God Bless the Go-Go's is the fourth and final studio album by the American rock band the Go-Go's, released on May 15, 2001. It was their first studio album after a lengthy hiatus, and was released 17 years after the band's previous album Talk Show was released in 1984.
| God Bless the Go-Go's | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | May 15, 2001 | |||
| Recorded | 2000–2001 | |||
| Studio | Sound City and Sound Image, except "Here You Are" at Moodus Noise and Sunset Sound Recorders (Los Angeles, California) | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 45:11 | |||
| Label | Beyond Music | |||
| Producer |
| |||
| The Go-Go's chronology | ||||
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| Singles from God Bless the Go-Go's | ||||
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While many of the band's earlier hits had been written within the band, the band worked with other artists for this album; songwriters that contributed to this album included Billie Joe Armstrong, Jill Sobule and Susanna Hoffs, among other musicians.
Critical reception and chart performance edit
God Bless the Go-Go's received a score of 68 out of 100 from Metacritic based on generally favorable reviews from critics.[1] Allmusic wrote, "Every bit as Go-Go's, that is, as their non-hits and less remarkable material. While the Go-Go's sound is intact, there is not a "We Got the Beat" or a "Head Over Heels" to be found. It is feasible that in this age of pop rebirth, the Go-Go's decided it was now or never."[2] Rolling Stone wrote "The album doesn't attempt to update the band's sound with hip-hop moves or electronic frippery, for which God should bless 'em, indeed. The girls' hold on the current pop world remains so strong that Green Day's Billie Joe Armstrong co-writes a song ("Unforgiven") in impeccable Go-Go's drag."[3]
The album sold fewer copies than the previous Go-Go's studio albums and peaked on the U.S. Billboard 200 at number 57.[4]
Two singles were released from the album; "Unforgiven" and "Apology."
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | (68/100)[1] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [2] |
| The A.V. Club | (favorable)[5] |
| Billboard | (favorable)[6] |
| Blender | [7] |
| Entertainment Weekly | (B+)[8] |
| PopMatters |   [9] |
| Q | [1] |
| Rolling Stone | [3] |
| Spin | (6/10)[1] |
| Uncut | [1] |
Track listing edit
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "La La Land" | 3:01 | |
| 2. | "Unforgiven" | 3:23 | |
| 3. | "Apology" |
| 3:57 |
| 4. | "Stuck in My Car" |
| 3:36 |
| 5. | "Vision of Nowness" |
| 2:55 |
| 6. | "Here You Are" |
| 4:01 |
| 7. | "Automatic Rainy Day" |
| 3:17 |
| 8. | "Kissing Asphalt" | Caffey | 2:49 |
| 9. | "Insincere" |
| 3:45 |
| 10. | "Sonic Superslide" |
| 3:33 |
| 11. | "Throw Me a Curve" |
| 3:11 |
| 12. | "Talking Myself Down" |
| 3:55 |
| 13. | "Daisy Chain" |
| 3:45 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "I Think I Need Sleep" (UK only) |
| 3:30 |
| 2. | "King of Confusion" (Japan only) |
| 3:07 |
Personnel edit
Credits adapted from the liner notes of God Bless the Go-Go's.[10]
- Band members
- Belinda Carlisle – lead vocals
- Charlotte Caffey – lead guitar, piano, backing vocals
- Jane Wiedlin – rhythm guitar, backing vocals
- Kathy Valentine – bass, backing vocals
- Gina Schock – drums
- Additional musicians
- Billie Joe Armstrong – additional guitar and vocals on "Unforgiven"
- Rami Jaffee – Mellotron and Chamberlin on "Here You Are"
- Peggy Baldwin – cello on "Here You Are"
- Roger Manning – Mellotron on "Daisy Chain"
- Production
- Paul Q. Kolderie, Sean Slade – producers, engineers, mixing at Record Plant, Fort Apache Studios, Magic Shop Studios and Record One
- Rick Neigher – producer and engineer on track 6
- Mike Shipley – mixing of tracks 1-4
- Marc DeSisto – mixing of track 6 at Skip Saylor, Los Angeles
- Tom Weir – mixing of track 13
- Mike King, Matt Levella, Chris Reynolds, Jaymz Hardy-Martin III – assistants
- Steve Hall – mastering at Future Disc
Charts edit
| Chart | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard 200[4] | 57 |
| U.S. Billboard Top Internet Albums[4] | 17 |
References edit
- ^ a b c d e Critic reviews on Metacritic
- ^ a b Fawthrop, Peter. "The Go-Go's God Bless the Go-Go's review". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved May 26, 2013.
- ^ a b Berger, Arion (July 19, 2001). "Album Reviews: The Go-Go's - God Bless the Go-Go's". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on February 14, 2007. Retrieved May 26, 2013.
- ^ a b c "God Bless the Go-Go's > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums". Allmusic. Retrieved January 10, 2012.
- ^ Phipps, Keith (April 19, 2002). "The Go-Go's - God Bless the Go-Go's". The A.V. Club. Retrieved May 26, 2013.
- ^ "Reviews & Previews: The Go-Go's". Billboard.com. Billboard. May 19, 2001. Archived from the original on June 8, 2001. Retrieved May 26, 2013.
- ^ Blender review
- ^ Sullivan, James (May 18, 2001). "Go-Go's - God Bless the Go-Go's". EW.com. Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on April 21, 2009. Retrieved May 26, 2013.
- ^ Varkentine, Ben (May 14, 2001). "The Go-Go's: God Bless the Go-Go's". PopMatters. Retrieved May 26, 2013.
- ^ God Bless the Go-Go's (liner notes). The Go-Go's. Beyond Music. 2001.
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