Pros: Starting with great BNL songs, a few unique covers, overall enjoyable and a toe tapper
Cons: Some songs picked for probable popularity reasons don't quite fit as well on this album
The Bottom Line: If you like BNL, a slightly different take with more twang, you can listen to this over and over just like the originals and be satisfied.
rookshark's Full Review: Pinch My Bluegrass: Bluegrass Tribute to Barenaked...
Well, to start off, I am guessing you need to be either a bluegrass fan, or barenaked ladies fan. I suppose being both would be better. I do not own any other bluegrass music, so I guess I fall more on the latter type of fan.
I purchased this CD basically hearing a few snippets, already a fan of the original songs done by the Barenaked Ladies (BNL).
First, let me just say I enjoyed this CD and would recommend it. Like the originals enough that I will want to listen to it over and over, yet different enough to justify the expense rather than just listen to the originals, if that makes sense.
Now, to move to picking it apart for you.
If you know these songs, then you might be annoyed at the occasional lyric that is missed. That can be annoying because otherwise the songs stay fairly close to the original versions. Of course, if you are annoyed…go listen to the originals, you buy this CD to listen to someone else sing these songs.
However, if you are looking for a totally different take on the original album versions, think again. These stay for the most part fairly close to the original recorded versions, just played and sung in a more bluegrass feel than the originals, which some could argue are not too far from bluegrass sometimes by themselves.
So which is it?
Here they are…I won’t blather on about each track, since you probably know the lyrical jist, etc. but rather give you a feel for each one’s translation to “bluegrassiness.”
1. If I Had a Million Dollars Hmmmm, this one seems to be a good song no matter how sung, and I assume is here because of its huge popularity, but honestly, another song choice might have fit better in this collection. Still sounds great, but no stretching really here for the bluegrassiness factor.
2. Pinch Me Ah,lazy bluegrass that picks you right up sounds very good. This is a great song that sounds the same…yet is quite a bit different, especially parts of the rhythm and how the lyrics fit.
3. Be My Yoko Ono Again, a popular and good song, but not the best on this CD. Still enjoyable (and nice bird call for Yoko), but something else might have been a better choice to fit here.
4. One Week Hmmmm, I again want to pick on them for including this popular song here, but it does seem to translate well to the bluegrass backbeat and has a nice little solo thrown in for good measure. That being said, it is pretty close to the original, and that is not a bad thing, even peppier perhaps.
5. Light Up My Room This one has a different rhythm than the original, but you will instantly recognize it regardless and the singing stays pretty close to the original. Slow, melancholy perhaps, but still enjoyable. I suppose they can not all be fast…even if that is what I would have preferred.
6. Brian Wilson Of course, with this greatest hits album cover, this would also have to be included. Not high on the bluegrassiness scale, but still good….because the original was great. This one is slower than the original as well. The last minute of this one feels drawn out and too long with the weird solo for this album.
7. Falling for the First Time Ah, here is one song that takes you a good 10 seconds to figure out what lyrics are coming. Faster than the original, high on the bluegrassiness scale. Nice job.
8. The Old Apartment Slow it back down a bit, this song is almost country this time. Nothing too far out there or anything, and I like the song, but it is too long here. Cut a minute or so, and it would have been even better, even with the nice solo near the end.
9. Celebrity Bluegrassiness hitting high as this song begins, again with not being sure what song this is until the lyrics come. Slower than the original, with a different feel, but still a good song. Nice to see a cover with a different take than the original without screwing it up reaching too far.
10. Maybe Katie Starts off not sounding that bluegrassy, but then bam it kicks in all at once. Sounds bluegrassy without changing much of the original. Again the song feels a bit too long or stretched, but so much more bluegrass and BNL to love, right?
11. It’s All Been Done I like the irony of choosing this song. That is enough to get me to smile right there. Different enough to make you think what song is this at the beginning, bluegrassiness in spades, yet familiar, not changing too much. Nice speed, and a different enough take on the original to defy the title. My mind says leaving them wanting more though, and I would cut at least twenty seconds on this song as well.
12. Go Home Bluegrass meets country on this one. Easy to pick up on this one, as it mimics the original fairly closely (which tells you the original was kind of bluegrassy/country already)
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