10 Live Albums That Are Better Than Studio Albums

By the time that Alice in Chains had agreed to play MTV Unplugged, there was still the question of whether they could even operate as a band anymore. For the past few years leading up to this date, there had been no new tour dates, and the rest of the band hadn't played together since recording their self titled record, as Layne Staley delved further and further into heroin addiction. Everything pointed to this thing being a trainwreck, but something funny happened once they all stepped onto that stage.

Coming up with virtually no proper rehearsal, the band launched right into their songs and came up with some of the most raw performances that they would ever give. Though there were some additional instruments to even things out, what you're hearing on here is the first time they had played for a while, with songs like Got Me Wrong and No Excuses going down very smoothly.

While there was a bit of a care free vibe in the room that day, it's hard to look back on them now, as Layne Staley struggles to keep it together throughout the performance and feels like a shell of his former self when he comes up to scream some of the sections. From the first moment that he opens his mouth on Nutshell, this isn't just a man that's come to play some music. This is a man knowing that his time is running short and still trying to give it his all for the sake of his band.