Barenaked Ladies celebrate the holiday season with their ninth major release, Barenaked For The Holidays. This release features many holiday favorites, including "Do They Know It's Christ- mas"(written by Bob Geldof )and "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen," performed with Sarah McLachlan, and seven original tracks including BNL’s new holiday single "Elf ’s Lament," featuring Michael Bublé. Ed Robertson and Steven Page"s distinctive vocals give a fresh sound to traditional holiday classics. Barenaked For The Holidays is sure to be a holiday favorite that is fun,witty and dynamic.
Average Customer Review:
( 134 customer reviews )
Write an online review and share your thoughts with other customers.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
68 of 71 found the following review helpful:
Off-beat Beats for the HolidaysOct 05, 2004
By Lavode BNL joins the tired ranks of groups to release Christmas albums. Of course, they do it in true BNL fashion, and are not content to simply record a bunch of slightly-warmed-over standards. Some of the songs are original compositions, such as "Christmastime (Oh Yeah)," and some are standards done up in BNL's jazzy, rock style. Still others sound as if they are being played on your Grandmother's old electric organ, complete with tacky drum machine. (I have to wonder if this last is a peek into their early Christmas traditions.) And lastly, there are some very off-the-wall tunes, like "Deck the Stills" and "Sleigh Ride" that pretty much sound like the guys screwing around.
All of the tracks are well-polished, and the entire album evokes a holiday spirit. So in that sense, this album is a huge success. I only subtract 1 star because if you're not a fan of the band, you won't be too interested in their interpretation of the standards, and the novelty songs will probably be a bit of a turn off. However, if you like BNL, this is a must-have, even if you skip a few of the songs after listening to them once.
16 of 16 found the following review helpful:
Now for something out of the ordinaryNov 17, 2005
By Christene Ostrom
"music lover"
Every year I get a Christmas CD for my collection. I like it to be different, new songs, new or unusual arrangements of old songs, and BNL fit the bill. They are their usual irreverent selves and their humor can be found in this CD as with all their others. I like their version of "Do They Know It's Christmas" and I know they were having fun recording "I Have a Little Dreidel".
As has been said before, if you are not a BNL fan, some of the songs on this CD will not be up your alley. But those of us who do enjoy them - will enjoy this collection of Christmas songs. I recommend you add it to your collection.
10 of 10 found the following review helpful:
A fan since GordonDec 13, 2004
By Cameron Marston
"bcedrum86"
I've actually been a fan of the Ladies since their first major release and I have to say that the people who don't like this album are clearly not familiar with the Ladies as they truly are. Clearly you have all been brainwashed by the more commercial and polished BNL that, while it is still very good, is not really the pinnacle of their work.
The originals on this album are brilliant, Green Christmas and Elf's Lament are now two of my favorite holiday songs (of course I'd heard Green Christmas before since it was on The Grinch soundtrack, but still...)
I'll admit that I don't care much for Kevin Hearn's synth songs, but they are short and they do grow on you. They are effective segues between the more substantial portions of the record.
"Carol of the Bells" however is spectacular, probably the coolest sounding version of it I've ever heard. Plus, it features all of the Ladies in someway or another. A very trippy piece and it sounds even cooler if you listen to it on a good set of headphones.
You can tell that this album was thrown together fairly quickly. Probably much of it was recorded during session for "Everything to Everyone," but this haphazard arrangement to recording really captures the essence of BNL's style. It makes the album seem more like their live shows, off the wall and ad libbed. I'm sure many of you who have taken the time to criticize this album haven't seen them live and thus wouldn't know.
I will admit that this isn't my favorite BNL album ever, but much of it isn't original, so it's hard to feel too loyal to it. Regardless, it's still a very cool album and brings new life to all of those cliched and annoying holiday songs that we've all gotten tired of. It also gives us a few new gems for the holidays filled with all of the mirth of folly that have made BNL global celebrities and concert dynamos.
I fully respect the opinion of all you cynics crying "sell-out" even if you are powerfully wrong in your beliefs :-)
15 of 18 found the following review helpful:
Nice novelty album, not so good for repeat playNov 27, 2004
By D. Barrett
"Llabak"
My wife, being a Christmas Junkie, buys around 5 new Christmas albums each year. Starting mid-November, pretty much the only music in the house, in the car, in the portable CD player is christmas music. Since we're BNL fans, this was one of the ones she chose this year. It is very consistent with their musical style - the quirky semi-ad libbing kinda thing they do.
The problem (for us) is that the quirkiness is funny the first time you hear it on a Christmas album, but having heard it once, there's no reason to hear it again. For instance singing the Happy Birthday Song to Jesus would be great if you were at a concert and everyone sang along campily (and to be honest, our kids, 4 and 2, are still singing happy birthday Jesus). Or inserting the age-old "Jingle Bells, Batman Smells, Robin laid an Egg."
This isn't an album that we are likely to listen to more than once a year (if at all in the future), and when you're paying that much for an album with so little replayability, it's somewhat discouraging. If you like to get a lot of mileage out of your albums, this probably isn't one to get. If you're looking for something to play for a college Christmas party where everyone will hear it once and get a real kick out of some of the silliness, then this album is probably for you.
6 of 6 found the following review helpful:
Pretty goodNov 11, 2004
By C. Hill Barenaked Ladies' first Christmas album is pretty good. The best songs are the traditional carols that BNL have "sillied" up. For instance, in "Jingle Bells" they've changed one verse to the old kids' favorite: "Batman smells, Robin laid an egg..." There's also a funny rendition of "Deck the Halls" in which the only lyrics are "Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young" repeated over and over again. There is also a track in which the band sings "Happy Birthday" to Jesus. My only complaint is that the original songs written by BNL aren't as great as the traditional carols, and don't really sound much like Christmas songs. But all in all, the album has enough BNL fun to satisfy any fan of the band.
based on 134 reviews
( 134 customer reviews )
