Green Day: Billie Joe (vocals, guitar, mandolin, harmonica); Mike Drint (vocals, Farfisa organ, bass); Tre Cool (accordion, drums, percussion).
Additional personnel: Benmont Tench, Gary Meek, Mistress Simone.
Australian version contains two bonus tracks.
To debate whether or not Green Day truly was or is a punk band in the purest definition of the punk ethic now seems irrelevant. If nothing else, they're a pop band who can't seem to help but write good songs--in the case of WARNING, some really good songs. This album makes up for any missteps the band may have taken since the fluke success of DOOKIE.
From the Katrina And The Waves groove of "Castaway" to the Beatles-esque harmonica on "Hold On," WARNING inspires a sense of musical deja vu that never crosses the line into out-and-out thievery. Hands-down, the most interesting track here is "Misery," which struts along with Doors-like quirkiness and goes through a progression of cultural movements that take instrumental turns in the form of deep strings, mariachi brass, and acoustic guitar melodies. If there's a warning to be found here, it's that Green Day has become a real band. Not very punk of them, but promising all the same.
What the critics say…
Rolling Stone (1/4/01, p.108) - Included in Rolling Stone's "Top 50 Albums of 2000".
Rolling Stone (10/12/00, p.90) - 3 stars out of 5 - "…The once-giddy melodies now settle for midtempo jangle or novelty….the best tune picks up where 1997s 'Good Riddance' left off….Green Day as the new Bread - who knew?"
Q (11/00, p.102) - 3 stars out of 5 - "…Hugely likeable, terribly noisy and cute, as well as being jammed with proper pop songs, there remains nothing wrong with Green Day…"
Alternative Press (11/00, p.110) - 4 out of 5 - "…A good little record….further refining the folk-punk they introduced 2 years ago…"
Magnet (1-2/01, p.93) - "…May not only be the most beautiful Green Day LP but also the bravest….working with a sense of maturity they have only begun to express…"
CMJ (10/2/00, p.23) - "…They draw non-punk influences to their sound while hanging tight to [their] melodic Midas touch…"
Melody Maker (10/3/00, p.58) - 3.5 stars out of 5 - "…This sort of music used to be called new wave in the late Seventies…"
Mojo (Publisher) (10/00, p.102) - "…The sound of 3 men growing old far too gracefully….the tracks stroll along at a worryingly sedate pace, barely breaking a sweat….Like punk never happened. Again."
