Goodbye Lullaby
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Goodbye Lullaby is the fourth studio album by Canadian singer-songwriter Avril Lavigne. The album was first released on 2 March 2011 through RCA Records (Sony Music). Recording sessions began in November 2008, and took place over a period of two years, concluding in October 2010. The album's songs contain mostly stripped down instruments, such as the piano and acoustic guitar. Every song on the album was written by Lavigne, with half of the album being written with co-writers.
The lead single of the album, "What the Hell", was released on 11 January 2011. Lavigne premiered "What the Hell" on Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve in 2010.
Background and development
The album's and lead single's release dates had been pushed back several times. The album was originally scheduled for release on 17 November 2009.[1] Later, in January 2010, Lavigne stated that the album cover had been photographed and the first single would be released in April followed by the album in June.[2] In May, Lavigne said that she considered the album too serious and "mellow" and would return to the studio to balance the album out, "With an album, I don't want to rush it out.... I have a very serious record, so I think I need to put a couple upbeat, fun songs on it."[3]
I write my own music and, therefore, it takes me longer to put out records 'cause I have to live my life to get inspiration.
In August 2010, Lavigne returned to Henson Recording Studios[6] with producer Alex da Kid. During these sessions, Lavigne had strep throat, and the people involved were required to wear surgical masks.[5] Despite her doctor's warning, Lavigne recorded vocals, "I wasn't able to sing for the last forty-eight hours because I could do permanent damage to the vocal cords."[6] She revealed that she had been "trying new stuff" and that she was "exploring." Lavigne also added that she had enough material for two records.[5]
My record company were being a typical record company and trying to give me their version of how it should be – trying to get me to go in a different direction. I had to fight with them over and over. I was like, 'No, this is a really special record to me and this is what I'm doing'.
— Avril Lavigne, Digital Spy[7]
In October 2010, Lavigne was featured in Maxim for the November issue. During the interview she revealed that she had finished Goodbye Lullaby after two and a half years.[8] However, in November, Lavigne announced that her album had been completed for a year, citing her record company as the reason for the album's delays.[9] Lavigne stated that her record company wanted something more upbeat to keep up with mainstream radio, "Radio's very rhythmic and urban and dance today. I think they wanted me to do something more like that, but that's not what my vision was for this album".[7]
The entire track listing for the album was revealed on 21 December 2010,[10] after some were announced in early December.[11][12] It was also announced that two songs on the album, "4 Real" and "Goodbye", were both written and produced solely by Lavigne herself. The remaining tracks were either written by Lavigne or co-written with longtime collaborators Evan Taubenfeld, Butch Walker, and Max Martin.[11][12] Lavigne stated that her vocals were the most important instrument to her during the album's recording, "Typically the lead vocal gets buried in the track and you can’t always hear the quality, character, or emotion after a certain point. I wanted my voice to be the main instrument."[11]
Recording
Lavigne began recording in her home studio in November 2008 with "Black Star" only a month after completing The Best Damn Tour.[1] To help promote her first fragrance, Black Star, Lavigne needed a short theme that would be used for the TV spots. "Black Star" was composed in a Malaysian hotel during her tour. The jingle was eventually expanded into a full song, which Rolling Stone later described as "an ethereal lullaby that turns epic with tinkling Coldplay-like pianos and soaring strings."[13]
I always had material, but some people that I worked with didn’t really care, because they wanted to write the stuff.
