Good Charlotte's 1998 release was pretty impressive. This CD, though, has quite obviously come a long way from there. To give you an idea, I'll break it down track by track and rate each song:

1. A New Beggining - A short instrumental, it has no lyrics, so -0/0

2. The Anthem - A powerful, pretty typical punk rock anthem about not conforming. Pretty good - 4/5

3. Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous - The single that's getting the airplay. Pretty eclectic, well-produced - 5/5

4. Wondering - A simple, cute song that Benji wrote about his dog, Ca$hdog. Fun, and really catchy chorus - 4/5

5. The Story of My Old Man - Fast, fun song, about one of the band's favorite topics, their dad who left them - 5/5

6. Girls & Boys - Probably my least favorite track. It's simple, but not outstanding, but still good - 3/5

7. My Bloody Valentine - Despite its pretty graphic subject matter, it's really well done and sweet - 5/5

8. Hold On - Definitely my favorite. Very gripping, touching, powerful ballad that EVERYONE can relate to - 5/5

9. Riot Girl - Cute, fun, fast song dedicated to all the girls who love Good Charlotte - 4/5

10. Say Anything - A semi-sad song that leaves you sympathizing with Joel the whole way through - 4/5

11. The Day that I Die - Another song about death. What brings it down is the fact that it's so melancholy - 4/5

12. The Young and the Hopeless - The title track, obviously. An honest and poignent declaration - 5/5

13. Emotionless - The much more meaningful "Dad" song. Very sad, makes you very sympathetic but still rocks - 5/5

14. Movin' On- A great way to end a great CD. Upbeat song about the future with positive vibes - 5/5

Overall, GC has come a very long, good way. You can tell how much they've been through on this CD, and it really makes you see just how much they've learned since the first CD and just how much they've grown musically. All their fans WON'T be disappointed!

In listening to this Good Charlotte album, another reviewer's remark really rang clear for me, especially after seeing the Good Charlotte heartfelt video on MTV. Like an immense pile of other acts out there, these idiots have convinced themselves, we've come up with something clever! We are so good, look at all the passion and power in our music! It is such a discusting fallacy. Good Charlotte is a watered down punk version of an already watered down Blink 182. I assure you of one thing kids, and you marketing guy responsible for this giant heap of crappy music, the time is coming when people will take a stand against horrible mainstream acts like Good Charlotte.

Having been a fan of Good Charlotte for almost five years when this record came out, I was really excited to hear something new from one of my favorite bands ever. For the most part, I wasn't disappointed. I'm just going to go through each track and rate it out of five.
A New Beginning- A really interesting way to start the record. The first time I heard it when my friend sent me a copy on the computer, I thought it was spooky. I like it though. They do it live for some reason, which doesn't make much sense to me because it has no words, but whatever. 4/5
The Anthem- One of my favorite songs by them. Great lyrics, upbeat, and it makes me laugh when Joel goes "Shake it three times you're playing with yourself again." Don't ask. But if you know anything about Joel and his crotch grabbing you might get it. 5/5
Lifestyles of the Rich and the Famous- I heard this song when they released it as their single and right before it was on MTV. It was good but then MTV killed it. Possibly my least favorite song by them. 3/5
Wondering- "This song is about Cashdogg!" I think this song is really good, I like the beat, I like the chorus, and I like the vocals. 5/5
Story of My Old Man- This song is another great one on the album. The chorus on this one is really good, the story it tells is good. It's kinda fast paced but not as fast paced as some others. I like it. 5/5
Girls & Boys- This is a really really different one for GC. It's kind of new wavey which I like, and it's funny as hell to picture them all in the 80s, but I feel like this song is kinda stupid. It's pretty good though. 4/5
My Bloody Valentine- This song is awesome. I love it. It scares the hell out of my mom. I heard this one in April when they did it live at Skate and Surf and thought it was great then. The album version is even better. Great beginning, great bridge, great instrumentals, and great build to the ending. 5/5
Hold On- This is one of the best songs on the record, and the first time I heard it, it made me cry, because they wrote it for all their fans who have ever told them how much their music has helped them, or saved their life, or things like that. Awesome lyrics, awesome vocals..everything. 5/5
Riot Girl- I think this song is cute. Major plugs to Minor Threat and Social Distortion in it. Cute lyrics, upbeat tune. It reminds me of another song but I just can't put my finger down on which one. It's not bad but it's not terrific. 4/5
Say Anything- A remake of an old song that was never released- Time After Time. The prechorus was in the original song. I really like this song because it makes me think of the old days of GC, and it's a song you can relate to. I like the vocals in the beginning when he's singing quietly, and throughout the rest of the song too. This is a good one, and after this all the songs are really good. 5/5
The Day That I Die- It's kind of country. I remember over the summer someone got a hold of this acoustic version that I was in love with. I love how the lyrics are kind of sad and nostalgic but the tune is upbeat and happy. And instead of Joel singing lead vocals its Benji. I also think the Cashdogg thing is cute. 5/5
The Young and the Hopeless- The title track and definitely one of the other good ones on the CD. I got this one before the CD came out too, and I thought it was great. Good lyrics, nice instrumentals, nice vocals too. 5/5
Emotionless- Another song I got before the record came out, and this one made me cry too, even though I can't really relate. Lyrics wise its one of their best. Instrumentally this song is also great. The vocals (Benji singing lead again) and music go so well together. 5/5
Movin' On- This song has great lyrics. I love it. It makes me think about all of the stuff they've done over the past five years and it makes me think about my own life...the words are great to this song. The chorus is awesome and so are the instrumentals. 5/5

Even though I gave most of the tracks 5/5 overall I still say it's only four stars because I still think their self titled was better.

Don't let MTV and Z100 fool you. This is not punk, its not even close. If you want to find out what punk truely is then go no further than these three exellent bands - The Ramones, The Clash, and The Sex Pistols. They godfathers of punk and when you compare, this does not even come close

Hey guys! Let's have an online vote!

If you like Good Charlotte, please hit the "not helpful" button. If you, like me, think that they represent everything souless and wrong about rock music and punk today and should be systematically removed like any bacteria or roach, please vote "helpful".