Bullet in a Bible

1	American Idiot Multimedia Track 4:32
2	Jesus of Suburbia: Jesus of Suburbia/City of the Damned/I Don't Care [M 9:23
3	Holiday Multimedia Track 4:12
4	Are We the Waiting Multimedia Track 2:49
5	St. Jimmy Multimedia Track 2:55
6	Longview Multimedia Track 4:44
7	Hitchin' a Ride Multimedia Track 4:03
8	Brain Stew Multimedia Track 3:02
9	Basket Case Multimedia Track 2:58
10	King for a Day/Shout Multimedia Track 8:47
11	Wake Me Up When September Ends Multimedia Track 5:03
12	Minority Multimedia Track 4:19
13	Boulevard of Broken Dreams Multimedia Track 4:44
14	Good Riddance (Time of Your Life) Multimedia Track 3:26

Barnes & Noble

It's no secret that Green Day have come a long way since their days as snotty teenagers bashing out sweat-soaked ditties about alienation and masturbation, but this concert set underscores the band's evolution with emphatic power. Recorded over the course of a two-date run at the 60,000-seat Milton Keynes Stadium outside London, Bullet in a Bible showcases a band at the peak of their ability to push a crowd's buttons, replete with outsized sound and over-the-top theatrics; but it also demonstrates that Billie Joe Armstrong and company haven't entirely lost touch with their inner ne'er-do-wells. Much of the disc is given over to material from American Idiot, and on those songs, particularly the "Jesus of Suburbia" suite, the backing of the extra musicians renders the sound as thick as anything the E Street Band ever churned out. Green Day haven't, however, lost the sinew and sneer necessary to carry off vintage favorites like "Basket Case" and "Longview" -- an unusual retention, given the distance they've moved in the years since those songs first got mosh pits roiling. There are a few cringe-worthy moments -- the extended call-and-response that stretches their cover of "Shout" to the breaking point being the most egregious -- but they're far outnumbered by flashes of brilliance. Pete Townshend (an obvious influence here) once wrote about the punk taking on the godfather: Billie Joe finds a way to make the two characters share the same skin and make a joyous racket together. David Sprague

All Music Guide

Bullet in a Bible is a CD/DVD package (also available as a UMD, for those who want to carry it around on a Sony PSP) documenting Green Day's show at the National Bowl in Milton Keynes on their 2005 U.K. tour. The DVD intercuts interview footage with individual members of the trio between the songs on the set, while the CD provides an hourlong distillation of the show. Both the CD and DVD manage to be big, splashy productions -- after all, the DVD is produced to take full advantage of a home theater system, while the CD has a bright, clean kick to its mix -- that still retain a palpable sense of excitement and grit. This isn't the wild, reckless Green Day of the early and mid-'90s -- this is Green Day the arena punk pros, who know how to fill a stadium while still sounding as if they're playing in a packed little club. None of their '90s punk-pop peers have such a large following or can command such large, adoring crowds, and Bullet in a Bible makes it clear why: no other band in 2005 can play to the mainstream while still seeming nervy and vital. In other words, nobody does it better than Green Day, and this live package is a testimonial to the band at its peak. Stephen Thomas Erlewine