Let Go (CD - 2002)

Personnel: Avril Lavigne (vocals, guitar); Evan Taubenfeld (guitar); Mark Spicoluk (bass); Matthew Brann (drums).

Producers: Clif Magness, The Matrix, Curt Frasca, Peter Zizzo.

"I'm With You" was nominated for the 2004 Grammy Awards for Song Of The Year and for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance. "Losing Grip" was nominated for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance.

This is an Enhanced CD, which contains both regular audio tracks and multimedia computer files.

Personnel: Avril Lavigne (guitar, background vocals); Avril Lavigne (vocals); Corky James (guitar, acoustic guitar, electric guitar); Clif Magness (guitar, electric guitar, keyboards, drums, programming); Curt Frasca, Peter Zizzo (guitar, programming); Gerry Leonard , Evan Taubenfeld (guitar); Suzie Katayama (cello); Matthew Brann, Joe Bonadio, Josh Freese, Alex Elena (drums); Jen Scaturro (programming).

Audio Mixers: David Leonard; Randy Staub ; Tom Lord-Alge.

Recording information: Big Baby Recording, New York, NY; Blue Iron Gate Studio, Santa Monica, CA; Boulevard Recording Studios, New Milford, NJ; Decoy Studios, Valley Village, CA; Jsm Studios, New York, NY; Real Music Studios, LA, CA; Signet Sound Delux Studios, Hollywood, CA; Top Floor Studios, New York, NY.

Editor: Jen Scaturro.

Photographers: John Arsenault; Ashley Reid; Monique Perrault; Sonya Farrell; Cline .

Arranger: Peter Zizzo.

Talk about pressure -- being under 21 and having a record deal no longer qualifies as extraordinary. And as mass-produced teen pop makes its exit and a glut of young singer/songwriters enter, child prodigies no longer have built-in marketing appeal. So if newcomer, 17-year-old Avril Lavigne truly wants to be "Anything But Ordinary," as she sings on her debut album, Let Go, she'll have to dig deeper. Luckily for Lavigne, aside from youth, she does have talent. Her debut runs the gamut from driving rock numbers like "Losing Grip" -- where Lavigne shows off her vocal range, powering into the anger-fueled, explosive rock chorus -- to singer/songwriter pop tunes like "My World," where Lavigne fills listeners in on the past 17 years of her life. Lavigne handles a variety of styles deftly, but she still has some growing up to do lyrically. "Sk8er Boi" has a terrific power pop bounce, but shows her lyrical shortcomings: "He was a punk/She did ballet/What more can I say" -- a lot. The phrasing is awkward and sometimes silly: "It's funny when you think it's gonna work out/Till you chose weed over me you're so lame," she sings on "Too Much to Ask." Not surprisingly, the standout track is the first single, "Complicated," a gem of a pop/rock tune with a killer chorus. But listen carefully and you'll realize that "Complicated"'s sing-song melody borrows just enough from Pink's "Don't Let Me Get Me" to make it familiar and likeable. Nonetheless, the song is a knockout radio hit. Lavigne, a self-professed skater punk and labelmate of Pink, shares her "Take Me As I Am" credo as well. And that said, it's hard not to look at this record, executive produced by Arista label head Antonio "L.A." Reid, who is thanked by Lavigne for allowing "me to be myself," and feel cynical about the music industry's willingness to reproduce a hit over and over. Lavigne, however, is a capable songwriter with vocal chops, and at her age, one imagines, she is still finding her feet, borrowing from the music she's grown up listening to. The problem is Lavigne is still so young she's listening to the radio hits of the '90s and early 2000s: she's Pink when she's bucking authority, Alanis Morissette when she's angry, and Jewel when she's sensitive. Let Go shows promise, but the question is whether Lavigne and only Lavigne will shine through on her next effort. ~ Christina Saraceno

Headstrong and fiercely independent, 17-year-old Avril Lavigne makes a huge splash with her debut LET GO, a collection of confessional songs with attitude reminiscent of fellow prodigy/Canuck Alanis Morissette. Collaborating with producer/songwriter Clif Magness, Lavigne avoids the credibility pitfalls plaguing the brigade of bubble-gum divas that ruled the charts in the late '90s and early millennium by penning her own material.

Blessed with a voice that makes her sound ten years older, the self-professed tomboy assuredly asserts herself in relationships (the sing-along breakout hit "Complicated"), admits to emotional vulnerability (a stark "Naked"), and delivers a breezy summation of her life and dreams (the pop manna "My World"). Aided by a simple three-piece back-up band Lavigne and her stellar debut could very well end up picking up where Alanis and JAGGED LITTLE PILL left off. minimize