Barenaked Ladies - The Old Apartment (Video)

What this video is

Released in 1996 from the album Born on a Pirate Ship, 'The Old Apartment' marked the Barenaked Ladies' first entry onto the US Billboard Hot 100, reaching #88 in May 1997. The video was a key artifact of mid-90s Canadian music's crossover ambitions, amplified by director Jason Priestley's celebrity leverage with American broadcasters and his invitation for the band to appear on Beverly Hills, 90210. The video's…

Why it matters

A cornerstone of mid-90s Canadian alternative rock, this video helped establish Barenaked Ladies as a viable US crossover act before their 1998 mainstream breakthrough with 'One Week.' It exemplifies the MuchMusic-era aesthetic: low-budget realism, performance energy, and narrative intimacy…

The director

Jason Bradford Priestley (born August 28, 1969, Vancouver, British Columbia) is a Canadian actor, director, and producer best known for starring as Brandon Walsh on Beverly Hills, 90210 (1990–1998). He began directing episodes of 90210 from 1993 onward,…