MTV Unplugged (Alanis Morissette album)
MTV Unplugged is the first live album by Canadian singer-songwriter Alanis Morissette, released by Maverick Records in the United States on November 9, 1999 (see 1999 in music). It comprises songs performed by Morissette on the television program MTV Unplugged. Twelve tracks were included on the album, but Morissette performed several others, including "Baba", "Thank U" (both from 1998's Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie) and "Your House" (the hidden track on 1995's Jagged Little Pill), during her Unplugged concert. These were later released as B-sides on the "King of Pain" single release. The first single, "That I Would Be Good", was moderately successful, and two other tracks, "King of Pain" (a cover of the song by The Police) and "You Learn" were released as singles outside North America. As of March 2012, the album has sold 673,000 copies in the U.S.[5]
MTV Unplugged | ||||
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Live album by | ||||
Released | November 9, 1999 | |||
Recorded | September 18, 1999 MTV Unplugged at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, New York | |||
Genre | Acoustic rock | |||
Length | 53:42 | |||
Label | Maverick, Reprise | |||
Producer | Alanis Morissette | |||
Alanis Morissette chronology | ||||
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Singles from MTV Unplugged | ||||
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Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Entertainment Weekly | B−[2] |
Robert Christgau | ![]() |
Rolling Stone | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
In addition to material from Morissette's first two U.S. albums, MTV Unplugged featured performances of "No Pressure over Cappuccino" and "Princes Familiar", two previously unreleased songs from her tours, and "These R the Thoughts", a previously released b-side. Morissette has stated that "Princes Familiar" in particular is one of her favorite and most vocally challenging songs. She performed it on her 2005 Diamond Wink Tour, where she dedicated it to "all of the dads in the audience." The ballad "No Pressure over Cappuccino", one of the first songs she wrote following the release of Jagged Little Pill, "was inspired by [her] twin brother," Wade.[6]
Featuring cleaner vocals, slower arrangements and a few drastic reinventions (particularly in the case of "You Oughta Know"), MTV Unplugged foreshadowed much of Morissette's later, softer work, particularly 2005's Jagged Little Pill Acoustic and the accompanying Diamond Wink Tour.
Track listing
All lyrics are written by Alanis Morissette; all music is composed by Alanis Morissette and Glen Ballard, except where noted.
No. | Title | Length |
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1. | "You Learn" | 4:22 |
2. | "Joining You" | 5:09 |
3. | "No Pressure Over Cappuccino" (Morissette, Nick Lashley) | 4:41 |
4. | "That I Would Be Good" | 4:14 |
5. | "Head over Feet" | 4:23 |
6. | "Princes Familiar" | 4:37 |
7. | "I Was Hoping" | 4:54 |
8. | "Ironic" | 4:14 |
9. | "These R the Thoughts" | 3:26 |
10. | "King of Pain" (lyrics and music: Sting) | 4:05 |
11. | "You Oughta Know" | 5:00 |
12. | "Uninvited" (Alanis Morissette) | 4:37 |
Personnel
- Alanis Morissette - vocals, guitar, harmonica and flute
- Nick Lashley - guitar
- Joel Shearer - guitar
- Deron Johnson - keyboards, background vocals in "King of Pain"
- Chris Chaney - bass
- Gary Novak - drums and percussion
- Chris Fogel - mixing
- Brad Dutz - percussion
- David Campbell - musical arranger and viola
- Suzie Katayama - cello and string arrangement for "You Oughta Know"
- Joul Derouin - violin
- Laura Seaton - violin
- Erik Friedlander - cello
- Juliet Haffner - strings contractor
Charts and certifications
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
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Certifications
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
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Austria (IFPI Austria)[21] | Gold | 25,000* |
Belgium (BEA)[22] | Gold | 25,000* |
Brazil (Pro-Música Brasil)[23] | Platinum | 125,000* |
Germany (BVMI)[24] | Platinum | 300,000^ |
Portugal (AFP)[15] | 2× Platinum | 80,000^ |
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[25] | Gold | 50,000^ |
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[26] | Gold | 25,000^ |
United Kingdom (BPI)[27] | Gold | 100,000^ |
United States (RIAA)[28] | Gold | 500,000^ |
Summaries | ||
Europe (IFPI)[29] | Platinum | 1,000,000* |
*sales figures based on certification alone |
References
- Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Allmusic review
- Entertainment Weekly review
- Robert Christgau review
- Rolling Stone review
- Trust, Gary. "Ask Billboard: What Are the Billboard 200's Longest-Charting Albums Ever?". Billboard. December 24, 2012.
- "No Pressure Over Cappuccino", performed by Alanis Morissette, Berkeley 1996. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KnC0OcnGh5U, retrieved 2015-12-15 Missing or empty
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(help) - "Austriancharts.at – Alanis Morissette – MTV Unplugged" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
- "Ultratop.be – Alanis Morissette – MTV Unplugged" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
- "Ultratop.be – Alanis Morissette – MTV Unplugged" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
- "Dutchcharts.nl – Alanis Morissette – MTV Unplugged" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
- "Lescharts.com – Alanis Morissette – MTV Unplugged". Hung Medien. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
- "Longplay-Chartverfolgung at Musicline" (in German). Musicline.de. Phononet GmbH. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
- "Italiancharts.com – Alanis Morissette – MTV Unplugged". Hung Medien. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
- "Norwegiancharts.com – Alanis Morissette – MTV Unplugged". Hung Medien. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
- "Vendas de discos 2001". Top Disco Blog. Retrieved 11 April 2016.
- "Swedishcharts.com – Alanis Morissette – MTV Unplugged". Hung Medien. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
- "Swisscharts.com – Alanis Morissette – MTV Unplugged". Hung Medien. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
- "Alanis Morissette | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
- "Alanis Morissette Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
- "Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts" (in German). GfK Entertainment. Retrieved May 19, 2018.
- "Austrian album certifications – Alanis Morissette – MTV Unplugged" (in German). IFPI Austria.
- "Ultratop − Goud en Platina – albums 2000". Ultratop. Hung Medien.
- "Brazilian album certifications – Alanis Morissette – MTV Unplugged" (in Portuguese). Associação Brasileira dos Produtores de Discos. Retrieved April 6, 2015.
- "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Alanis Morissette; 'Unplugged')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie.
- Salaverrie, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (PDF) (in Spanish) (1st ed.). Madrid: Fundación Autor/SGAE. p. 954. ISBN 84-8048-639-2. Retrieved 23 August 2019.
- "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards (Alanis Morissette; 'MTV Unplugged')". IFPI Switzerland. Hung Medien.
- "British album certifications – Alanis Morissette – MTV Unplugged". British Phonographic Industry. Select albums in the Format field. Select Gold in the Certification field. Type MTV Unplugged in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
- "American album certifications – Alanis Morissette – MTV Unplugged". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH.
- "IFPI Platinum Europe Awards – 2000". International Federation of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved March 28, 2020.