Goodbye Lullaby

I never used to like this album much, but I've developed more of an appreciation for it lately.

Better than LG or UMS or TBDT? Nah. But songs like Everybody Hurts, Not Enough, and Remember When are surely classics, and I'm sorry for ever doubting them. I still think it was a mistake to put WTH and Smile on there, but that's just beating a dead horse.

I've liked GL since it came out (more than TBDT which gets a bit samey for me and partly more than UMS because the lyrics aren't great) but now I really only listen to the second half of it. Not Enough, Remember When (my favourite), Darlin, 4Real, Goodbye, Alice, Everybody Hurts - they're all good songs. Push is the only one in the 1st half I like. I wish we had gotten the album she wanted instead of the extra songs the label forced on.

It's one of my favourite too! Everybody Hurts, Darlin, Remember When, Not Enough

i agree

Pros:
- Love that she wrote half the album on her own, produced 2 songs for the first time, and played instruments on 6 songs, including piano for the first time
- Vocally probably one of her best albums
- The album artwork is very beautiful and suits the vibe of the album very well
- I like that generally this is a personal album from her and that she wanted to do things she hadn't done before, such as writing full songs on her own and producing
- It's a nice album if you are looking for something more mellow to listen to, since most of her other stuff is loud and aggressive
- She tried to keep it mostly "in the family" with the writers and producers she worked with



Cons:
- Of course WTH and Smile don't really fit and kind of throw off the "mellow" vibe
- Vocally sometimes she is using a weird voice or weird accent that I don't really like
- I appreciate that she tried to write personal songs and write songs on her own, however some of the lyrics are kind of dull, unimaginative, not really very descriptive, just kind of boring
- The album as a whole is kind of boring to me and a little bit too much of the same sounding thing. I don't find myself ever wanting to play this album in its entirety because it's just too boring
- The production could have been better on some of the songs. A lot of the songs remind me of the kind of album some female singer songwriter would have released in the '90s. Sounds outdated to me and like they could have tried to make it sound more modern or at least add some more instruments to the tracks. I find some of them sound "empty"


Overall this album is just ok for me. I appreciate the concept of it, but I think the execution was poor. A bit of a hit and miss IMO. There are some good standout tracks though, like her self-writtens. 4/5

I'm in love with the album from the day it was released. And I don't stop listening to it ever since. Sure, there are some tracks on it that don't always fit, like Remember When, Goodbye, WTH, 4Real. But it has some of my all-time favourites on it. Not Enough, I Love You, Darlin and especially Everybody Hurts. The ending of Everybody Hurts is probably the best part of any song. You don't want the song to end, just brilliant.

But I absolutely don't get why Bad Reputation is a bonus track on this album. It destroys the mood completely. Also I don't think it is a good cover at all.

This is my favorite album. I didn't hear it when it came out - only heard it a couple months ago when I became a real fan . I don't know why it wasn't more popular. In my opinion it's Avril at her peak. Has a nice mix of fun pop songs and slower songs that are amazing in both studio and live versions (listen to the AOL/Walmart videos if you haven't already!). I also think Avril had the best look in that era. Still not sure why songs like What the Hell and Smile didn't catch on more - they're really fun with great music videos. I really wish I was a fan back then to go to see her on tour