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Late Night Music Club with Barenaked Ladies

Barenaked Ladies broke in the U.S.– they had already been huge in Canada for many years– because of their raucous and fun-for-all live shows. And one of the most looked forward to moments in a great BNL concert was their performance of the 1989 hip hop classic, “Fight The Power.” Once a Barenaked version was released as part of the Coneheads soundtrack, some of the specialness went out of the gag. Not that that’s going to stop us tonight!




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66 Responses for “Late Night Music Club with Barenaked Ladies”
1
Bitter Bud Hussein Says:

Must be ‘Serendipity’ - I’m listening to ‘Barenaked Ladies Are Me” and I stopped by C&L - sometimes its the little things in life that make it worth living :)

2
MsJoanne Says:

Completely OT but do you guys have the video of Buchanan on Matthews? I keep reading about it but can’t find it.

Thanks…and now back to the BNL! :-)

3
mudshark Says:

Oh, I like Bare Naked Ladies.

4
macon d Says:

Is this aural blackface offensive because it’s sincere, or because it’s ironic?

Fight the power? Like they ever had to do that.

5
lafin gas Says:

Now that was a wasted 4 minutes, I was hoping to see some bare naked ladies, what a jip!

creative group.

7
uncle joe hussein mccarthy Says:

fuck that

fight the power is not hip hop…its hard core rap

and it came out when rap groups meant something, and werent just singing about bitches and hos and seeing who could top the next group with how many dirty words they could stick in a song

and bare naked ladies took a song about black anger and turned it into shit

here is the original….not to be mocked by a bunch of canadian hacks

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jym-RtHHG0s

8
uncle joe hussein mccarthy Says:

oh the irony of bare naked ladies covering this song

Elvis was a hero to most
But he never meant shit to me you see
Straight up racist that sucker was
Simple and plain
Motherfuck him and John Wayne
Cause I’m Black and I’m proud
I’m ready and hyped plus I’m amped
Most of my heroes don’t appear on no stamps
Sample a look back you look and find
Nothing but rednecks for 400 years if you check
Don’t worry be happy
Was a number one jam
Damn if I say it you can slap me right here

9
mudshark Says:

Fight the Power.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U9c6KRFX9Sk
The Isley Brothers.

10
Sir Says:

This is better than that song any day.

Read this!

http://sirs-ava.livejournal.com/

11
New_Damage Says:

Targeted, corporate, candy-ass, thieving, mocking, garbage.

12
STOP George Says:

uncle joe hussein mccarthy @ 7:

fuck that

fight the power is not hip hop…its hard core rap

and it came out when rap groups meant something, and werent just singing about bitches and hos and seeing who could top the next group with how many dirty words they could stick in a song

and bare naked ladies took a song about black anger and turned it into shit

here is the original….not to be mocked by a bunch of canadian hacks

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jym-RtHHG0s

As a Canadian, I have to agree — this is a pretty shitty version. Big disconnect here style-wise. The Bare Naked Ladies are a very talented group though. They definitely shouldn’t be singing this, though.
.
.

13
TM Says:

I don’t care for the Barenaked Ladies at all. Their music sounds so wimpy and boring, and almost every song sounds the same. But I do respect them for going all the way to Iqaluit to play a gig.

14
meh Says:

new low

15
johnnyRocketpants Says:

…bunch of music snobs, the lot of ya.

16
calgarylady Says:

Howie Klein, can you read my mind? I love BareNaked Ladies (as well as Joni, Neil & Bruce Cockburn) and was thinking of suggesting some of their tunes to you. Enid, for example. Or Lovers in a Dangerous Time, written by BC, and sung by BNL. Ah, heaven.

17
gzopeze Says:

I fucking HATE the Barenaked Ladies.

Smarmy, unfunny college-boy crap. Not a soul or a testicle among them.

18
calgarylady Says:

Each to his own. I like being smarmy and unfunny. (Sticks tongue out.)

19
calgarylady Says:

I may not have testicles, but I possess lots of soul. gzopeze, bite me.

Good night, all. Peace.

