....
Edit: Someone mentioned Clapton. I used to love it, then I heard all the original songs and I realised what a shit performance it really was. Clapton is magical when he plays the *electric* guitar. Saw him earlier this year, still magical with that guitar.
Seattle 2009-09-21
Alpine Valley 2011-09-03, 2011-09-04
It wasn't awful, but the cymbals, oh, the cymbals....
Edit: Someone mentioned Clapton. I used to love it, then I heard all the original songs and I realised what a shit performance it really was. Clapton is magical when he plays the *electric* guitar. Saw him earlier this year, still magical with that guitar.
i completely agree with you. it's a good show, but far from great. i posted in a thread a while back about how they didn't sound good that night and someone said that mike and stone were playing guitars that they had never used before.. not sure if it's true but it would make sense. another problem is that they only had ten under their belt so that limited the amount of songs they could play. not to mention ten is such an electric guitar driven album so that causes another problem. i always wished that they had waited until vitalogy to do unplugged.
what songs are you referring to on the clapton unplugged? please don't say layla because that sounds so good on acoustic lol
My all-time favorite is AIC. That whole show was unreal, raw, and emotional. From the first performance of Nutshell to the end, Layne was on another level. I frequently listen to that CD. Nirvana's was great too, I just have never really dug Nirvana. So for me:
I would without doubt rate the AIC unplugged above all others.
That record is sublime and gives me the shivers constantly.
Nirvana Unplugged is amazing, a few years ago I sold loads of albums and got rid of all my Nirvana cds apart from Unplugged. The songs they chose were great - MTV were obviously wanting Teen Spirit - and they said no and through in a bunch of covers too boot. The Meat Puppets section was great. And 'Where Did You Sleep Last Night'.......words cannot sum up this performance.
In terms of PJ acoustic, as people have said the Bridge School performances and Benaroya Hall are much better shows than MTV Unplugged.
2000: Manchester
2006: Dublin; Leeds; Arnhem
2007: London
2009: Manchester
2012: Manchester I & II : EV Manchester : Soundgarden Shepherds Bush
2013: Brad Manchester : Soundgarden Manchester
2014: Amsterdam I & II; Berlin; Leeds; Milton Keynes 2018: Berlin; London II; Boston II
what songs are you referring to on the clapton unplugged? please don't say layla because that sounds so good on acoustic lol
I thought Layla was the biggest offender... you just have to listen to his extended solos live to understand how poor the Unplugged really was. He comes across as a acoustic folk rocker, not the blues god that he is.
Seattle 2009-09-21
Alpine Valley 2011-09-03, 2011-09-04
"...Dimitri...He talks to me...'.."The Ghost of Greece..".
"..That's One Happy Fuckin Ghost.."
“..That came up on the Pillow Case...This is for the Greek, With Our Apologies.....”
Pearl Jam all the way. Both are amazing, classic performances but I think it's easy to get distracted and hunger for more Nirvana since Kurt is no longer here.
"If you're not confused, you're not paying attention."
And still... I think that AiC's, Nirvanas and Neil Youngs are better. Guess pearl Jam didn't really know what kind of a band they were and played TEN sort of and didn't really use the potential of the accoustic setting (my opinion). It's not at all as memorable as the haunting perfect atmospheric quality of AiC, Nirvanas or Neil Youngs.
No matter how good Black is.
"Mostly I think that people react sensitively because they know you’ve got a point"
And still... I think that AiC's, Nirvanas and Neil Youngs are better. Guess pearl Jam didn't really know what kind of a band they were and played TEN sort of and didn't really use the potential of the accoustic setting (my opinion). It's not at all as memorable as the haunting perfect atmospheric quality of AiC, Nirvanas or Neil Youngs.
No matter how good Black is.
sure..exactly this..you think..
pj was pure..at the beggining with only 1 record out..with no candles and courtines..
"...Dimitri...He talks to me...'.."The Ghost of Greece..".
"..That's One Happy Fuckin Ghost.."
“..That came up on the Pillow Case...This is for the Greek, With Our Apologies.....”
up here in my tree in Vienna 2006: Vienna 2009: Berlin 2010: London ~ Berlin 2012: Amsterdam 1+2 ~ Werchter ~ Arras ~ Berlin 1+2 2014: Milano ~ Trieste ~ Vienna ~ Berlin 2018: Padova ~ Rome 2022: Budapest ~ Vienna EV London/Hammersmith 2012 EV Berlin/Zitadelle 2017
Nirvana's is really good, but I think they lean too hard on the covers. It's cool that they played a bunch of lesser known songs, but they surely could've done more of their own material.