— Avril Lavigne, Entertainment Weekly[1]
Recording began with minimal instruments, usually starting with Lavigne singing only to acoustic guitar, with additional instruments added later. Lavigne described the process: "It’s stripped down. I love performing that way, so I really felt like it was time to make a record like that. To just make it all about the vocal and the performance, and the vibe, and the emotion." Because she has a studio in her home, Lavigne was able to compose and record at her leisure. She also used the piano to compose the majority of the songs. "The piano is more of an emotional instrument. It stirs up different emotions for me and moves me in a different way than the guitar can."[14] By July 2009, nine tracks had been recorded,[1] including the songs "Fine", "Everybody Hurts" and "Darlin'". Several of the tracks were written in Lavigne's youth. "Darlin'" was the second song Lavigne wrote as a 15-year-old while living in Napanee, Ontario.[15] Lavigne stated that this album would be different from her previous work, "The other albums I've done, the songs are all over the place. This is the most consistent album all the way through."[16]
Composition
Lavigne described the album as being about "life". She stated, "It's so easy for me to do a boy-bashing pop song, but to sit down and write honestly about something that's really close to me, something I've been through, it's a totally different thing."[13] The album is expected to be a return to Lavigne's older musical style and may be largely acoustic.[15] With the exception of the album's lead single, Lavigne describes the songs on the album as different from her earlier material, "I'm older now, so I think that comes across in my music, it's not as pop-rock and it's a little more mellow and it's deep".[17] She said, "[For] this record, I just really, really wanted to sing.... I just wanna have silence around me, and have these acoustic songs and really deliver."[13] In November 2010, British producer Alex da Kid, who worked with Lavigne beginning in August 2010, stated that some songs on the album will have a hip-hop sound, "We've got some things that are hip-hop leaning, and we've got some things that are more pop/rock leaning".[18] In December, it was announced that the songs produced by Alex da Kid would not be on the album but Lavigne stated, "we’re gonna do something with that stuff, I’m just not sure what yet".[19]
Lavigne described the first single off the album, "What the Hell", as "a broad message about personal freedom", calling it her "most pop track on the record", the least personal song from the album[9] and the song most reminiscent of her previous work.[16] Another song, "Stop Standing There", has been described as having an "early- '50s girl-group feel" and "Smile" is about Lavigne's gratitude for special people in her life. "Push" is about relationships and "Wish You Were Here" shows Lavigne's vulnerable side.[20] Lavigne described the song "Everybody Hurts" as "different...but not different to stray away from who I am and what I am."[21] "Goodbye", one of the two songs Lavigne wrote and produced on her own, is about moving on in life.[20] Lavigne stated that "Goodbye" is the most personal song on the album and was the inspiration for the album's title.[19]
Critical reception
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | (61/100)[22] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| About.com |   [23] |
| Allmusic | [24] |
| The A.V. Club | (C-)[25] |
| BBC Music | Negative[26] |
| Digital Spy | [27] |
| Entertainment Weekly | B-[28] |
| The Globe and Mail |  [29] |
| The New York Times | (positive)[30] |
| Slant Magazine | [31] |
| Spin |   [32] |
The album received generally favorable reviews from music critics, based on an aggregate score of 61/100 from Metacritic.[22]. Andy Greenwald of Entertainment Weekly, a partner of CNN, said Goodbye Lullaby seeks a balance, "The first half is loaded with glossy confections, while the second consists of quieter reflections clearly inspired by ... Deryck Whibley", her ex-husband. The review ends by giving a grade of B- with the justification that the singer seems to be desperate to share her artistic interior, which is far from fully formed. [28] Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic compares Goodbye Lullaby to Under My Skin, also citing the divorce from Deryck Whibley as "The occasion for introspection". He concludes that Lavigne "seems to be grappling with emotions just beyond her reach, never articulating her angst or crafting a melancholy melody, making Goodbye Lullaby feel affected, not genuine."[24] The Canadian newspaper The Globe and Mail compared Lavigne, in 2002, to a "younger, sassier version of Alanis Morissette", but that her old niche as the punky pop star been taken over by Ke$ha and that Goodbye Lullaby contains little to catch the ear of anyone who isn't already a fan. The reviewer, Robert Everett-Green, criticizes the progression found within six songs: "it’s the basis of Pachelbel's Canon and about a jillion other pop songs." "Goodbye" was described as "a ballad with strings and piano that is the only thing Lavigne did all by herself, including the production. It's high in her register, and she sounds a bit like an angel with tattered wings. It's pretty slick, but it’s just genuine-sounding enough to hint at what Lavigne might be able to do if she scraped off the production makeup".