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.
Few bands are better suited than the Barenaked Ladies to take obnoxious old Christmas jingles to an entirely new level of obnoxiousness. The Canadian pop group does a smack-up job on this generous collection, where they tackle children's relics like "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer," curious seasonal fare such as Band-Aid's Ethiopian charity single "Do They Know It's Christmas," and a handful of tongue-in-cheek originals that share the bookish humor of the band's hits like "One Week" and "Brian Wilson." Even the inclusion of three Hannukah songs doesn't raise the bar for reverence. The disc also includes collaborations with Sarah McLachlan and Michael Buble. --Aidin Vaziri

Customer Rating:
Summary: Barenaked for the Holidays/ Barenaked Ladies
Comment: I purchased this CD for my friends as well as myself for Christmas. My friends love it, I love it, and my kids do too. It's great fun to sing along for the whole family!

---

Customer Rating:
Summary: barenaked something....
Comment: I love Barenaked ladies..so I was excited to get this CD. But, I was dissapointed for most of it. I loved the song with Sarah Mclachlan(SP)... but that was the only song I loved. Maybe I'm just used to their regular sound... but I wasn't impressed with this cd. Not for Christmas.

---

Customer Rating:
Summary: Is it or isn't it?...
Comment: Ok...first:

I've "heard" the name "Barenaked Ladies." That's about my SOLE exposure to the band. No...I didn't realize THEY were the ones, who did the "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" song that I LOVE so much to hear during this holiday (well, ok..I LOVE to hear it, anytime!)

I read through the reviews..listened to the WHOLE pre-sample list...then still hemmed and hawed for 1-2 days, over whether to buy it or not. Then it came up as the special of the day (2.99?) and I decided, "Can't lose much there..." and bought it.

Have just finished listening to it. It was GREAT...WONDERFUL...HILARIOUS...I LOVE IT (wish I'd bought it sooner!)

One of the reviews (that tipped me towards buying it) said something about "parody." Think Weird Al, or Dr. Demento... Do you like that sort of stuff? You'll LOVE this! (And, oh yeah...if you're OLD enough, to remember the heyday of the (roller) skating rinks...and that AWFUL organ music that always played in the background...there are a couple songs for even you! ;-) BUT...don't get the idea that the WHOLE album is like that. There are enough "legitimate" (think "Traditional") type songs, that if you like those types, you'll still love this album. I think one reviewer said something about a mix of "somber and comical"...

Have also read reviews that seemed to think, if you didn't already like Barenaked Ladies, then you should pass on this. Well, like I said before...apart from having heard the band's name, I knew nothing about them...and I LOVE this album enough to already know, I will be listening to it repeatedly in the future...and NOT just "...at Christmastime..."

As to those who seem to be (already) fans of BNL that DON'T like this album...I would venture to guess that, maybe, it's because they have been with the band from the beginning (or almost), and don't want to see them do anything different (or, at least, THIS different)...that's understandable, too. (For example, you get people who ONLY like the "original" Beatles...that only like the "psychedelic" period...the "modern" period...etc.etc.etc....)

Like I said...this is my FIRST exposure to this group. I loved it enough to buy it...and enough to be willing (now) to "test the waters" with their other albums. Who knows...it might turn out, that this album of theirs is the ONLY one of theirs I will end up liking! 8-O

But if your favorite group can put out an album (even if only ONCE) that is so "different," that YOU might not like it...but it ATTRACTS others who, otherwise, would never have given the group a listen...well...I don't think there's anything bad about that...

So...IS IT or ISN'T IT any good? ...

Sorry...YOU are going to be the ONLY one who can decide that...

---

Customer Rating:
Summary: A new favorite!!
Comment: I got the album after listening to a couple of the clips & now i'm hooked. The album is great! Its fun & upbeat & gives a great new twist on some old favs. The guys got together for one of the best holiday albums ever!

---

Customer Rating:
Summary: I Love this album
Comment: It is off the wall and funny. It is really a Holiday album, not a Christmas album. It has three Hanukkah songs on it, which is rare and charming. The people who do not like it bought it solely for "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" which features Sarah McLachlan. That song is wonderful, but if that is what you are looking for you would be better off just downloading that one song. There are a number of instrumentals and several of the songs sound like they were played on your grandmother's Wurlitzer organ. For those of us who had a grandmother with a Wurlitzer, they are precious, but many others find them annoying.

My favorite song on the album is "Elf's Lament" which is one of BNL's originals. It features Michael Buble and is a song about how unhappy the elves are with their jobs and what they plan to do about it. It is hilarious. This album is classic Barenaked Ladies, irreverent and fun, not taking itself too seriously. I have a CD version that I bought several years ago that also has a track on it where the guys sing happy birthday to Jesus. Not sure if that is a hidden track or if it has been removed from newer versions.

---