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Has Been
by William Shatner

William Shatner reviews
Critic Score
Metascore: 68 Metascore out of 100
User Score  
9.2 out of 10
based on 17 reviews
Read critic reviews
How did we calculate this?
based on 29 votes
Read user comments
Rate this album

Yes, it 'has been' a long time since the last William Shatner album (and with good reason), but the veteran recording artist returns for this collaboration with Ben Folds. Other guests include Joe Jackson, Aimee Mann and Adrian Belew, but sadly, no Leonard Nimoy.

LABEL: Shout! Factory
RELEASE DATE: 05 October 2004
DISCS: 1 disc
GENRE(S): [There is no word to explain this genre.]

What The Critics Said

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

90
PopMatters
Somehow, it just might be the pop album of the year.
Read Full Review
80
Playlouder
'Has Been' is just about as far as you could possibly get from your regular solo offering and as such arrives as one of the year's most strangely captivating albums.
Read Full Review
80
Flak Magazine
This album is stunning.
Read Full Review
80
All Music Guide
It may not be an album that's as funny or timeless as The Transformed Man, but Has Been is every bit as bizarre.
Read Full Review
75
E! Online
Shatner oversees some surprisingly tuneful turns.
Read Full Review
75
Pitchfork
For an album I approached ready to shrug off as sheer novelty, its humor and candor give it a fair amount of staying power.
Read Full Review
70
The New York Times
Remarkably, the album coheres.
Read Full Review
70
Under The Radar
Fun, sad and oddly affecting... [a] highly enjoyable album that will catch you off guard. [#8, p.112]
68
ShakingThrough.net
It's that sobering confessional quality that gives the album an unexpected dose of depth and grace.
Read Full Review
60
Uncut
It is definitely deserving of the cult status that it will inevitably earn. [Dec 2004, p.138]
60
New Musical Express
Listen once, chuckle lightly, rip 'Together,' then run a fucking mile. [9 Oct 2004, p.57]
60
Mojo
Big issues... are chewed over with bittersweet humour and musical sophistication. [Nov 2004, p.110]
60
Q Magazine
Great non-rap spoken-word albums comprise a list shorter than Wiiliam Shatner's critically acclaimed film roles. Yet [Shatner and Folds] have got closer here than most. [Dec 2004, p.144]
50
The Guardian
This CD is beyond good or bad. It is from a world where concepts such as "unique" and "indispensible" live happily alongside "hilariously, brain-tearingly wrong".
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50
Village Voice
On the scale of Singing Shat, Has Been ranks above the Shakespeare rap in Free Enterprise, but below "Mr. Tambourine Man."
Read Full Review
50
cokemachineglow
Despite somber interludes like the Shatner-only confession of his third wife’s death, “What Have You Done?” or the subtly rich “Together,” Has Been does little to rescue the Priceline spokesman from the novelty bin.
Read Full Review
40
Stylus Magazine
The problem, of course, is that Shatner knows he’s Shatner now. And so does everyone else. It’s the joke that stops being funny after you hear the premise.
Read Full Review

What Our Users Said

Vote Now! The average user rating for this album is 9.2 (out of 10) based on 29 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Wayne N gave it a10:
It's just fantastic! I was not particularly a William Shatner fan before this album and didn't even know he had recorded a previous album. But I quite simply can't stop listening to this CD, it is well balanced and at times funny and sad, pure genuis. 10/10

Robert J gave it a10:
Quite surprisingly, it's a wonderful album.

James F gave it a10:
This album is extremely addicting and I have listend to hit hundreds of times in the past week I have had it. It has everything. Bill is a poet and Folds is a genius.

Nate A gave it a9:
A one of a kind experience to say the least, and It's a lot better than it has any right to be. Sure, it's hit and miss at times, but when it hits...brilliant. Common People, Has Been, and I Can't Get Behind That (a hilarious rant-fest w/ Henry Rollins) are worth the price of admission alone. If you're reading this you're obviously interested in this CD...try it, you won't be disappointed.

Bar Tander gave it a10:
Simply, it's just unbelievably good.

Julius M gave it a10:
I gotta agree with what is being said here. I 'm a huge ben Folds fand but i waited almost two years before picking this disk up thinking it would just be a novelty. It's amazing. I think it's the first time i have ever thought "everyone I know needs to hear this". I've been listening to it non-stop for about a month.

Ed K gave it an8:
The music isn't brilliant and William Shatner certainly isn't an exceptional musical talent, but the album is, to put it plainly, just really, really cool. I've been listening to it nonstop for about a week. The album has a little bit of everything. I think it works so well because the tracks are creative in their own ways and, listening to it, you bring all the baggage that goes with being 'Bill Shatner' along for the ride. Or perhaps it works because Bill Shatner's voice is so distinctive and he uses it so well. Bottom-line, I don't know exactly what to call this album, except great. (I'd score it higher, but it lacks the necessary musical artistry for me to give it a 9--much less a 10.)

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