Many times in the past, especially if I forgot to bring a cream or a regular shaving soap I lathered up with Dove and it worked well.
I found the Nivea Sensitive foam to be quite enjoyable, it's among the quality of Proraso and Barbasol cans IMO, but is at least cheaper than the Proraso foam prices we pay here in Canada.
I love the Gillette ProGlide Clear Shaving Gel, as well as Gillette ProGlide Sensitive Gels. I NEVER get burn or irritation with these fine products. Aces!
If you like the Gel check out RazoRock Shave Lube, I find it better in both price and performance. Especially the real scents!
It's not so much a gel but if you must venture away from the brush and cream give Cremo a try...I've had great results with it both with using a brush and without. Very pleasant scent as well.
I like the Edge gel with alo when I use my Fusion. Do you remember what canned cream that had a coil at the top that you would run hot water over. The foam would come out nice and warm.
I will also nominate the Cremo as I use it when traveling. For something extremely slick try Neutrogena sensitive shave cream, it's like coating your skin with a layer of Teflon, but has absolutely no cushion to it and is probably best suited for use with carts.
Cremo...hands down. That's what I used before making the switch to wet shaving. IMO its the best stuff out there and you can even get it at Walmart now. One tube will last a long time if one follows the simple instructions on the back of the tube.
Back when I first started shaving it was Barbasol - then there was the long electric dark period. Before making the jump to using a DE I was using Edge. - As far as can goo I felt it did a decent job.
I think I used what ever was cheapest when I first started shaving. I think I did use Barbasol Shaving Cream or Palmolive Shaving Cream. what ever I could get from my Dad. I do like Edge it does give a very smooth shave. I prefer Stirling Shaving Soaps.
I used to use Barbasol before going to shaving soaps and brushes. I always had an issue with it though after half the can was gone. It seemed like it made really stiff and bountiful lather the first half of the can but couldn't make lather that would hold up very well (seemed too wet) on the last half of the can. Maybe I wasn't shaking it enough. I complained to the company once and they sent me a coupon for another can, but no explanation. I thought that was a lame way of handling my "issue".
I always enjoy Aveeno shaving gels. There is a regular and one for sensitive skin. Both are easy to apply, hydrate well, non-irritating. Some say they are a bit pricey, but a can seems to last forever.