Album Essentials: Barenaked Ladies "Gordon"

By Dave Swanson - Summit FM Contributor

One thing for certain about Canadian rock music, it's all over the map! And that's a good thing! If there is a 'Canadian sound,' it would have to slot somewhere in between Neil Young, Rush, Nick Gilder, the Guess Who, Voivod, Nash The Slash, Thundermug, and, well, you get the idea. None of those bands sound alike, and there is no Canadian sound, which in turn, makes perfect sense that Barenaked Ladies are among Canada's favorite sons.

Formed in 1988, just outside of Toronto, BNL rose up from the underground in a highly unprecedented manner. After recording a handful of demo tapes, the band's reputation had grown to the point where demand for fans to get their hands on those demo recordings went sky high. This led to the band self-releasing their official unofficial debut, self-titled though known as 'The Yellow Tape.' The songs on this recording were made to coincide with the band's appearance at SXSW, but fans kept buying the demo tape, which then made history as the first independent release to go Gold in Canada.

With all this in their favor, it wasn’t long before the big labels came calling. The band eventually signed with Sire/Reprise Records, in the States, who issued their proper debut album, 'Gordon,' in 1992. The band re-recorded the songs from 'The Yellow Tape,' most of which are still among their most well-known. 'Be My Yoko Ono,' 'Brian Wilson' and 'If I Had $1,000,000,' make up 3 of the album's 16 tracks.

Barenaked Ladies, with a name that came from a list of imaginary bands the guys had compiled, immediately found a home in the alternative rock landscape, which included just about anything under the sun at that point, so why not some clever, catchy, smart pop music from these Canadian rabble rousers. The songs are colored with just about every instrument within reach, making it even more difficult to categorize their quirky brand of folk/pop.

Clever lyrics with humor often at the center, the band was an admitted product of its upbringing, surrounded by pop culture. "Some much of what we grew up in was pop culture in the 70s and 80s,” said vocalist Stephen Page, in a 1992 interview with the CBC. "That's the atmosphere we grew up in. A lot of our music comes from knowing about those things. We make fun of a lot of stuff."

Guitarist Ed Robinson concurs, "Like the song 'Be My Yoko Ono’ is just a love song in the disguise of a quirky little pop culture joke. We thought it was just a joke, but people kept saying 'that's a great, really sweet love song."

Yet, for every goofy pun or silly reference, there is often much more lurking under the surface in their songs. The New York Times called that point upfront in their initial review, "It's not easy to be hyperactive, brooding, and whimsical all at once, but the Barenaked Ladies do just that." ‘Gordon' hit the number one spot in their Canadian homeland, and sold well in the U.S., paving the way for a long running, happy fan base here in America, and eventually, two years later, turning Gold here as well.