This article needs additional citations for verification .(May 2019) |
"The Old Apartment" | ||||
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Single by Barenaked Ladies | ||||
from the album Born on a Pirate Ship | ||||
Released | April 22, 1997 | |||
Recorded | 1995 | |||
Genre | Alternative rock | |||
Length | 3:36 | |||
Label | Reprise | |||
Songwriter(s) | Steven Page Ed Robertson | |||
Producer(s) | Barenaked Ladies, Michael Phillip Wojewoda | |||
Barenaked Ladies singles chronology | ||||
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Music video | ||||
"The Old Apartment" on YouTube |
"The Old Apartment" is a song by the Canadian alternative rock group Barenaked Ladies. It was the band's first entry on the Billboard Hot 100 and first Mainstream Top 40 hit, appearing on the albums Born on a Pirate Ship , Rock Spectacle and Disc One: All Their Greatest Hits . The music video for the song, which garnered a Best Director nomination at the 1997 MuchMusic Video Awards, was directed by fellow Canadian and fan Jason Priestley at his own suggestion. [1]
Steven Page has said the song was partly inspired by "Back to the Old House" by The Smiths.[ citation needed ] While some[ weasel words ] have misinterpreted the lyrics to mean that the man in the song is stalking an ex-girlfriend and breaks into her apartment to terrorize her, Ed Robertson has said that this is definitely not the case. [2] The person in the song and his girlfriend are still together and happy, having "bought an old house on the Danforth" (Danforth Avenue in Toronto). However, he goes back to visit "the old apartment" "where we used to live", and winds up breaking in to reminisce. Although recalling "broken glass", the "crooked landing, crooked landlord", and other disadvantages, he nonetheless feels nostalgia for "fading memories / blending into dull tableaux".
The song drew a notable level of attention in the U.S.[ citation needed ] Priestley also invited the band to play the song at the fictional night club "The Peach Pit After Dark" on his series Beverly Hills, 90210 . With some isolated exceptions, this was the band's first break into the American market, which continued with their next release, a live version of "Brian Wilson" from the certified-gold album Rock Spectacle.[ citation needed ] The live version of "The Old Apartment" from that album was included on later American radio singles as a B-side option for stations.[ citation needed ]
The studio version of the song has two main versions: the original album version and a radio mix, which was a completely new mix of the song. Notable differences in the radio mix, besides a completely new audio mix, include an 8-bar instrumental intro and in Page's noticeably filtered vocal bridge. A 1995 demo version also appears on the compilation album Stop Us If You've Heard This One Before .
Apple Inc. included the music video on the Mac OS 8 installation CD as a QuickTime example.
New band member Kevin Hearn appeared in the music video despite not being present on the studio recording.
Chart (1997) | Peak position |
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Canada Top Singles ( RPM ) [3] | 14 |
Canada Adult Contemporary ( RPM ) [4] | 32 |
US Billboard Hot 100 [5] | 88 |
US Mainstream Top 40 ( Billboard ) [6] | 40 |
Barenaked Ladies is a Canadian rock band formed in 1988 in the Toronto suburb of Scarborough, Ontario. The band developed a following in Canada, with their self-titled 1991 cassette becoming the first independent release to be certified gold in Canada. They reached mainstream success in Canada when their debut with Reprise Records, Gordon, featuring the singles "If I Had $1000000" and "Brian Wilson", was released in 1992. The band's popularity subsequently spread into the US, beginning with versions of "Brian Wilson" and "The Old Apartment" off their 1996 live album Rock Spectacle, followed by their fourth studio album Stunt, their breakout success in 1998. The album featured their highest-charting hit, "One Week", as well as "It's All Been Done" and "Call and Answer". Their fifth album, Maroon, featuring the lead single "Pinch Me", also charted highly. In the 2010s the band became well-known for creating the theme song for the sitcom The Big Bang Theory.
Born on a Pirate Ship is the third full-length studio album by Barenaked Ladies (BNL), featuring the songs "Shoe Box", "The Old Apartment", "When I Fall" and "Break Your Heart". "The Old Apartment" would become BNL's first US hit in 1997.
Rock Spectacle is the first live album by Barenaked Ladies. It was also the first major success for the band in the United States, selling over one million copies and producing a hit single in the country in its version of "Brian Wilson." The album was recorded at two concerts: at the Riviera Theatre in Chicago and at The Olympia in Montreal during the Born on a Pirate Ship tour.
Stunt is the fourth full-length studio album by Canadian alternative rock band Barenaked Ladies. Their most successful album, it entered the US charts at No. 3 and sold over 4 million units by the end of its chart run. Its first single, "One Week" became the band's breakthrough single in the US market by hitting No. 1. The song also reached No. 5 in the UK, and helped revitalize their career in the band's home country of Canada, where their fame had diminished since the days of their debut album Gordon. In addition, follow-up singles "It's All Been Done", "Alcohol" and "Call and Answer" were each successful to some degree.
Maroon is the fifth full-length studio album by Barenaked Ladies. The album was the follow-up to 1998's Stunt, the band's most successful album in the United States. Maroon debuted at No. 1 in Canada and No. 5 on the U.S. Billboard 200. In its first week, the album sold 17,800 copies in Canada and just under 128,000 in the U.S. It has sold at least 1 million copies in the U.S. alone. The album spawned three hit singles : "Pinch Me", "Too Little Too Late" and "Falling for the First Time".