[29] Bill Lamb from About.com gave to the album a rating of 3 stars, opining that: "Goodbye Lullaby leaves us waiting for the next chapter in Avril Lavigne's recording career. Perhaps with this album she has purged the weight of sadness and regret to prepare herself for the next steps forward. It sounds like we would all benefit if she has the courage to move forward in writing and producing songs on her own. The two tracks here indicate that she can be a very solid, compelling pop-rock artist when in complete control of the artistic vision. Mediocre Avril Lavigne remains more compelling than many artists, but Goodbye Lullaby feels a bit like a wasted moment in time".[23] Robert Copsey from Digital Spy was more positive, rating it 4 stars and commented that: "Production-wise, Goodbye is another straight-up pop-rock affair. It's a formula that shows little progression from her 2002 debut, and as such starts to wane towards the back-end of the album". Copsey conclued that: "the result remains a solid collection of tunes that neatly ties together the sounds of her last three records: the angst of Let Go, the raw emotion of Under My Skin and the pop hooks of The Best Damn Thing are all seamlessly interwoven here. It might make for an album that breaks little ground stylistically, but continues to keep Avril at the forefront of the brat-pop movement. .[27] Jon Parales from The New York Times was positive, expressing that "on “Goodbye Lullaby,” she’s trying to be a little more expansive, vocally and emotionally, without leaving pop territory". Pareles saw, positively, that: "It’s the pop-factory material, not Ms. Lavigne’s own presumably more personal songs, that offers details, humor and a sense of letting go. Her grown-up seriousness could use a little more of them".[30]
Singles
Lavigne premiered the lead single, "What the Hell", on Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve on 31 December 2010[12] during a pre-taped segment along with a performance of "Girlfriend".[19] Lavigne said the song is "a really fun, upbeat party song, so it worked out really well to play it for the first time on New Year's Rockin' Eve."[16] The following day, "What the Hell" was available as a free download for 48 hours from Lavigne's official Facebook page.[33] The video for the single was released in January 2011.[9]
Track listing
- Song lengths, writing credits and producing credits taken from the Goodbye Lullaby liner notes and Allmusic.[34][24]
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Black Star" | Avril Lavigne | Deryck Whibley | 1:34 |
| 2. | "What the Hell" | Lavigne, Max Martin, Shellback | Martin, Shellback | 3:40 |
| 3. | "Push" | Lavigne, Evan Taubenfeld | Whibley | 3:01 |
| 4. | "Wish You Were Here" | Lavigne, Martin, Shellback | Martin, Shellback | 3:45 |
| 5. | "Smile" | Lavigne, Martin, Shellback | Martin, Shellback | 3:29 |
| 6. | "Stop Standing There" | Lavigne | Butch Walker | 3:27 |
| 7. | "I Love You" | Lavigne, Martin, Shellback | Martin, Shellback | 4:01 |
| 8. | "Everybody Hurts" | Lavigne, Taubenfeld | Whibley | 3:41 |
| 9. | "Not Enough" | Lavigne, Taubenfeld | Whibley | 4:18 |
| 10. | "4 Real" | Lavigne | Lavigne | 3:28 |
| 11. | "Darlin" | Lavigne | Whibley | 3:50 |
| 12. | "Remember When" | Lavigne | Whibley | 3:29 |
| 13. | "Goodbye" | Lavigne | Lavigne | 5:29 |
| 14. | "Alice (Extended version)" (Hidden track) | Lavigne | Walker | 4:59 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12. | "Alice (Extended version)" | Lavigne | Walker | 4:59 |
| 13. | "Remember When" | Lavigne | Whibley | 3:29 |
| 14. | "Goodbye" | Lavigne | Lavigne | 5:29 |
| 15. | "Knockin' on Heaven's Door" | Bob Dylan | Lavigne | 2:53 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 15. | "What the Hell (Acoustic)" | 3:40 | |
| 16. | "Push (Acoustic)" | 2:46 | |
| 17. | "Wish You Were Here (Acoustic)" | 3:45 | |
| 18. | "Bad Reputation" | Joan Jett, Ritchie Cordell, Kenny Laguna, Marty Joe Kupersmith | 2:42 |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 19. | "What the Hell (Remix)" | 4:10 |
| 20. | "The Making of Goodbye Lullaby" |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Introduction" | |
| 2. | "Avril Talks About the Making of Goodbye Lullaby" | |
| 3. | "Avril in the Studio" | |
| 4. | "Goodbye Lullaby... The Songs" | |
| 5. | "First Band Rehearsals for 'What the Hell'" | |
| 6. | "Acoustic Studio Session" | |
| 7. | "Album Cover Photo Shoot" |
Personnel
Credits for Goodbye Lullaby adapted from Allmusic.[39]
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Release history
| Region | Date | Label |
|---|---|---|
| Japan[40][41] | 2 March 2011 | Sony Music Japan |
| Australia[42] | 4 March 2011 | RCA Records |
| Germany[43] | ||
| Ireland[44] | ||
| Netherlands[45] | ||
| Sweden[46] | ||
| United Kingdom[47] | 7 March 2011 | |
| Brazil [48] | Sony Music | |
| Russia[49] | ||
| Mexico[50] | 8 March 2011 | |
| Canada[51] | RCA Records | |
| United States[52] |
Charts and certifications
On March 10, 2011, Goodbye Lullaby debuted at number two[53] on the Japanese Oricon Albums Chart, with sales of 135,410 units in its opening week.
Charts
References
External links
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