Tag: Weird Al Yankovic

The illustrious Illinois blogger SamuraiFrog decided to rank all of “Weird Al” Yankovic’s songs, 165 of them, an impressive undertaking. So, I decided to come up with a list of my 33 favorite Weird Al songs. Why 33? Because LPs play at 33 revolutions per minute. And I’m going to break them up into three posts of 11 songs each, mostly because posting 11 posts of three songs each would be weird.

Here are Part 1 and Part 2.

11. Trapped In The Drive-Thru
(based on Trapped in the Closet by R. Kelly, from Straight Outta Lynwood, 2006)
An epic narrative about everyday stuff that married couples might go through, just trying to pick up dinner. Though I HOPE you don’t. Unexpected Led Zeppelin riff.

10. Gump; #102 in US, 1996
(Parody of “Lump” by The Presidents of the United States of America; from Bad Hair Day, 1996)
I found the wordplay funny, and the clash between the movie, that I didn’t love and went on too long, being so succinctly described in 140 seconds pleased me.

9. Genius in France
(Style parody of Frank Zappa; from Poodle Hat, 2003)
I have fallen in love with this pairing of the “Jerry Lewis phenomenon” of being more highly regarded in Paris than in Peoria, while totally capturing the Zappa sound and vocals. How many different ways can one say someone’s none too bright? I think they are all here. Dweezil Zappa performs the opening guitar solo riff.

8. Dog Eat Dog
(Style parody of Talking Heads; from Polka Party!, 1986)
It’s all about office politics. A great imitation of David Byrne’s vocal style.

7. Dare To Be Stupid
(style parody of Devo; from Dare to Be Stupid, 1985)
All the cliches turned on their heads. Frog’s #1 song.

6. Mission Statement
(Style parody of Crosby, Stills & Nash; from Mandatory Fun, 2014)
It was the juxtaposition of the hippie-dippy CSNY and the corporate BS buzzwords, which, as a business librarian since the early 1990s, I’ve heard these far too often, as though they meant something, and learned to despise them.

5. White and Nerdy: #9 in US, #14 in Sweden, #80 in UK, 2006
(Parody of “Ridin'” by Chamillionaire and Krayzie Bone; from Straight Outta Lynwood, 2006)
I’m not sure who bought this, his biggest single ever, which went platinum. Was it the white and nerdy kids, or the black kids impressed with Al’s rapping? With Key & Peele, AND Donny Osmond!

4. Amish Paradise; #53 in US, 1996
(Parody of “Gangsta’s Paradise” by Coolio; from Bad Hair Day, 1996)
From SamuraiFrog: “I think this parody is especially interesting if you take into consideration that Coolio’s original song is itself a reworking of Stevie Wonder’s ‘Pastime Paradise’ from his 1976 masterpiece Songs in the Key of Life…

“I’ve seen it criticized heavily for being weak (I think it was Entertainment Weekly who said something about the Amish being a pretty lame target for a parody), but those people are missing the point.” Another criticism was that the Amish and the Mennonites aren’t exactly the same; so fussy!

3. I Lost on JEOPARDY!; #81 in US, 1984
(Parody of “Jeopardy” by Greg Kihn Band; from “Weird Al” Yankovic in 3-D, 1984)
I did, so there’s that. I’m pretty sure JEOPARDY! was off the air, but came back later that year with Alex Trebek. Coincidence? This video features original host Art Fleming, who I used to watch with my aunt Deana at lunchtime when I was growing up. Plus cameos by Kihn, Dr. Demento, and Don Pardo.

2. Word Crimes; #39 in US, 2014
(Parody of “Blurred Lines” by Robin Thicke featuring TI and Pharrell Williams; from Mandatory Fun, 2014)
In spite of its infectious, Marvin Gaye-inspired tune, I HATE Blurred Lines lyrically; it’s a damn date rape song. Conversely, I LOVED the content and the visuals of Word Crimes, as I have lovingly(?) been accused of being a grammar Nazi. So I’m glad the tune has a much different manifestation.

This was Al’s fourth US Top 40 single, all in different decades. Michael Jackson and Madonna are the only other artists with Top 40 hits in four different decades.

1. Smells Like Nirvana ; #4 in New Zealand, #24 in Australia, #35 in US, #38 in Sweden, #48 in Canada, #58 in UK
(Parody of “Smells Like Teen Spirit” by Nirvana; from Off the Deep End, 1992)
The first time I ever heard Smells Like Teen Spirit, I thought the lyrics were very funny and terribly silly (“a mosquito, my libido.”) Then I discovered that it was meant to be a serious representation of youth angst. It was at that moment I felt a bit old, though, in fact, I eventually bought three or four Nirvana albums.

