Rock Spectacle is the first live album by Barenaked Ladies. It was also the first major success for the band in the United States, selling over one million copies and producing a hit single in the country in its version of "Brian Wilson." The album was recorded at two concerts: at the Riviera Theatre in Chicago and at The Olympia in Montreal during the Born on a Pirate Ship tour.
A live version of "Shoe Box" was on promotional and advance copies of this record, but was ultimately deleted. The recording would eventually be released on the "One Week" CD single. The album contains two bonus tracks. The first is a banter about an elderly woman Ed Robertson ran into in Chicago. The story is later referenced in "If I Had $1000000". The second is improvised banter about Robertson's Uncle Elwyn.
This disc is an enhanced CD, which means it will display special multimedia features when played on a computer. It includes a program called "BNLTV", a faux collection of various-themed TV programming.
Commercial performance
By July 1998, Rock Spectacle had sold 775,000 copies in the United States and 80,000 copies in Canada.[5] In September 1998, the album was certified Platinum in the United States.[6]