Lonelyland [Explicit Lyrics]

Bob Schneider | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 13, 2001)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Explicit Lyrics
• Label: Fontana Universal
• ASIN: B00005A8MI
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (74 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #33,389 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Ugly Americans may be on the wane, but various survivors of the Austin alt-pop outfit do turn out to support frontman Bob Schneider on this solo effort. Lonelyland showcases Schneider's competing interests as a singer-songwriter (nice Elvis Costello-like melodic turns of "Big Blue Sea") and Southern white-boy rapper (most notably on the swampy "Bullets"). But things get really strange on "The World Exploded into Love," on which a sub-Barenaked Ladies spiel is paired with full-blown female operatic accompaniment. Schneider, it turns out, is the son of an opera singer, so the song makes sense biographically, if not musically. While fans of Schneider's prior outfits (Joe Rockhead, Ugly Americans, and the Scabs) will likely find things to love on this album, Lonelyland sounds like the work of a solo artist who's still finding his own voice. --Bill Forman

Entertainment Weekly

"...Schneider has emerged as a genuine songwriting talent."

"Loneyland plays like a CD changer loaded with Tom Waits, Prince, Sting, David Byrne and Beck, in 'shuffle' mode."

"draws on country, pop, rock, blues, and even touch of Austin rap to create sounds as broad as the Southwest."

See all Editorial Reviews

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Bob Schneider w/ Lonelyland, February 15, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Lonelyland (Audio CD)

Well, The CD hasn't made it out to the world quite yet, but it has been out for awhile here in Austin, TX! I have been going to see Bob Schneider's act for just about the past three years. He is an amazing singer/songwriter with a great supporting cast of Stephen Bruton, Bruce Hughes, Danny Levin, Michael Longoria, and David Boyle. Every track on the "Lonelyland" CD flows wonderfully together, with a blues, rock, bluegrass tune. This is a must have for any music lover, I highly recommend it.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Austin's Biggest Kept Secret, April 5, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Lonelyland (Audio CD)

I first got introduced to Bob Schneider's music about a year ago. A few of the songs like "Big Blue Sea" and "Metal and Steel" were frequently played on the radio. These got me interested in hearing the rest of the album and I've never looked back since. This album is the real deal showcasing Bob Schneider's varied musical talents with catchy lyrics and sincere emotion. Everyone will find something to like, probably to love, about Lonelyland. "Tokyo" speaks to the frustrated, twisted way we all feel amid personal crisis (this is where the explicit lyrics come in) while "The World Exploded into Love" takes us to a higher level of awareness with it's intensity. Having seen Bob perform live, I can honestly say he's put his heart into this CD, just like he does on stage, and it clearly shows. Since nothing's perfect, I can't give this CD a 5, but it's the closest I've seen in a long while. Austin's got yet another reason to be proud.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Another top effort out of Austin, May 18, 2001

By 

Erik K (Austin, TX United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Lonelyland (Audio CD)

Some may claim that the Austin music scene is on the wane, but you'd never guess it from this new release by a current favorite son.

The styles range from the laid-back folk of Metal and Steel to the harder Jingy to the almost Tom Waits-ish Blue Skies for Everyone, with other styles and moods mixed in. Schneider has a good voice, and he knows how to use it, along with great instrumentation and production that support the moods and don't bury the songs.

This is an album that rewards repeated listenings. You get the feeling that the editorial reviewer for this album listened only once, if that, and not very attentively. There is no opera singer on World Exploded into Love, it's on Round and Round (and as far as I know, his mother wasn't an opera singer: His girlfriend Sandra Bullock's mother is, and that's her on the song).

Give the samples a try, they show the range of this album. Shame that the definitely-not-sub-Barenaked Ladies gem Round and Round isn't available for preview... you'll just have to buy the album to fall in love with that one.