Limited Canadian pressing includes bonus T-Shirt plus bonus tracks. 2010 album from the acclaimed multi-platinum Canadian Pop-Rock group, their first without co-vocalist Steven Page. Since their inception, they have racked... more » up eight Juno awards and multiple Grammy nominations, sold more than 14 million albums worldwide, written a plethora of hit singles and amassed an international fanbase whose members number in the millions. All In Good Time, their 11th studio album was produced by longtime collaborator Michael Phillip Wojewoda and mixed by Bob Clearmountain.« less
Limited Canadian pressing includes bonus T-Shirt plus bonus tracks. 2010 album from the acclaimed multi-platinum Canadian Pop-Rock group, their first without co-vocalist Steven Page. Since their inception, they have racked up eight Juno awards and multiple Grammy nominations, sold more than 14 million albums worldwide, written a plethora of hit singles and amassed an international fanbase whose members number in the millions. All In Good Time, their 11th studio album was produced by longtime collaborator Michael Phillip Wojewoda and mixed by Bob Clearmountain.
CD Reviews
They Put Some Clothes On
Flap Jackson | State Road, NC | 04/03/2010
(4 out of 5 stars)
"What do you do when you've lost half the duo that was the heart and soul of your band? Let the whole band be your heart & soul. Sure, you can still have your leader, but he was so good, you have to replace him with the rest of the band. Thus is the approach Barenaked Ladies have taken with the creation of this new album & the departure of Steven Page. Think about it, every major hit BNL has had has involved Page. The result is a more complete, but also more mature & slightly less interesting & original BNL.
Highlights Include:
Summertime
Four Seconds
On the Lookout
How Long
Original co-founder with Page, Ed Robertson is still the most seasoned & has the most consistently good songs in the band, but it is nice to actually hear the other members, all of which make a vocal appearance, if not songwriting appearance at some point in the album. Kevin Hearn takes the softer more folk approach to his songs (something you'd never have heard on a BNL album before, probably for good reason), and Jim Creeggan takes a more adult contemporary approach, in the vain of a Rob Thomas. But even with the new changes, something is still very noticeably off. Take for example lyrics like this:
"Even a busted watch is right twice a day"
Now, I may just be forgetting and the band may have had poorly written and lazy lyrics like this in the Page days, but it becomes all the more noticeable now. Something is off, and the band just isn't the same anymore. What's worse is that they've gone forcibly headlong mostly in the the lite hits/adult contemporary genre. If you're a fan of that genre, which the band had always hung around, you'll be very pleased with this album. But there simply isn't any chances taken apart from letting the rest of the band share the workload left by Page.
Overall, while it is far from being bad, and it's a pleasant listen, the Barenaked Ladies have put some clothes on to expose the member they've lost, and it shows. A more casual fan might not notice, some hardcore fans may not care, but for those of us that knew that part of the soul of the band was in Page, and thusly admired his work, the band simply isn't the same, but still do a great chorus. Take it or leave it at that."
An enjoyable new release from the Ladies
William Merrill | San Antonio, TX United States | 03/30/2010
(4 out of 5 stars)
"So this is the first BNL CD following the departure of Steven Page. The guys seemed to have carried on with no apparent difficulty, as All In Good Time is one of their better albums in recent years. (Incidentally, Mr. Page is reportedly working on a solo album, and he also collaborated with the Art of Time Ensemble not too long ago.) In this quartet edition of the band, Ed Robertson continues as the primary lead vocalist and songwriter, although Kevin Hearn and Jim Creeggan split the lead singer and songwriter roles on five of the CD's 14 songs. While Good Time does contain several faster tunes such as "Golden Boy," the predominant mood is an introspective one, exemplified by the gentle ballad "I Saw It," a Creeggan song. The album's closing cut, "Watching The Northern Lights," from Mr. Hearn, is another mellow beauty. These new songs are often lovely melodies that sound really good coming out of the speakers, buds or earphones. After the first three tracks, I was also wondering if BNL had lost their sense of whimsy and wackiness. But then came "Four Seconds," one of those clever, rapid-lyrics wordplay songs they give us from time to time. This one has a kind of manic old-timey vibe. For me, All In Good Time was indeed a good time from beginning to end."
Not bad but....
EricPDX | Portland, OR | 05/07/2010
(2 out of 5 stars)
"First, let me say that this is not a bad CD. It is not great but it is not bad either.
If I try to listen to All In Good Time and not think that I am listening to The Barenaked Ladies, it seems better. I keep wondering if I would be looking at this differently if they would have changed the band name after Steven Page left. If you have ever listened to the two albums The Doors recorded after Jim Morrison passed away you know how empty they sound. The same can be said for this. If The Doors would have changed their name to something else and put Other Voices and Full Circle out, they may have been received differently.
The gaping hole left in this band by Steve's departure cannot be ignored. Ed, Kevin, Jim, and Tyler all have great musical abilities and will always have my respect but Steve was the guy that made it all work. Ed has had some incredible songs and vocal performances in the past but to me All In Good Time sounds like a half-hearted effort on his part.
