Nirvana – MTV Unplugged In New York

The show was directed by Beth McCarthy and aired on the cable television network MTV on December 16, 1993. In a break with MTV Unplugged tradition, Nirvana played mainly lesser-known material and covers of songs by the Vaselines, David Bowie, Lead Belly and Meat Puppets. Unlike prior MTV Unplugged performances, which were entirely acoustic, Nirvana used electric amplification and guitar effects during the set. They were joined by rhythm guitarist Pat Smear and cellist Lori Goldston, alongside Meat Puppets members Cris and Curt Kirkwood for some songs.

MTV Unplugged was released after plans to release the performance as part of a live double-album compilation titled Verse Chorus Verse were abandoned. It was the first Nirvana release after lead singer/guitarist Kurt Cobain's death seven months earlier. It debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 and was certified 8x platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) in 2020.[1] It won the Best Alternative Music Performance at the 1996 Grammy Awards, making it Nirvana's only Grammy Award win, and has since been ranked one of the greatest live albums of all time. The performance was released as a DVD in 2007.