3 Unplugged Grunge Songs That Rival the Original Versions

When grunge broke in 1991, bands emerged from Seattle with a blend of punk, classic rock, and heavy metal—three blistering genres. Then Nirvana, Pearl Jam, and Alice In Chains recorded acoustic versions of their songs for MTV Unplugged. Though the culture-shifting power of the originals is tough to beat, the unplugged readings occasionally rival their noisy relatives.

“All Apologies” by Nirvana

Reacting to both the success and the slick production of Nevermind, Nirvana recorded In Utero with Steve Albini. Albini captured the band with little production frills, which caused friction with the record label. The band agreed to remix the intended radio singles, and one of them, “All Apologies”, became Nirvana’s final single before Kurt Cobain’s suicide in 1994. But the unplugged version, with its cycling guitar riff, light percussion, bass, and cello, allows space for Cobain’s gorgeous melody.

All in all is all we are.

“Black” by Pearl Jam

Without the studio reverb and distorted guitars, Pearl Jam’s visceral ballad feels more like a folk song. Perhaps bringing the band closer to their hero, the Godfather of Grunge, Neil Young. Stone Gossard’s opening chords are no less compelling on acoustic guitar, and Eddie Vedder delivers his breakup lament like he’s reading pages from a journal. He improvises on the original melody and shows why every singer who attempted to mimic his baritone missed nearly everything that makes him great. “We belong together,” Vedder insists, bringing the song to an emotional close.

“Rooster” by Alice In Chains

In one of the band’s biggest hits, guitarist Jerry Cantrell documents his father’s experience fighting for the U.S. Army in the Vietnam War. Here, the band transforms the survival tune into something like a campfire song. When Alice In Chains recorded their set for MTV Unplugged, it revealed their country and blues roots. And minus the heavy metal guitars, you can hear the taut vocal harmonies of Layne Staley and Cantrell. It also gives us a chance to hear how “Rooster” may have sounded in its infancy at Chris Cornell’s Seattle home, where Cantrell once lived.

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