Disco de Barenaked Ladies: “Talk to the Hand: Live in Michigan”

Okay, as to the music, top notch. Kind of a weird track selection, I mean the hits are there, but it leans very heavily on their recent work. The recording is great, and they always play well.

What annoyed me is that I bought this CD, and I also bought the DVD, because there is no indication that the DVD would be packaged with this CD. Is that what Enhanced means? Confusing.

This cd is awesome! The BNL's are the best live act and the cd is great to listen to for the music along with the stories. This is a nice blend of their older songs along with the new ones. It's just like being at one of their shows, which are so much fun. I would recommend this cd to long-time fans along with new listeners. I think it would be enjoyed by either one!

I never heard of their songs except in a Christmas DVD of Anne Murray. I bought this CD+DVD combo (new one, not used) in a big department store in Vancouver, BC, at an incredibly low price. They are pretty good, and I think Ed is a better singer than Steven.

Seeing as this includes both the CD and DVD version of a full Barenaked Ladies concert (minus the encore), this is the closest one can get to a concert without going there. I think it's great having the CD for listening to in the car and while at work, plus the DVD to watch the concert. For those who haven't been to a BNL concert, they put on a pretty good show full of energy. Recently I played the DVD for someone who's never been to one of their concerts and he enjoyed it very much.

Yes, since BNL started releasing live CDs and official bootlegs from most of their shows there is no lack of live CDs; however, I'm unaware of many DVDs. Especially with the departure of Steven Page from the group, I'm happy to have this concert footage to watch. It captures the experience, including Steven and Ed running and jumping around the stage, some funny improv, and the group's antics and freeze-frame pose after "Angry People". If you look closely, you can even see some macaroni thrown onto the stage during "If I Had $1000000", just like fans used to do more often before the band tried putting a stop to the tradition (I imagine it would get annoying). The set list includes a decent mix of classics such as "Old Apartment", "One Week", and "Brian Wilson" along with some of the better recent tracks such as "Adrift" and "Bank Job". The group goes acoustic to perform "For You" and "Be My Yoko Ono", coming out center stage for the latter.

All in all, I'm rather satisfied with the package. I have a few minor gripes... It would've been nice to see and hear the encore(s) as well; BNL have often done multiple encores but none are included here. It's also likely the band had more banter in-between songs than what's included here; one of the most entertaining things about their concerts is the little improvs they do. I like the set list for the most part, with the exception of "Powder Blue" - personally I think it's a weak song and can see why it was relegated to being a b-side. It could've been better replaced by a similarly styled song like "Break Your Heart", "Call and Answer" or "War on Drugs". Lastly, while most of the editing was spot-on, getting good close-ups of each band member as well as wide shots, for some reason they cut away during "Brian Wilson" right when Steven and Ed do their little simultaneous jump.

These criticisms are admittedly minor, so I would definitely recommend this CD/DVD package to anyone looking to experience BNL live. For those who already have enough of their live material on CD this might not present anything new for music, but the DVD included is great to have. And for roughly just $5 more than the price of the DVD packaged by itself, you get the CD of the same concert to enjoy when you feel like just listening.

I was really excited since it was recorded in Michigan, but overall that was kind of irrelevant. Still displays all of their classic songs.