Katy Perry's highly anticipated MTV Unplugged performance will be debuting on MTV and MTV.com this Monday, November 16. Rather than sleeplessly frittering away your weekend, hyperventilating and listening to "Waking Up In Vegas" on repeat, we thought it'd be a good idea to give you an Unplugged refresher course.
Here are some of the best performances of MTV's legendary live show, featuring some obscure performances and some unforgettable ones, with nary an amp in sight.
Nirvana, "Come As You Are" (1993)
For their episode of Unplugged, Nirvana revealed an aching vulnerability to their razor-sharp songs. This was an iconic performance, producing some of the most lasting, indelible imagery of Kurt Cobain.
Paramore, "That's What You Get" (2009)
Audience interaction is one of the best parts of these intimate Unplugged performances. In the case of Paramore, it's more about audience participation, as the crowd helps out Hayley Williams with the "whoa-oh's" of "That's What You Get."
Alicia Keys, "Unbreakable" (2005)
Unplugged puts the artist and their artistry at the forefront. In this 2005 performance, Alicia Keys shows the extent of her capabilities as a performer with a gorgeous rendition of "Unbreakable."
+ Watch more performances after the jump.
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Lately Katy Perry's joined Rihanna at Fashion Week in Paris and made waves on the gossip trail by dating Russell Brand. But first and foremost, Katy Perry is a keep-em-guessing performer, and she's joining the honored ranks of performers like Mariah Carey, Nirvana, Paramore, Pearl Jam, and Jay-Z who've all had their own legendary MTV Unplugged performances.
And, with just one breakthrough debut album, One Of The Boys, under her belt (in this case, probably a belted bustier onesie), you'll get a brand-new look at Katy Perry when her MTV Unplugged performance airs on November 16. And on November 17, she'll release MTV Unplugged: Katy Perry, a CD/DVD set with a jazzy, cabaret-style take on "I Kissed a Girl," as well as her smash hits, "Waking Up In Vegas," "Thinking of You." The DVD will also feature an unreleased original song, "Brick by Brick," and a cover of the Fountains of Wayne's "Hackensack."
November 17 is more than a month away, and it's a pretty unfair amount of time to wait, so check out this inside look at Katy Perry's MTV Unplugged performance, and get a sneak peek at her songs and what she calls her "Stevie Nicks-meets-fairy" concert look.
Prepare to be NOT AT ALL disappointed in All Time Low's just-released "MTV Unplugged" performance in New York City.
Watch them do a six-song acoustic set of brand-new stuff from Nothing Personal and your original favorites from So Wrong, It's Right, including "Damned If I Do Ya, Damned If I Don't," "Dear Maria Count Me In," "Jasey Rae," "Weightless," "Coffee Shop Soundtrack," "Remembering Sunday," featuring Kate Voegele. Bonus: bongo action, tambourine, and a guitar in a bird cage.
Watch All Time Low's MTV Unplugged performance below, and after the jump, watch a brand-new ATL interview to see how they avoid getting molested by fans.
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Your idea of summer music is less booty jams and bikinis and more sitting in your AC-ed, shag-carpeted bedroom making mixes on your iMac? There's an "MTV Unplugged" for that.
After Adele reindoctrinated the heritage MTV live performance series, Silversun Pickups brought the fuzzy, foggy, hazy sound of Silverlake summer heat to "MTV Unplugged," for you stay-indoors-and-listen-to-indie-rock types.
Watch their six-song "MTV Unplugged" set, including "Well Thought Out Twinkles," "Panic Switch," "Lazy Eye," "Catch and Release," "Kissing Families" and "Getting Old Is Growing Old," off Carnavas and their 2009 album, Swoon.
+ After the jump, watch Silversun Pickup talk Bjork and Oasis...
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Somebody, please pause this day. It's not supposed to be Monday yet. Didn't Sunday feel awfully short? Doesn't today feel violently early? It does. But don't freak out. I've got the cure, right here.
Today Adele kicks off the reincarnation of MTV Unplugged with a performance that temporarily stops time. Her slow-burning soulful style -- the seductive offspring of Etta James and Lauryn Hill -- saturates the intimate space with emotion so deepdown, it could be 100 years old. What a perfect soundtrack for a reincarnation.
If you still haven't listened to Adele, her MTV Unplugged performance is a fantastic introduction. If you're an old fan, this is essential viewing. Watch Adele perform "Chasing Pavements," "Hometown Glory," "Cold Shoulder," and others, with exclusive interview clips interspersed.
+ Exclusive Adele Unplugged Photos
(Credit: Scott Gries)
Are you old enough to remember what a game-changer it was when Nirvana played Unplugged? I am. I swear to you I took s--- from my mother for four years after that, for wearing this moth-eaten mohair cardigan (just like Kurt's!) I found at Salvation Army (after months of looking!). "Daniel!" She'd squawk. "Some poor old lady died in that thing! Pleeease let me throw it out?" No mom. No way.
Watching Pearl Jam Unplugged, I didn't take my shirt off and write "PRO-CHOICE" all over my bare body, even though Eddie did. And I didn't break down and cry in public after Lauryn Hill's performance. But I'll admit that I was tempted on both occasions.
I've seen a few preliminary clips of the new season of MTV Unplugged, and I can promise you that its emotional pull is still very much intact. The series launches Monday with a smoking set by Adele. Have you heard this bad mother belt it yet? Oh my god. She can sing like you wouldn't believe. She gives her smoky set of old soul torch songs the acoustic treatment in a performance that's actually kind of reminiscent of Lauryn Hill's!
Because I know I'm totally incapable of waiting until Monday, I'm gonna go ahead and pop a playlist of classic Unplugged performances in the bottom of this post. Relive the show's finest moments and come back Monday to see it reborn!
+ Exclusive photos of Adele's Unplugged performance
+ Classic MTV Unplugged photo flipbook
Considered one of the greatest bands in the history of rock music, Seattle grunge legends Nirvana helped bring alternative rock to the forefront in the early '90s, likely influencing most of your favorite bands today.
However, the band's quick rise to fame was fleeting. Not to be all morbid, but on this day in 1994, frontman Kurt Cobain was found dead in his home. Apparently the result of suicide, Kurt's sudden death was a tragic loss for music fans the world over.
To honor Kurt, here's the single that made Nirvana a household name. It's from their breakthrough album Nevermind, released in 1991:
Click for more classic Nirvana videos, including a clip from their epic MTV Unplugged performance in 1993. 
