Interview: Barenaked Ladies return to ‘iconic’ Cambridge venue
The name alone is enough to make Barenaked Ladies stand out. But even those unfamiliar with the Canadian quartet may know their music from the theme tune to American sitcom The Big Bang Theory or the end credits of the first American Pie film in 1999 where one of their biggest hits, One Week, was memorably used.
Fast forward a few years (well, two decades) and the multi-platinum band is making its way to the UK this month for a long-awaited tour – which hits the Cambridge Corn Exchange on March 21.
I spoke to the group’s drummer, Tyler Stewart, who grew up in Newmarket – the one in Ontario – about the foursome’s close connection to comedy. “I think first of all we have a lot of fans in the Hollywood comedy creative community, whether they’re old friends of ours from Toronto, or whether they’re new fans who just get what we do,” he explains.
“That’s been our connection to that all the time – it’s almost directly with the creatives who put these shows together. The two creators of The Big Bang Theory, for instance, Chuck Lorre and Bill Prady, were in the crowd at one of our shows in Los Angeles at the Greek Theatre and they heard a spontaneous improvisation that [founding member] Ed did about fractals, of all things; that’s the sort of the programming you’ll get from Barenaked Ladies.
“These guys were like, ‘Woah, we have to get them to do the theme song for this show we’re developing’. The show obviously was about scientists and lo and behold, we have the song on the most popular television comedy of all time.
“Those kinds of stories, with creative people digging what you do and then asking you to be involved in their project, that’s happened to us quite a bit over the years and we couldn’t be more grateful for that.”
And their music is fun. “Fun with a capital U!” exclaims Tyler. “Definitely. I think that has something to do with it because obviously the energy of the music, the lyrical content appeals to certain types of people.”
Over the course of 33 years, Barenaked Ladies, or BNL – Ed Robertson (vocals, guitars), Jim Creeggan (bass, vocals), Tyler Stewart (drums, vocals), and Kevin Hearn (keyboards, guitar, vocals) – have sold 15 million records worldwide and built up an enviable collection of hits including If I Had $1,000,000, One Week, Pinch Me, It’s All Been Done and Brian Wilson, which the legendary Beach Boy and subject of the song has even performed at his gigs.
Widely acknowledged as a leading live act, BNL have hosted a cruise, had their own ice cream flavour, amassed eight Juno Awards and were inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 2018. Ed’s fellow founding member Steven Page left the band to pursue a solo career in 2009, leaving the five-piece as a four-piece.
On what they’ve been up to of late, Tyler, speaking to the Cambridge Independent from his home in Toronto, says: “Before Christmas we tried do a run of holiday shows. We have a holiday album that we recorded in 2004 [Barenaked for the Holidays] and every few years or so we try out the holiday record.
“We were originally doing a residency near Toronto, at a theatre, and unfortunately Omicron kind of shut that down... We were pretty disappointed by that but we got right back on the horse again and after about a month or so we started to play shows in the US, we played a show in Mexico, so we’ve been getting our legs back, if you will, and we’re really excited about being in the UK.”
The Mexico gig took place in January in Cancun. “We played a show called Hootiefest,” reveals Tyler, “which was with Hootie & the Blowfish and a bunch of other bands – Blues Traveler, Spin Doctors, Better Than Ezra, Toad the Wet Sprocket... compatriots of ours from the 1990s actually, and we played this great show there.
“And that was a real pleasure because first of all it was really warm, and secondly it was the first show where I really felt like Covid is over. It’s not over, it just felt like it because the crowd was really into it and it was just a celebratory atmosphere.”
In July 2021, the band released its 16th studio album, the 14-track Detour de Force. The boys also teamed up with Tim Burgess, lead singer of The Charlatans, as part of his Twitter Listening Party for the album for fans both old and new.
Were the songs for the album written remotely during lockdown, before the band came together to record? “We actually had the songs written and recorded the first part of the record right before the pandemic hit,” says Tyler. “So in January and February of 2020 we got together at Ed’s cottage and recorded a very intimate, band-around-the-microphone-in-a-room-together record.
“Then we were shut down for a few months and then we managed to get back into the studio during June and July of ’20 and we kind of went for a bit more of a polished, pop produced sound – a ‘triple p’, if you will, because we were very happy with this intimate, acoustic setting that we had captured on the first part of the record, but we were also creating some of the more traditional, studio-crafted stuff.
“So I think the album Detour de Force kind of captures those two solitudes – on one hand you have some really mellow acoustic songs like Live Well and Man Made Lake, and then you have the more polished, pop production songs like Good Life, Flip and New Disaster. I really like the depth of the album for that reason.”
The catchy and upbeat Good Life sees Tyler, Ed, Jim and Kevin reflect on the life they’ve enjoyed as a band. “Yeah, it’s like the entire history of Barenaked Ladies distilled into a three-minute pop song,” notes Tyler, “which is kind of fun.
“I enjoy playing it every night and it’s actually something that we really believe because we probably enjoy our jobs more now than we ever have – we’re certainly more grateful to be able to do this for a living still. We don’t take it for granted, that’s for sure.”
Discussing longevity, Tyler, a huge ice hockey fan (“I’m either watching it or playing it or coaching it”), continues: “I think any band that manages to stay together for a long period of time does so because they still can stand each other, a), and b), they still have creative juices flowing and feel like they haven’t said everything.
“I think that’s the case with us, where you just feel like you have more to say or more to do. You focus on the task in hand making a record, but if there’s no need to stop – if you’re enjoying yourself – then I think that keeps you going.
“So I’m not sure any band really thinks long-term; they just think, ‘Are we enjoying ourselves currently?’ and for a lot of bands the answer to that is no and they stop. But we’re lucky, we’ve managed to sustain, through many ups and downs and twists and turns, this very satisfying career.”
He adds: “Having a life outside of the band is very important but also when you come back together, having the desire to do it still and the excitement. I mean I look forward to seeing my bandmates; it’s actually a pleasure to be in the same room creating things with them.”
Around the turn of the century, BNL’s music could be heard everywhere, on this side of the pond as well. Tyler describes it as an “amazing” time, though recalls that the band had first toured the UK way back in 1991.
“Around the turn of the millennium, selling out Wembley Arena was a highlight of our career,” he says, “and then two years later doing the Albert Hall, in 2001 – and on this tour we’re scheduled to play the Albert Hall again and that’ll be the first time in 21 years, so it’s pretty exciting for us.”
While Tyler grew up in Newmarket, Ontario, he confesses that he has never been to ‘our’ Newmarket, although he is aware of its racing connections. “Actually, I think we might have driven through it on the way to Cambridge one time – is that possible? I’ve never met anyone from Newmarket, England, though, I gotta say.”
He adds: “We always love playing the Corn Exchange; it’s just one of those iconic venues with a great name and we also look forward to strolling around the city. It’s always great to be in one of the nicest cities of the UK.”
Barenaked Ladies will be appearing at the Cambridge Corn Exchange on Monday, March 21. Visit cornex.co.uk for tickets. For more on Barenaked Ladies, go to barenakedladies.com.
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