PJ's is solid, but they didn't really do anything different with their tunes. The way they played the songs sounded more like an acoustic rehearsal for an electric show, if you know what I mean. I imagine people's minds would've been just as blown had they done a full electric show, where alot of other Unplugged's really benefit from the Unplugged aspect. I think there were just so many people that wanted a rare glimpse of live PJ, and Unplugged was their first big chance.
Nirvana shot their Unplugged performance in December 1993, two years after Nevermind came out and within the year after In Utero came out... they had already been a band for 5 years and had 3 albums...
Alice In Chains shot their performance in April 1996, after a two-year hiatus of touring... this came four years after Dirt, and they had already been a band for 9 years and had 3 albums...
Pearl Jam shot their performance in March 1992, six months after Ten was released and before Vs. was even recorded... they had only been a band for a year and had only 1 album...
All that said, I prefer PJ over Nirvana and AIC as a band but I prefer Nirvana and AIC over PJ for their Unplugged show
37 PJ Shows, 3 EV Shows, 1134 Total Songs, 24 Different Openers, 9 Different Closers, 252 Unique Songs (never enough)
Nirvana just by a hair. They played more songs and they had been together longer.
If PJ did unplugged in 94 with more material to play from I think they would have the win.
I wouldn't know which one is better and on what grounds, but I like the Nirvana better not only because it has twice as much songs, but for the covers as well, I love the Vaselines and the Bowie cover, and the Meat Puppets songs as well, way better than some of the Nirvana songs there, however, my favourite is the Alice In Chains one...
... I am not in the business of being liked anymore ...
I was blown away by the R.E.M. and Neil Young performance on the new Bridge School collection. So amazing. I have a hard time remembering they are no longer a band. Still sad.
I was blown away by the R.E.M. and Neil Young performance on the new Bridge School collection. So amazing. I have a hard time remembering they are no longer a band. Still sad.
Man, I really need to check that collection out. Just the idea of Country Feedback with Neil Young gives me goosebumps...
Comments
I personally would add Oasis, Soul Asylum, LL Cool J, The Cure, Duran Duran, Arrested Development, and Maxwell to this list as well.
"..That's One Happy Fuckin Ghost.."
“..That came up on the Pillow Case...This is for the Greek, With Our Apologies.....”
Having said that, I would rank Nirvana's MTV performance as my favorite of all their albums. I never really "got" Nirvana...always thought Bleach was a better album than Nevermind, and with the exception of the MTV Unplugged album, I cannot listen to any of their albums from start to finish. That's not saying their unplugged album isn't good - quite the contrary, I find it brilliant - rather, I just don't think their studio albums are anywhere as complete (or good) as any of Pearl Jam's albums.
Would agree with a couple other cats on here by saying the AIC Unplugged was even better than Nirvana. On any given day I'd pick Pearl Jam, but the next I'd pick Nirvana...both brilliant for different reasons.
+1
6/29/06 - Milwaukee, WI
9/25/11 - Vancouver, BC
11/4/12 - (Eddie Vedder) Phoenix, AZ
11/1/13 - New Orleans, LA
11/19/13 - Phoenix, AZ
11/21/13 - San Diego, CA
10/12/14 - Austin, TX
10/22/14 - Denver, CO
8/22/16 - Chicago, IL (Wrigley 2)
I actually have the STP Unplugged on VHS somewhere. Weiland was in his prime with the bleached hair and rocking chair
My all-time favorite is AIC. That whole show was unreal, raw, and emotional. From the first performance of Nutshell to the end, Layne was on another level. I frequently listen to that CD. Nirvana's was great too, I just have never really dug Nirvana. So for me:
1. AIC
2.PJ
3. Nirvana
nirvana had the best unplugged ever.
the show is great for so many reasons. they sound amazing, their setlist is perfect, the covers they did were brilliant... need i go on? it's also great on a more somber level, too, because i've always considered this nirvana's farewell performance. yes i'm aware that they played dozens of shows after this lol but it just seems like everything went right that night.
eric clapton owns the #2 spot : )
I was skimming this thread to see if anyone mentioned Clapton's performance. This performance was a big deal for the Unplugged fanchise.
http://forums.pearljam.com/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=172315
Nirvana: A+
Pearl Jam: B
It wasn't awful, but the cymbals, oh, the cymbals....
Edit: Someone mentioned Clapton. I used to love it, then I heard all the original songs and I realised what a shit performance it really was. Clapton is magical when he plays the *electric* guitar. Saw him earlier this year, still magical with that guitar.
