by Dawn St John

     Years before the song "One Week" hit the radio waves and ultimately made Barenaked Ladies a household name, they released their debut album, Gordon. For me, this was the

epitome of BNL music. They had a sound that was perfect for indie and college radio stations, which was, of course, where I first heard them.

     I remember being very fond of "What a Good Girl," and amused by "If I Had $1,000,000" (which everyone knows now, thanks to its commercial use in lottery advertisements). Even as I was just starting to listen to anything "alternative" and "different," I knew they had something. Singing along with their bouncy melodies is a major part of my late-teen memories.

     Underlying the energetic rhythms and lighthearted tones, though, were deep and witty lyrics. Such lines as, "I wax poetic as you're waxing your legs," are a prime example of the double-entendre that really made Barenaked Ladies famous in

the first place. The music was never complicated, but it didn't have to be; that wasn't its purpose.

     In the end, what Gordon really taught me was that despite growing up on Top 40 stations, my tastes run to the less radio-friendly tracks on any given album. Sure "Brian Wilson" and "Be My Yoko Ono" were great songs, and I still love belting them out in the car, even today. But the songs that really catch me when I listen to the CD are the more unusual songs. "Crazy," "I Love You," and "Wrap Your Arms Around Me," are all tracks that wouldn't have been likely to get radio play, but each one has its own distinct sound, proving that BNL was never meant to be put inside a box and given a label.