Album · Live
MTV Unplugged in New York
MTV Unplugged in New York is Nirvana's first live album. It was recorded on 18 November 1993 at Sony Music Studios in Manhattan and released on 1 November 1994, almost seven months after Kurt Cobain's death. The band were joined by rhythm guitarist Pat Smear and cellist Lori Goldston, with Cris and Curt Kirkwood of the Meat Puppets sitting in for some songs.
It follows In Utero in the band's story, and it is not a run through the hits. Nirvana kept some electric amplification and effects, unusual for the series, and leaned on lesser-known songs and covers, including numbers by David Bowie, Lead Belly, the Meat Puppets and the Vaselines. It entered the US chart at number one and won the Grammy for Best Alternative Music Performance in 1996, the band's only Grammy.
MTV Unplugged in New York: tracklist, credits and charts
14 tracks · 53:56Tracklist
- 1About a GirlKurt Cobain3:38
- 2Come as You AreKurt Cobain4:14
- 3Jesus Doesn’t Want Me for a SunbeamEugene Kelly and Frances McKee4:37
- 4The Man Who Sold the WorldDavid Bowie4:21
- 5Pennyroyal TeaKurt Cobain3:40
- 6DumbKurt Cobain2:53
- 7PollyChanning, Cobain, Novoselic3:16
- 8On a PlainKurt Cobain3:45
- 9Something in the WayKurt Cobain4:02
- 10PlateauCurt Kirkwood3:38
- 11Oh MeCurt Kirkwood3:26
- 12Lake of FireCurt Kirkwood2:56
- 13All ApologiesKurt Cobain4:23
- 14Where Did You Sleep Last Night?Lead Belly and [traditional]5:06
- Produced by
- Scott Litt, Nirvana, Alex Coletti
- Recorded at
- Sony Music Studios
- Recorded
- November 1993
- Mixed by
- Scott Litt
- Label
- BMG Direct Marketing, Inc.
- Length
- 53:56
Line-up
- Kurt Cobain · guitar, lead vocals
- Dave Grohl · drums (drum set), background vocals, bass guitar
- Krist Novoselic · bass guitar, accordion
- Pat Smear · guitar
- Lori Goldston · cello
- Cris Kirkwood · acoustic guitar, background vocals · guest
- Curt Kirkwood · acoustic guitar · guest
Singles
- “About a Girl” · 24 October 1994
Peak chart positions
| Chart | Peak |
|---|---|
| UK Albums Chart · 1994–95 | 1 |
| US Billboard 200 · 1994–95 | 1 |
| Australian Albums (ARIA) · 1994–95 | 1 |
| Australian Alternative Albums (ARIA) · 1994–95 | 1 |
| Austrian Albums · 1994–95 | 1 |
| Belgian Albums (IFPI Belgium) · 1994–95 | 1 |
| Canadian Albums (RPM) · 1994–95 | 1 |
| French Albums (SNEP) · 1994–95 | 1 |
| Irish Albums (IFPI Ireland) · 1994–95 | 1 |
| New Zealand Albums · 1994–95 | 1 |
All 39 charts
| Portuguese Albums (AFP) · 1994–95 | 1 |
| Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE) · 1994–95 | 1 |
| UK Rock & Metal Albums · 1994–95 | 1 |
| US Catalog Albums · 2015 | 1 |
| US Top 100 Pop Albums (Cashbox) · 1994–95 | 1 |
| Dutch Albums · 1994–95 | 2 |
| European Top 100 Albums (Music & Media) · 1994–95 | 2 |
| South African Albums (SABC) · 1994–95 | 2 |
| Swedish Albums · 1994–95 | 2 |
| Belgian Albums (Flanders) · 1994–95 | 3 |
| Estonian Albums (Raadio 2) · 1994–95 | 3 |
| Finnish Albums (The Official Finnish Charts) · 1994–95 | 3 |
| Greek Albums (Billboard) · 2022 | 3 |
| Scottish Albums · 1994–95 | 3 |
| Swiss Albums · 1994–95 | 3 |
| Danish Albums (Hitlisten) · 1994–95 | 4 |
| Greek Albums (Pop & Rock) · 1994–95 | 4 |
| Belgian Albums (Wallonia) · 1994–95 | 6 |
| German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) · 1994–95 | 6 |
| Norwegian Albums · 1994–95 | 6 |
| Italian Albums (Musica e Dischi) · 1994–95 | 8 |
| Zimbabwean Albums · 1994–95 | 8 |
| Hungarian Albums · 1994–95 | 9 |
| Buenos Aires Albums (UPI) · 1994–95 | 10 |
| US Top Rock Albums · 2019 | 14 |
| Japanese Albums (Oricon) · 1994–95 | 20 |
| Ireland 3 · 2017 | 39 |
| Greek Albums (IFPI) · 2010 | 47 |
| Italian Albums (FIMI) · 2016 | 61 |
Certifications
| Region | Certification |
|---|---|
| Argentina · 2011 | 3× Platinum |
| Australia · 1996 | 5× Platinum |
| Austria · 1996 | 2× Platinum |
| Belgium · 2010 | 3× Platinum |
| Brazil · 1998 | Platinum |
| Canada · 2001 | 9× Platinum |
| Denmark · 2025 | 5× Platinum |
| Finland | Gold |
| France · 1997 | 2× Platinum |
| Germany · 2023 | Gold |
| Italy · 2018 | Platinum |
| Japan · 2000 | Platinum |
| Mexico | Gold |
| Netherlands · 1995 | Platinum |
| New Zealand · 2024 | 2× Platinum |
| Norway · 1995 | Platinum |
| Poland · 1997 | Platinum |
| Poland · 2022 | Platinum |
| Portugal · 2025 | Gold |
| Spain · 1995 | 2× Platinum |
| Sweden · 1994 | Platinum |
| Switzerland | 2× Platinum |
| United Kingdom · 2019 | 3× Platinum |
| United States · 2020 | 8× Platinum |
| Europe · 1996 | 2× Platinum |
Awards
- Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album · 1996
From MusicBrainz, Wikidata and Wikipedia. Only what the sources record is shown.