Disc One: All Their Greatest Hits (1991–2001) is a greatest hits compilation album by Barenaked Ladies which spans their first decade as a band. It contains released singles, plus new songs "It's Only Me " and "Thanks That Was Fun", the latter which was released as a single. Disc One was released in November 2001 to a warm commercial reaction and was certified gold in the United States. The title itself is a tongue-in-cheek reference to a line from the "Box Set" off the album Gordon, which is about a box set release from a has-been band: "Disc One – it's where we've begun/It's all my greatest hits/And if you are a fan then you know that you've already got 'em." The album was released two months after the September 11 attacks, and is dedicated to the victims. The album was among the top 50 best-selling albums of 2001 in Canada and the fourth best-selling album of the year in Canada by a Canadian artist.
Barenaked for the Holidays is a holiday-themed studio album released by Canadian band Barenaked Ladies on October 5, 2004. The album includes Christmas and Hanukkah songs as well as "Auld Lang Syne", which is traditionally sung on New Year's Eve. There are also several songs that are simply about the winter season. The album was the first album recorded at Steven Page's studio, Fresh Baked Woods and was the first released independently by Barenaked Ladies' Desperation Records label. It was the band's first studio album for which a "naked track" was not recorded. This album achieved Gold status in Canada.
"One Week" is a song by Canadian rock band Barenaked Ladies released as the first single from their 1998 album, Stunt. It was written by Ed Robertson, who is featured on the lead vocal of the rapped verses. Steven Page sings lead on the song's chorus, while the two co-lead the prechoruses in harmony. The song is notable for its significant number of pop culture references, and remains the band's best-known song in the United States, where it topped the Billboard Hot 100. Coincidentally, when the song reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, it remained in the top spot for one week.
"If I Had $1000000" is a song by the Canadian musical group Barenaked Ladies from their album Gordon. Composed by founding members Steven Page and Ed Robertson, the sing-along track has become one of the band's best-known songs, and is a live show staple, despite never having been a true single and without an accompanying music video. The song reached No. 13 in Canada and eventually charted in the United Kingdom and the United States, peaking also at No. 13 on the UK Rock Chart in 1996, as well as No. 37 on the US Billboard Adult Top 40 in 2000.
"Brian Wilson" is a song by Canadian rock band Barenaked Ladies from their 1992 album Gordon. The song was written by Steven Page as a tribute to the Beach Boys' co-founder Brian Wilson. It was released as a single and peaked at number 18 on the Canadian Singles Chart. In 1998, the song peaked at number 68 on the US Billboard Hot 100. Wilson himself covered the song on his live album Live at the Roxy Theatre (2000).
"Shoe Box" is a song by Canadian band Barenaked Ladies, released as a single from their 1996 album, Born on a Pirate Ship. It is notable for being featured on the first soundtrack to the television series Friends, as well as the last track on the band's Born on a Pirate Ship album. The song was also recorded and mixed for the band's live album, Rock Spectacle, but was ultimately left off, and later included on One Week single.
Barenaked in America is a 1999 documentary film about the Canadian band Barenaked Ladies filmed during the 1998-1999 Stunt tour. Directed by actor Jason Priestley, the film was first shown at the Toronto International Film Festival. The band and director introduced the film at the Winter Garden theatre.
"Pinch Me" is a song by Canadian rock band Barenaked Ladies. It was released as the first single from their 2000 album, Maroon, on August 7, 2000. The song became the band's final top-forty hit in the United States, peaking at number 15 on the Billboard Hot 100 on November 14, 2000. It also peaked at number two on Billboard's Adult Alternative Songs and Adult Top 40 charts. In Canada, the single reached number four on the RPM Top Singles chart, becoming the band's most recent top-ten hit in their native country.
"It's All Been Done" is a song by Canadian alternative rock group Barenaked Ladies. It was released as the second single from their 1998 album, Stunt. The song was successful in Canada, peaking at No. 1 on the RPM Top Singles chart and becoming the band's highest-charting song in their native country. The song was used as the theme song for the television series Baby Blues. The song is also notable for being one of the band's first to feature an electric guitar solo by Ed Robertson.
Barenaked Ladies Are Me is the seventh full-length original-material studio album by Barenaked Ladies. It was their first original-material album since Everything to Everyone in 2003. It was released in September 2006 internationally. The album was also the first full-length original-material album from the band following their decision to become independent rather than re-sign with Reprise. The cover art was created by a group of artists called Team Macho. The name has been cited by the band as a double entendre for "Barenaked Ladies Army".
All In Good Time is the ninth studio album by Barenaked Ladies, released by Raisin' Records 23 March 2010 in Canada, and 30 March 2010 in the United States. It is the first album recorded following the departure of founding member Steven Page in February 2009, and the band's second album recorded as a four-piece.
Silverball is the 11th full-length original-material studio album by Barenaked Ladies. The album was released on 2 June 2015. The album is the band's third studio album since the departure of founding member Steven Page in February 2009. The album was recorded in late 2014 and early 2015 with producer Gavin Brown.
BNL Rocks Red Rocks is the third official live album from Canadian band Barenaked Ladies. The album was formally announced on 1 February 2016 via the band's official Twitter page and was released on 20 May 2016. It was recorded at Red Rocks Amphitheatre to promote the release of Silverball on the Last Summer on Earth 2015 tour, The band held a Last Summer on Earth 2016 tour with Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark and Howard Jones in conjunction with the new live album. This is the band's first commercial live release other than those received by fans at shows since the departure of Steven Page in 2009.
Ladies and Gentlemen: Barenaked Ladies and The Persuasions is a collaborative album between Canadian rock band Barenaked Ladies and New York a cappella group The Persuasions. The album was released on April 14, 2017. The album consists of fourteen re-worked songs from Barenaked Ladies' back catalog, plus a cover of The Persuasions' song "Good Times".
Fake Nudes is the twelfth studio album by Canadian rock band Barenaked Ladies. It is the band's 12th full-length original-material studio album and their 16th overall. It was recorded from January to February 2017 at Noble Street Studios in Toronto, Ontario, and was released on 17 November 2017 through Vanguard.