20
uncle joe hussein mccarthy Says:

STOP George @ 12:

uncle joe hussein mccarthy @ 7:

fuck that

fight the power is not hip hop…its hard core rap

and it came out when rap groups meant something, and werent just singing about bitches and hos and seeing who could top the next group with how many dirty words they could stick in a song

and bare naked ladies took a song about black anger and turned it into shit

here is the original….not to be mocked by a bunch of canadian hacks

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jym-RtHHG0s

As a Canadian, I have to agree — this is a pretty shitty version. Big disconnect here style-wise. The Bare Naked Ladies are a very talented group though. They definitely shouldn’t be singing this, though.
.
.

im sorry if i disparaged canada…didnt mean to

canada puts out the best teen soap ever made…degrassi

ive got a thing for girls who say eh

but this was the worst cover ever

shoot, at least when ben folds covered “bitches aint shit” it was obviously done as a parody of one effed up song

fight the power just should never be effed with

21
uncle joe hussein mccarthy Says:

i am not a musical snob…there is just something very wrong with a really white group covering this song

22
gzopeze Says:

calgarylady @ 19:

I may not have testicles, but I possess lots of soul. gzopeze, bite me.

Good night, all. Peace.

Peace indeed. Would never intentionally offend a woman who lives so close to the Bow River.

Love Canada, and too many Canadian artists to mention. Just not those guys.

wow…there is some piss and vinegar going down here tonight…I love the Bare Baked Ladies…I think they are fine…and I love alot of canadian music….KDLang, Micheal Buble, and Tragically Hip….so I just came by to say thanks for posting it…..I have not heard them in a long time…..

24
pwapvt Says:

Their best record is Gordon. Like nothing else they ever did.

25
An Average Joe Says:

“Their best record is Gordon. Like nothing else they ever did.”

I’d have to agree with you on that. Although I must admit, I took my 13 yr old to a concert to see them in 1999. I enjoyed the hell out of it; he thought it sucked.

To each their own, I guess.

26
appnzllr Says:

I have all their albums and went to one of their concerts in Philadelphia. Still great to listen to.

27
Yensid Says:

A more poignant song would be Fun and Games off of Barenaked Ladies Are Men. This song criticizes the war so well it’s my favorite BNL song right now. I’d check it out and maybe do another mashup using it for the late night music club.

-yensid

28
Rusty Shackleford Says:

With all due respect to their fans, the Barenaked Ladies are awful and liking them is a sign you have no musical taste OR self respect.

Hey, I said “with all due respect.”

29
calgarylady Says:

gzopeze, you know about the Bow River, one of the best fishing spots in North America? I am impressed.

OK, you are forgiven.

30
calgarylady Says:

Rusty, Rusty, Rusty. This sure is a tough crowd. Everyone is a critic, I guess.

The thing I love about BNL is their humour and ability to laugh at themselves. Remember when Toronto banned them because they really thought they were a bunch of barenaked ladies. (tee hee.)

31
GlobalH Says:

For Canadians, the “gag” was ruined right off the bat, because “Fight the Power” appeared on their very first indie cassette, released before they became big.

I don’t mind the BNL most of the time — I think they have pretty good chops, and they have proved the ability to mix humour with seriousness. The utter silliness of the first album can be grating and the huge single that broke ‘em in the US was pretty naff I guess but their album tracks are bit better.

That said — and I don’t mean this to be an attack on calgarylady, but I absolutely LOATHED their Cockburn cover for the same reason that uncle joe hated “Fight the Power” — they took a song with a pretty deep message and made a bouncy pile of nothing. I’ve always hated their version of “Lovers in a Dangerous Time” and I always will.

32
ysbaddaden Says:

Shouldn’t truth in advertising laws apply to musical combos?

33
calgarylady Says:

GlobalH, no offense taken.

Howie, maybe you could do a spotlight on Bruce Cockburn sometime. Lots of material to choose from there. Plenty of antiwar stuff.

34
liberalHUSSEINmoderation Says:

Gah!!! BNL SUCKS!

35
liberalHUSSEINmoderation Says:

uncle joe hussein mccarthy @ 21:

i am not a musical snob…there is just something very wrong with a really white group covering this song

Got that right.

36
mudshark Says:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v.....re=related
Dionne Warwick and Burt Bacharach.

37
mudshark Says:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kjX2MKaZ-rg
Sly and Family Stone. Everyday People.

38
mudshark Says:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v.....re=related
A Sly tune by , The RedHot Chili Peppers.
If You Want Me To Stay.

39
mudshark Says:
40
Rusty Shackleford Says:

Rusty Shackleford @ 28:

With all due respect to their fans, the Barenaked Ladies are awful and liking them is a sign you have no musical taste OR self respect.

Hey, I said “with all due respect.”

^^^^

Hey, think of your own pseudonym!