87.3
Popularity (0–100, vs the whole vault)
4.4k
ListenBrainz listeners
222k
Wikipedia views, last 12 months
388k
Deezer fans (all editions)
Released the same week
Also released on 1 November
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More on BMG Direct Marketing, Inc.
The label →
Releases and pressings
How we know the release date wikipedia + wikidata; also seen: 1994-10-31 (musicbrainz)
| Source | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|
| MusicBrainz | 31 October 1994 | |
| Wikipedia infobox | 1 November 1994 | |
| Wikidata | 1 November 1994 | |
| US release | 1 November 1994 | earliest US date |
| UK / Europe release | 31 October 1994 | earliest UK or European date |
45 editions
| Date | Country | Label | Barcode | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | US | DGC Records | 0208311114276 | other |
| — | US | DGC Records | 720642472729 | other |
| — | XE | Geffen | 0720642472712 | other |
| — | XE | Geffen | 720642472729 | other |
| 1994 | US | BMG Direct Marketing, Inc. | other | |
| 1994 | XE | Geffen | 720642472729 | other |
| 1994 | CA | DGC Records | 720642472729 | other |
| 1994 | ZA | BMG Records Africa | 720642472729 | other |
| 1994 | AU | Geffen | 720642472729 | other |
| 1994 | ES | Geffen | 720642472729 | other |
| 1994 | XE | Geffen | 720642472712 | other |
| 1994 | XE | Geffen | 720642472743 | other |
| 1994 | XE | Geffen | 720642472729 | other |
| 1994 | MX | Geffen | 720642472729 | other |
| 1994 | CA | DGC Records | 774991329302 | other |
| 31 October 1994 | XE | Geffen | 720642472729 | original |
| 31 October 1994 | GB | Geffen | 720642472729 | original |
| 31 October 1994 | XE | Geffen | 720642472729 | original |
| 1 November 1994 | US | DGC Records | 020831111423 | other |
| 1 November 1994 | US | DGC Records | 720642472729 | other |
| 1 November 1994 | US | DGC Records | other | |
| 1 November 1994 | US | DGC Records | 720642472712 | other |
| 2 November 1994 | JP | Geffen | 4988067017277 | other |
| 23 October 1996 | JP | Geffen | other | |
| 1999 | ZA | Geffen | 6001210152231 | other |
| 2005 | XW | DGC Records | 00720642472729 | other |
| 2007 | AR | DGC Records | 602517506305 | other |
| 20 November 2007 | US | Geffen | 602517506305 | other |
| 22 November 2007 | JP | Geffen | 4988005494573 | other |
| 3 December 2007 | ID | DGC Records | 602517506305 | other |
| 2008 | XE | Geffen | 720642472712 | other |
| 3 September 2008 | JP | Geffen | 4988005525352 | other |
| 2009 | US | Original Recordings Group | 892001002332 | other |
| 24 June 2009 | JP | Geffen | 4988005560865 | other |
| 4 November 2009 | JP | DGC Records | 4988005584434 | other |
| 2010 | XE | Geffen | 720642472729 | other |
| 5 October 2011 | JP | DGC Records | 4988005677068 | other |
| 2013 | US | DGC Records | 720642472712 | other |
| 2017 | XE | Geffen | 720642472712 | other |
| 1 November 2019 | US | DGC Records | 602577307348 | deluxe |
| 1 November 2019 | XW | Geffen | 00602508148736 | deluxe |
| 1 November 2019 | XW | Geffen | 00602508148743 | deluxe |
| 9 November 2019 | XW | Geffen | 00602435687742 | deluxe |
| 22 April 2020 | — | Geffen | 00602507155223 | deluxe |
| 8 May 2020 | XE | Geffen | 720642472712 | other |
Cover art sources
coverartarchive · upscaled: minor: best source 1413x1413, upscaled to 1500 (x1.06)
| Source | Size | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| coverartarchive ✓ | 1413×1413 | upscaled: minor: best source 1413x1413, upscaled to 1500 (x1.06) |
| itunes | 1418×1412 | upscaled |
| deezer | 1200×1200 | upscaled |
| fanarttv | 1000×1000 | upscaled |