Everything to Everyone (album)

(Redirected from Testing 1,2,3)

Everything to Everyone (commonly abbreviated E2E) is the sixth full-length studio album by Barenaked Ladies. It was released in 2003 and was produced by Ron Aniello. Singles from the album include "Another Postcard", "Testing 1, 2, 3", "For You", "Celebrity" and "Maybe Katie". The content of the album is noted for its increased political commentary over previous albums. This was their last album with Reprise Records (or any major label for that matter) before switching to a more independent label, Desperation Records and subsequently Raisin' Records.

Everything to Everyone
Studio album by
ReleasedOctober 21, 2003
RecordedApril 3 – May 25, 2003
GenreAlternative rock
Length50:40
LabelReprise
ProducerRon Aniello
Barenaked Ladies chronology
Everything Acoustic
(2003)
Everything to Everyone
(2003)
Barenaked for the Holidays
(2004)
Singles from Everything to Everyone
  1. "Another Postcard"
    Released: September 3, 2003
  2. "Testing 1,2,3"
    Released: February 2004
  3. "For You"
    Released: 2004
  4. "Celebrity (UK only)"
    Released: July 13, 2004
  5. "Maybe Katie (Canada only)"
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic56/100[1]
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[2]
Blender[3]
Consequence of Sound[4]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music[5]
Entertainment WeeklyB[6]
NOW[7]
Popmatters[8]
Q[9]
Rolling Stone[10]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[11]

Creative process

edit

After an intensive period of recording and touring from 1995 to 2001, Barenaked Ladies (BNL) entered their first extended hiatus in 2002, lasting until most of 2003. Upon returning to the studio to record Everything to Everyone, the band instituted a new policy of keeping songwriting exclusively within the group. This decision led to increased contributions from Jim Creeggan and Kevin Hearn, resulting in a larger number of tracks, ultimately culminating in a 14-song album with an additional bonus track. The album, recorded in Los Angeles, marked the band's first project after launching an online blog, which provided fans with continuous updates and insights into their creative process.

During the latter stages of recording, the band utilized the facility's B-studio to produce acoustic versions of the album's tracks. Drummer Tyler Stewart improvised a drum kit from unconventional objects, and the band performed acoustic renditions of eleven songs, omitting "Shopping," "Unfinished," "War on Drugs," and the bonus track "Yes! Yes!! Yes!!!" This acoustic session was deemed successful, leading to a similar approach for their subsequent album, Barenaked Ladies Are Me (aka BLAM).

The album cover, painted by Canadian artist Chris Woods, features a profile of the band members holding a white flag of surrender. The album title was initially displayed as a sticker on the transparent wrapping to maintain the flag's symbolism. The special edition featured the title on a clear plastic sleeve, aligned with the flag's waves. The original 60" x 60" oil painting reportedly hangs in Steven Page’s farmhouse studio, Fresh Baked Woods.

Several tracks recorded during these sessions were not included on the final album, including:

  • "Statue of Los Angeles" (unreleased) – a Hearn composition later released on his album The Miracle Mile.
  • "Sign Me Up" (unreleased) – described as a profanity-laden track.
  • "Adrift" – re-recorded for BLAM and released on Stop Us If You've Heard This One Before
  • "What a Let Down" – re-recorded for BLAM
  • "I Can, I Will, I Do" – re-recorded for BLAM; featured on iTunes Originals - Barenaked Ladies; later released on Stop Us If You've Heard This One Before.
  • "Yes! Yes!! Yes!!!" – bonus track on the special edition DVD and the UK single for "Celebrity"; later released on Stop Us If You've Heard This One Before

Continuing a tradition from their early albums, the band recorded the song "Sign Me Up" entirely in the nude. Everything to Everyone was the final BNL album to include a track recorded in this fashion.

Release

edit

Everything to Everyone was issued in three distinct editions:

  1. standard 14-track version.
  2. limited edition featuring three bonus tracks from an acoustic session, identified by a special sticker.
  3. special edition presented in a threefold digipack with a plastic sleeve, containing the standard CD and a bonus DVD titled "Everything Else." The DVD included DVD-Audio of the album with the additional track "Yes! Yes!! Yes!!!", as well as both video and stereo-audio formats of the acoustic session and various studio video clips.