41
Loopy Says:

You pathetic narrow crybabies miss the point and don’t even know you are living the lives of a Soviet and if it were the 60’s you would be spitting on the local police and returning veterans rather than the real monsters because you are the ever present stupid.

42
liberalHUSSEINmoderation Says:

Loopy @ 41:

You pathetic narrow crybabies miss the point and don’t even know you are living the lives of a Soviet and if it were the 60’s you would be spitting on the local police and returning veterans rather than the real monsters because you are the ever present stupid.

What?

43
GlobalH Says:

calgarylady @ 33:

GlobalH, no offense taken.

Howie, maybe you could do a spotlight on Bruce Cockburn sometime. Lots of material to choose from there. Plenty of antiwar stuff.

Agreed. Just as a start, “If I Had a Rocket Launcher” or “Call it Democracy” for the ones with pretty overt messages. Then off into some of the other tracks for more subtle talk (though I guess anything is subtle compared to “If I Had a Rocket Launcher”…)

44
Johnny Caldwell Says:

Have always liked BNL. Saw them with The Health and Happiness Show at The Bottom Line in Greenwich Village about the time Gordon came out and a few years later with Billy Bragg at The Beacon Theater. They backed-up Billy on a great version of Sexuality. Even had What A Good Boy for our wedding song. If you’ve never seen them live don’t criticize unitl you do. As for covering Fight The Power - yeah probably not the best version, but every group or artist has hits and misses. Give them a break.

45
liberalHUSSEINmoderation Says:

Johnny Caldwell @ 44
If you’ve never seen them live don’t criticize unitl you do.

Someone said the same thing to me about Jimmy Buffett, who I can’t stand either….not knocking you for liking BNL…but I would rather stick a red hot poker in my eye than pay to see either band live.

46
calgarylady Says:

‘If I Had a Rocket Launcher’ is one of my all-time favourite songs.

47
Johnny Caldwell Says:

“Someone said the same thing to me about Jimmy Buffett, who I can’t stand either….not knocking you for liking BNL…but I would rather stick a red hot poker in my eye than pay to see either band live.”

Fair enough liberalHUSSEINmoderation@45. I like Buffet a lot, although have not seen him live, just goes to show there are many tastes under the sun.

48
liberalHUSSEINmoderation Says:

Johnny Caldwell @ 47:

“Someone said the same thing to me about Jimmy Buffett, who I can’t stand either….not knocking you for liking BNL…but I would rather stick a red hot poker in my eye than pay to see either band live.”

Fair enough liberalHUSSEINmoderation@45. I like Buffet a lot, although have not seen him live, just goes to show there are many tastes under the sun.

true, very true.
I’m sure you wouldn’t wanna see some of my favorite bands live either…of course, most aren’t around anymore…Dead Kennedy’s, Misfits, Exploited…stuff like that.

49
Johnny Caldwell Says:

“true, very true.
I’m sure you wouldn’t wanna see some of my favorite bands live either…of course, most aren’t around anymore…Dead Kennedy’s, Misfits, Exploited…stuff like that.”

liberalHUSSEINmoderation@48 now the DKs I could get into. One of my girlfriends in college loved the song “Too Drunk To F**k” - I’m sure it had nothing to do with me. Back in those days I was into The Ramones, Buzzcocks, XTC, Elvis Costello, among others…..

50
Thursday Says:

So listen to (or read) Sell, Sell, Sell and tell me if it means anything… Though if you don’t hear it, you’re going to miss a lot.

While I’m not happy with their Lovers in a Dangerous Time cover (they were too young to have any meaning in it), their lives and politics do back up this song. These guys are activists and socialists, putting their support behind their beliefs. Well, unless you don’t think white people should be allowed to know about politics… After all, it’s not like they can do anything about it, right? So why interest them?

Johnny Caldwell: So why aren’t you still into the Ramones, Kennedys, Costello, et al? Nothing stopping you!

51
Jeffrey Stewart Says:

One wag put it this way, “These guys give barenaked ladies a bad name.”

52
Maggie Says:

I love BNL and try never to miss a concert. Thank you for posting this.

53
ysbaddaden Says:

Y’all remember when rock stars looked larger than life instead of some dweeb working at Barnes & Noble?

54
Rusty Shackleford Says:

ysbaddaden @ 53:

Y’all remember when rock stars looked larger than life instead of some dweeb working at Barnes & Noble?

You mean like this guy?

55
ysbaddaden Says:

54 Rusty Shackleford Says: ysbaddaden @ 53:

Y’all rem