Alpine Valley 2011-09-03, 2011-09-04
i completely agree with you. it's a good show, but far from great. i posted in a thread a while back about how they didn't sound good that night and someone said that mike and stone were playing guitars that they had never used before.. not sure if it's true but it would make sense. another problem is that they only had ten under their belt so that limited the amount of songs they could play. not to mention ten is such an electric guitar driven album so that causes another problem. i always wished that they had waited until vitalogy to do unplugged.
what songs are you referring to on the clapton unplugged? please don't say layla because that sounds so good on acoustic lol
I would without doubt rate the AIC unplugged above all others.
That record is sublime and gives me the shivers constantly.
2006 Jools Holland, London / Reading festival
2007 Wmbly London
2009 SBE London / O2 London
2012 MEN 1/ MEN 2 / Berlin 1 / Berlin 2 / EV LDN 1 / EV LDN 2
2013 NY 1/ NY 2 / Philly 1 / Philly 2
2014 AMS 1 / AMS 2 / Leeds / MK
2017 EV LDN 1 / EV LDN 2
2018 LDN 1 / BCN / LDN 2
2022 LDN 1 / LDN 2
as a side note i loved the LIVE one too, and REM
Nirvana Unplugged is amazing, a few years ago I sold loads of albums and got rid of all my Nirvana cds apart from Unplugged. The songs they chose were great - MTV were obviously wanting Teen Spirit - and they said no and through in a bunch of covers too boot. The Meat Puppets section was great. And 'Where Did You Sleep Last Night'.......words cannot sum up this performance.
In terms of PJ acoustic, as people have said the Bridge School performances and Benaroya Hall are much better shows than MTV Unplugged.
2006: Dublin; Leeds; Arnhem
2007: London
2009: Manchester
2012: Manchester I & II : EV Manchester : Soundgarden Shepherds Bush
2013: Brad Manchester : Soundgarden Manchester
2014: Amsterdam I & II; Berlin; Leeds; Milton Keynes
2018: Berlin; London II; Boston II
Bootleg Reviews: http://pjbootlegreviews.blogspot.com/
Alpine Valley 2011-09-03, 2011-09-04
yeah...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c6SyApdf_ic
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=da46tpono_M
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sw6t3kzI ... re=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=trdS4K7_ ... re=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mt5ard9m ... re=related
and FUCK YEAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ufQZVot2vD8
"..That's One Happy Fuckin Ghost.."
“..That came up on the Pillow Case...This is for the Greek, With Our Apologies.....”
"Rise above principal and do what's right."
And still... I think that AiC's, Nirvanas and Neil Youngs are better. Guess pearl Jam didn't really know what kind of a band they were and played TEN sort of and didn't really use the potential of the accoustic setting (my opinion). It's not at all as memorable as the haunting perfect atmospheric quality of AiC, Nirvanas or Neil Youngs.
No matter how good Black is.
pj was pure..at the beggining with only 1 record out..with no candles and courtines..
"..That's One Happy Fuckin Ghost.."
“..That came up on the Pillow Case...This is for the Greek, With Our Apologies.....”
2006: Vienna 2009: Berlin 2010: London ~ Berlin 2012: Amsterdam 1+2 ~ Werchter ~ Arras ~ Berlin 1+2
2014: Milano ~ Trieste ~ Vienna ~ Berlin 2018: Padova ~ Rome 2022: Budapest ~ Vienna
EV London/Hammersmith 2012
EV Berlin/Zitadelle 2017
Page and Plant's is up there too.
Nirvana's is really good, but I think they lean too hard on the covers. It's cool that they played a bunch of lesser known songs, but they surely could've done more of their own material.
PJ's is solid, but they didn't really do anything different with their tunes. The way they played the songs sounded more like an acoustic rehearsal for an electric show, if you know what I mean. I imagine people's minds would've been just as blown had they done a full electric show, where alot of other Unplugged's really benefit from the Unplugged aspect. I think there were just so many people that wanted a rare glimpse of live PJ, and Unplugged was their first big chance.
Alice In Chains shot their performance in April 1996, after a two-year hiatus of touring... this came four years after Dirt, and they had already been a band for 9 years and had 3 albums...
Pearl Jam shot their performance in March 1992, six months after Ten was released and before Vs. was even recorded... they had only been a band for a year and had only 1 album...
All that said, I prefer PJ over Nirvana and AIC as a band but I prefer Nirvana and AIC over PJ for their Unplugged show
If PJ did unplugged in 94 with more material to play from I think they would have the win.
Oh man, how did I forget the REM one? So good...
I was blown away by the R.E.M. and Neil Young performance on the new Bridge School collection. So amazing. I have a hard time remembering they are no longer a band. Still sad.
"...I changed by not changing at all..."
Man, I really need to check that collection out. Just the idea of Country Feedback with Neil Young gives me goosebumps...