The lead single, "Another Postcard," was perceived by many fans as an effort by the record label to replicate the success of previous hits "One Week" from Stunt and "Pinch Me" from Maroon, due to its similar style and rap-based vocals. Despite promotional appearances on major U.S. talk shows, the single did not achieve notable success. The band supported the album with the U.S. Peepshow Tour, which deviated from typical promotional efforts, appearing to cater more to dedicated fans than to a broader audience. Everything to Everyone debuted in the Top 10 in both Canada and the U.S. but experienced a swift decline on the charts. It became only the band's second album, following 1994's Maybe You Should Drive, to not achieve at least Gold certification in the U.S.

The album's second single, "Testing 1,2,3," was released in early 2004, accompanied by a music video and coinciding with a more conventional arena tour. In Canada, "Maybe Katie" was released as a radio single. However, the album did not experience a significant sales revival.

A third single, "For You," was released as a CD single featuring both the album version and a live recording from Glasgow, Scotland, but it did not receive a music video and garnered minimal airplay. In the UK, "Celebrity" was issued as a radio and commercial single, but it similarly failed to gain traction.

DualDisc version

edit

Everything to Everyone was included among a group of 15 DualDisc releases that were test marketed in Boston and Seattle. It contains the standard CD album on one side, and bonus DVD material on the second side. The DualDisc version has not been reissued.

Track listing

edit

All tracks are written by Steven Page and Ed Robertson, except where noted

No.TitleWriter(s)Lead vocalsLength
1."Celebrity"
Steven Page3:27
2."Maybe Katie"
Steven Page, Ed Robertson2:58
3."Another Postcard" Steven Page, Ed Robertson3:25
4."Next Time"
  • Page
  • Robertson
  • Creeggan
  • Hearn
Steven Page3:51
5."For You" Ed Robertson3:27
6."Shopping"
  • Page
  • Robertson
  • Hearn
Steven Page3:34
7."Testing 1,2,3" Ed Robertson3:32
8."Upside Down" Steven Page3:15
9."War on Drugs" Steven Page5:32
10."Aluminum" Ed Robertson4:34
11."Unfinished"
  • Page
  • Robertson
  • Hearn
Steven Page, Ed Robertson3:00
12."Second Best"
  • Page
  • Robertson
  • Hearn
Steven Page3:21
13."Take It Outside" Ed Robertson3:49
14."Have You Seen My Love?" Steven Page2:55
Limited Edition bonus tracks
No.TitleWriter(s)Lead vocalsLength
15."Another Postcard (acoustic)" Steven Page, Ed Robertson3:35
16."Maybe Katie (acoustic)"
  • Page
  • Robertson
  • Creeggan
Steven Page, Ed Robertson3:09
17."Second Best (acoustic)"
  • Page
  • Robertson
  • Hearn
Steven Page3:21

Personnel

edit

References

edit
  1. ^ "Everything To Everyone by Barenaked Ladies". Retrieved October 3, 2016.
  2. ^ Wilson, MacKenzie. Everything to Everyone at AllMusic. Retrieved 2011-09-02.
  3. ^ "Barenaked Ladies: Everything to Everyone". Blender: 108. November 2003.
  4. ^ Tully2K. "Wait, You've Never Heard: Barenaked Ladies' Everything to Everyone". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved September 2, 2011.{{cite magazine}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  5. ^ Larkin, Colin (2011). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th concise ed.). Omnibus Press. ISBN 0-85712-595-8.
  6. ^ Weingarten, Marc (October 24, 2003). "Everything to Everyone Review". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on April 25, 2009. Retrieved April 2, 2012.
  7. ^ Galloway, Matt (October 23, 2003). "Barenaked Ladies: Everything to Everyone". NOW. Retrieved November 17, 2017.
  8. ^ Schabe, Patrick (November 13, 2003). "Barenaked Ladies: Everything to Everyone". Popmatters. Retrieved November 17, 2017.
  9. ^ "Barenaked Ladies: Everything to Everyone". Q: 98. May 2004.
  10. ^ Hoard, Christian (November 4, 2003). "Barenaked Ladies: Everything To Everyone : Music Reviews". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on October 1, 2007. Retrieved April 2, 2012.
  11. ^ Wolk, Douglas (2004). "Barenaked Ladies". The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). New York: Simon & Schuster. pp. 44–45. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
edit