Gordon Lightfoot Book, Music and More!

This 14-song collection, spanning songs from 1992’s Gordon to last year’s All in Good Time, captures the manic energy, wordplay and tunefulness that has always been at the heart of Barenaked Ladies. Humor is the driving force behind hits like “If I Had a Million Dollars” and “One Week,” in which Ed Robertson famously name-checks everyone from Sting and Harrison Ford to LeAnn Rimes. But often it’s Steven Page’s darker songs, including “Brian Wilson” and “Call and Answer,” that resonate well beyond the laughter.

The Ladies’ currency has always been catchy songs that excel in clever rhymes and witty wordplay. After 27 years, the Ladies—Ed Robertson, Jim Creeggan, Kevin Hearn and Tyler Stewart—are at their tuneful, wisecracking best. The group’s 14th album finds the Ladies on a roll, boasting all the swagger of a group that knows its strengths. It opens with the rocking “Get Back Up,” a song about midlife resurgence that floats like a butterfly and stings like a bee with its pithy boxing metaphors. “Say What You Want” is an exuberant expression of mature confidence, while “Duct Tape Heart” uses Red Green’s favorite fix-all material to express romantic resiliency. The title track reflects Robertson’s o...

The Ladies' luck has changed. While Canada's Barenaked Ladies have fizzled at home in the past few years, their career has exploded south of the border. Last week, with the release of the pop band's latest album, Stunt, the five musicians performed on ABC-TV's Good Morning America before an estimated 3.8 million viewers. Later that same Monday, the Ladies flew to Boston where they gave a free, half-hour concert for 80,000 people-double the number local officials were expecting-in front of city hall, followed by a four-hour autograph session. On Tuesday, they delivered more tunes and signatures to fans at a Detroit music store. Then it was on to Chicago, where the band did it all over again a...

With his straggly, shoulder-length hair, torn blue jeans and red sneakers, Greig Nori doesn’t look like the sort of man to be wined and dined in elegant restaurants by smooth-talking business executives. But Nori, who is in his late 20s, is a singer-guitarist in a band called treble charger, one of the hottest new acts in Canada. And several major record companies have been vigorously courting the group for the past year with a series of lucrative contract offers. Although flattered by the attention, treble charger shocked many in the record industry last month by turning down all the big-league offers. It chose instead to continue releasing albums on its own Smokin’ Worm Records, the company the band created in 1993 for its acclaimed debut, NC17. Distribution will be handled by another tiny label, Hamilton’s Sonic Unyon. "Sure, a record deal may be every kid’s dream," says Nori, who is originally from Sault Ste. Marie, Ont. "But we felt confident enough that we’re better off on our own."

The Ladies have soldiered on since the 2009 departure of Steven Page, with co-founder Ed Robertson carrying most of the freight. Here, Robertson supplies catchy examples of the band’s classic wordplay, including “Odds Are” and “Did I Say That Out Loud.” He also reflects darker emotions, especially on the deeply confessional “Boomerang.”