On November 18, 1993, Nirvana went to Sony Music Studios in New York to perform an unplugged gig for MTV. It was broadcast on TV and turned into a CD that came out after Kurt Cobain died. At first, MTV and the band’s label thought it was going to be a disaster because Nirvana insisted on playing some of the band’s more obscure stuff along with a couple of covers.
Kurt refused outright to do “Smells Like Teen Spirit,” which freaked everyone out. There were also concerns about Kurt’s health because he was going through withdrawal and vomiting blood. Only a standby supply of Valium kept things on the rails.
At the end of the day, though, it was a magnificent performance. Unplugged in New York is available in its full form on DVD and Blu-ray. If you’re a Nirvana fan, it’s definitely worth it.
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