I wish nothing but the best for The Barenaked Ladies and I hope I am proved wrong and this CD becomes a great success for them. The writing seems to be on the wall though. I just hope that if they choose to continue on they will have stronger material to offer in the future.
If history has taught us anything, no band has ever survived well after the departure of one its key members. There is usually a downhill slide of one mediocre release after another and the next thing you know they are playing the Indian casino circuit. I hope so much this will not be the path for this band. They have been magnificent and deserve much better than that.
"
My New Favorite Barenaked Ladies Album
Bud Gott | New Castle, DE USA | 04/03/2010
(4 out of 5 stars)
"I'll start out by saying this: I don't miss Steven Page at all on this album. Steven's great and I loved a lot of his songs, but this new album is the best I've ever heard Barenaked Ladies sound. Page's departure from the band has given the other members a chance to stretch creatively and try out some new things. Most of those things have worked out great for them on this album.
Here are my reviews of each song. Unless otherwise noted, the songs are Ed Robertson's songs. Here we go:
1. You Run Away - (9/10): It's a great song but it took me a few listens to realize just how great it is. Fantastic lyrics. I especially like the lines "hold a mirror shoulder high, when you're older, look you in the eye." It's not the happiest sounding song in the world, so I'm curious to see how well it does as the first single released from the album. Hopefully it will be a big hit. It deserves to be.
2. Summertime - (10/10): If I had the power, I'd have made this the first single from the album. Great music, great lyrics, great vocals. A very fun song. This is the kind of song you want to listen to on a sunny day when you're driving with your windows down. With Summer just a couple of months away, I could see this being played a lot on the radio.
3. Another Heartbreak - (7/10): A Kevin Hearn song. Of his three songs on the album, this is my favorite. I'll be honest, I'm not a big fan of Kevin's voice. This song is kind of a downer and it's a bit repetitive, but the music is very good and the song is catchy, which makes the song a little better than average. I was originally going to rate it a 5/10, but the song is slowly growing on me.
4. Four Seconds - (9/10): Kind of bizarre, but I mean that in the best possible way. Very creative lyrics and the music and vocals are brilliant. A very fun song.
5. On The Lookout - (10/10): A Jim Creeggan song. Hands down, my favorite song on the album. Prior to hearing this, I wasn't very familiar with Jim's voice, but he's got a great one. I hope to hear him do many more lead vocals in the future. I like everything about this song: the lyrics, the music, the lead and background vocals, etc. Fantastic.
6. Ordinary - (8/10): Another good one from Ed. His voice sounds great and I like the guitar work on here.
7. I Have Learned - (9/10): Great music. The guys play very well on this one. It rocks.
8. Every Subway Car - (8/10): First of all, kudos to Ed for working Sly Stallone into the lyrics. This is a very good song. Great music and lyrics.
9. Jerome - (4/10): Another Kevin Hearn song. I've played this multiple times in hopes that the song will grow on me, but it's just not happening. The music is decent but the lyrics and the vocals do nothing for me. Sorry, Kevin.
10. How Long - (9/10): Another cool rocker from Ed. This song shows how great the band is at rocking out when they want to. Very good music in this one.
11. Golden Boy - (9/10): BNL keep on rockin' with this one. Music and vocals are exceptional. This one's turning into one of my favorites on the album.
12. I Saw It - (9/10): Another great Jim Creeggan song. Very cool music and very good lyrics. Jim's voice sounds especially good here and I love the harmony and background vocals by the others.
13. The Love We're In - (8/10): A very nice ballad from Ed.
14. Watching The Northern Lights - (5/5): Another Kevin Hearn song. People are going to think I hate Kevin Hearn, but I swear that's not the case. He's got a lot of talent. I think the music in this song is especially good. However, the lyrics are just too repetitive for me. I think this song would have been great as an instrumental and it would have been a nice song to finish the album with.
So, for the most part, it's pretty obvious I love this album. The band's creative juices were definitely flowing while they made this. I like that they tried new things. Yes, it's true that I don't love the Kevin Hearn songs, but music is subjective. I'm sure there are others who love those songs. For me, one of the nicest surprises about this album is discovering just how talented Jim Creeggan is. I love his two songs on here and I want to hear more from him.
As for Ed's songs, I think they're great. He definitely did some different kinds of things on here. Some have said that some of these songs are more somber than his earlier stuff. That's true, but the songs are still very good. And, as he shows on "Four Seconds" and other tracks, Ed still knows how to write songs that are a lot of fun.
The music and vocals on this album are fantastic. Barenaked Ladies have always been an exceptional band but they somehow have turned it up a few notches and they sound better than ever.
If you're a fan of the band or just a fan of really good music, this is an album you're going to want to get. Enjoy.
Bud Gott"
BNL
J. Orcutt | Maine | 05/14/2010
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Love it! I was wondering how this would turn out with out Steven Page but I have to hand it to the other guys. They did a great job and it's nice to hear more from the others!!"
Track Listings (14) - Disc #1