''Born on a Pirate Ship'' (sometimes abbreviated ''BOAPS'') is the third full-length studio
album
An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records co ...
by
Barenaked Ladies (BNL), featuring the songs "Shoe Box", "
The Old Apartment
"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 Specta ...
", "When I Fall" and "Break Your Heart". "The Old Apartment" would become BNL's first US hit in 1997.
''Born on a Pirate Ship'' was recorded as a four-piece quartet, following the departure of keyboardist
Andy Creeggan
Andrew Burnett Creeggan (born July 4, 1971) is a former member of the Canadian alternative rock band Barenaked Ladies. He was also a member of the trio The Brothers Creeggan, and a solo artist having released three albums.
Career
Barenaked Ladi ...
.
Kevin Hearn is not credited on the album, but joined the group for the 1995 tour preceding the album's release in time to be thanked in the liner notes for "injecting new spirit."
Steven Page
Steven Jay Page (born June 22, 1970) is a Canadian musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He was a founding member, lead singer, guitarist, and a primary songwriter of the music group Barenaked Ladies. Page left the band in Februar ...
and
Ed Robertson
Lloyd Edward Elwyn Robertson (born October 25, 1970) is a Canadian musician, best known as the lead singer, guitarist, and songwriter of the band Barenaked Ladies. He, along with former member Steven Page, founded the group in 1988. As of Page's ...
returned to writing together, as they did upon the band's formation, but had abandoned following the release of ''
Gordon
Gordon may refer to:
People
* Gordon (given name), a masculine given name, including list of persons and fictional characters
* Gordon (surname), the surname
* Gordon (slave), escaped to a Union Army camp during the U.S. Civil War
* Clan Gordon, ...
''.
The album is also an
enhanced CD. The data track contains audio samples from the band's previous two CDs, a short montage of press photos, several of the band's music videos, a short trivia quiz, and a pair of "behind the scenes" videos from the band. Similar content was included and expanded upon on the ''
Shoe Box
"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 t ...
E.P.''; however, the format of the enhanced CD used in the creation of that CD renders the data track inaccessible on modern operating systems.
Although a moderate hit in Canada reaching No. 12, the album managed No. 111 in the US. ''Born on a Pirate Ship'' was awarded gold status in the U.S. in 2000.
The title and front cover photo refers to a vulgar joke that was popular around the time the band members were children. One kid would instruct another to pull back the corners of their mouth with their fingers (but not stick their tongue out) and say, "I was born on a pirate ship." The result would sound like them saying, "I was born on a pile o' shit." Sometimes "with a bunch of apples" would be added at the end, which would come out as "with a bunch of assholes."
Track listing
Personnel
Barenaked Ladies
*
Jim Creeggan
James Raymond Creeggan (born February 12, 1970) is the bassist for Canadian alternative rock band Barenaked Ladies. Early life
Creeggan was born in Scarborough, Ontario. His mother taught piano lessons to neighborhood children, which Creeggan c ...
– vocals, double bass, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, dobro, fiddle, piano, electric double bass, percussion, yells
*
Steven Page
Steven Jay Page (born June 22, 1970) is a Canadian musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He was a founding member, lead singer, guitarist, and a primary songwriter of the music group Barenaked Ladies. Page left the band in Februar ...
– vocals, sound effects, electric guitar, percussion, yells
*
Ed Robertson
Lloyd Edward Elwyn Robertson (born October 25, 1970) is a Canadian musician, best known as the lead singer, guitarist, and songwriter of the band Barenaked Ladies. He, along with former member Steven Page, founded the group in 1988. As of Page's ...
– vocals, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, pedal steel guitar, bass guitar, cowbell, sound effects, yells
*
Tyler Stewart
Tyler Joseph Stewart (born September 21, 1967) is the drummer for the Canadian music group Barenaked Ladies.
Role in Barenaked Ladies
Stewart met Steven Page, Ed Robertson, and Jim Creeggan at the Waterloo Busker Carnival in Waterloo, Ontario ...
– drums, piano, vibraphone, percussion, shaker, Fisher-Price xylophone, tambourine, background vocals, , yells
Additional personnel
*
Bryan Adams
Bryan Guy Adams (born 5 November 1959) is a Canadian musician, singer, songwriter, composer, and photographer. He has been cited as one of the best-selling music artists of all time, and is estimated to have sold between 75 million and mor ...
– yells
*
Chris Brown –
organ
* Mark Fewer –
violin
The violin, sometimes known as a '' fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone ( string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument ( soprano) in the family in regu ...
*
Gene Hardy
Gene Hardy is a Canadian multi-instrumentalist and vocalist. He performs on saxophone, violin, musical saw and theremin.
Career
Hardy's early music training began in Victoria, British Columbia—first on violin at age 9, then on saxophone a yea ...
–
tenor saxophone
The tenor saxophone is a medium-sized member of the saxophone family, a group of instruments invented by Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. The tenor and the alto are the two most commonly used saxophones. The tenor is pitched in the key of B (while ...
, saw
*
Hugh Marsh
Hugh Marsh (born June 5, 1955) is a violinist from Toronto, known for his electric violin sound. Marsh was nominated for a 2007 Juno Award in the best contemporary jazz album category.
Early days
Marsh was born in Montreal, Quebec and brought ...
– fiddle
*
Murray McLauchlan
Murray Edward McLauchlan, (born 30 June 1948) is a Canadian singer, songwriter, guitarist, pianist, and harmonica player. He is best known for his Canadian hits "Farmer's Song," "Whispering Rain," and "Down by the Henry Moore".
Early life
Mc ...
– harmonica
*
Michael Phillip Wojewoda
Michael Phillip Wojewoda is a Canadian record producer and musician. He has been nominated for eight Juno Awards and has received one for Recording Engineer of the Year and one for Producer of the Year.
History
Wojewoda began recording bands ...
– background vocals, tambourine, sound effects, yells
* Tony Rapoport –
viola
; german: Bratsche
, alt=Viola shown from the front and the side
, image=Bratsche.jpg
, caption=
, background=string
, hornbostel_sachs=321.322-71
, hornbostel_sachs_desc=Composite chordophone sounded by a bow
, range=
, related=
*Violin family ...
* Tim Walsh –
trombone
The trombone (german: Posaune, Italian, French: ''trombone'') is a musical instrument in the brass family. As with all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player's vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate ...
* Stoney Park Pow-Wow Singers – singing and drumming
*
Robert Tilton
Robert Gibson Tilton (born June 7, 1946) is an American televangelist and the former pastor of the Word of Faith Family Church in Farmers Branch, Texas, a suburb of Dallas. At his ministry's peak in 1991, Tilton's infomercial-style program, ''Su ...
– sample saying "and you have faith! You just need to use it, saith the Lord" on "I Know"
Production
* Producers: Barenaked Ladies, Michael Phillip Wojewoda
* Engineer: Michael Phillip Wojewoda
* Assistant engineers: Jeff Elliott, Tom Heron, Dale Morningstar
* Mixing: Michael Phillip Wojewoda
* Piano preparation: Robin Billinton, Steven Page
Singles
Charts
Album
Singles
References
{{Authority control
Barenaked Ladies albums
1996 albums
Reprise Records albums
Albums produced by Michael Phillip Wojewoda