And it appeared that Weird Al had disappeared. He hadn’t released anything for a few years, and I figured that his decade-plus run had come to an end. Then this video came out on MTV. It is my favorite story about Al getting permission, in this case from Kurt Cobain. The song wasn’t about food, as the Nirvana lead singer had assumed. And it features both gargling AND kazoos! This song, his second US Top 40, was the beginning of a new phase in Al’s career.

The illustrious Illinois blogger SamuraiFrog decided to rank all of “Weird Al” Yankovic’s songs, 165 of them, an impressive undertaking. So, I decided to come up with a list of my 33 favorite Weird Al songs. Why 33? Because LPs play at 33 revolutions per minute. And I’m going to break them up into three posts of 11 songs each, mostly because posting 11 posts of three songs each would be weird.

Part 1 is HERE, and part 3 will show up in a little more than a month.

22. Buy Me a Condo
(Parody of Bob Marley; from “Weird Al” Yankovic in 3-D, 1984)
Will the Rastafarian falls into the trap of American consumerism. This is, as Mr. Frog noted, subversive.

21. Money for Nothing/Beverly Hillbillies
(Parody of “Money for Nothing” by Dire Straits; from UHF, 1989)
SamuraiFrog notes: “The theme song to The Beverly Hillbillies, adapted to the Dire Straits classic. Mark Knopfler and keyboardist Guy Fletcher actually play their parts on the track. The video is brilliant. One piece of neat trivia: Simpsons director David Silverman designed the computer-generated characters.”

The Dire Straits song was ubiquitous on MTV in its first decade. The Beverly Hillbillies was, for two seasons (1962-1964) the #1 most-watched program in the US, and individual episodes are STILL among the 60 most viewed along with Super Bowls, Roots, and final episodes of MASH, Cheers, The Fugitive, et al.

20. I Love Rocky Road; #106 in US, 1983
(Parody of Joan Jett & the Blackhearts’ cover of “I Love Rock and Roll” by Arrows; from “Weird Al” Yankovic, 1983)
I love the Al swagger in the video over a type of ice cream, which, now that I think of it, I’ve never tried. The Joan Jett song was all over MTV in the early ’80s, and I grew to like it quite a bit.

19. Canadian Idiot; #82 in US, 2006
(Parody of “American Idiot” by Green Day; from Straight Outta Lynwood, 2006)
I’m rather fond of “American Idiot” and the idea that would be a song about the “nicer” folks from north of the border struck a funny bone.

18. Ricky; #63 in US, 1983
(Parody of “Mickey” by Toni Basil; from “Weird Al” Yankovic, 1983)
Before I finally OD’ed on I Love Lucy reruns, I used to watch them all the time. I was impressed by the love Al obviously had watching them too. Toni Basil’s “Mickey” was just the perfect song for this.

17. Eat It; #1 in Australia, #5 in Canada, #6 in New Zealand, #12 in US, #36 in UK in 1984
(Parody of “Beat It” by Michael Jackson; from “Weird Al” Yankovic in 3-D, 1984)
I have some friends in the music business, and one mentioned at the time that this was a particularly stupid song; I totally disagreed. I thought it was a variation on the remarkable Michael Jackson video, and I appreciated that MJ, who was a massive star, had enough of a sense of humor to allow this, and later, Fat, the parody of Bad.

This was Al’s first Top 40 hit in the US, and would be his highest-charting single until 2006.

16. Yoda
(Parody of “Lola” by The Kinks; from Dare to Be Stupid, 1985)
The mix of familiar Kinks chords with Star Wars. Back in my FantaCo days, we used to sell some masks, including Yoda, which I might have bought if it had fit over my big head.

15. Stop Forwarding This Crap To Me
(Style parody of Jim Steinman, who wrote a lot for Meat Loaf; from Alpocalypse, 2011)
Yes, now people Facebook and tweet that crap to us, instead of email; we’ve so evolved. I love the sweet tone of the fairly angry message.

14. Tacky
(Parody of “Happy” by Pharrell Williams; from Mandatory Fun, 2014)
Yes, I eventually tired of the original, but it took an amazingly long time. And just at that point, this parody, with great guest stars shows up, including Aisha Tyler, Margaret Cho, Eric Stonestreet, Kristen Schaal, and Jack Black. I’m impressed that this was all one shot, with Al changing clothes to be in the first and last segments. And the examples of tacky – selfie at a funeral – are totally believable.

13. Living with a Hernia
(Parody of “Living in America” by James Brown; from Polka Party!, 1986)
It’s a great video and a surprisingly strong recreation of the JB style. I’m not crazy about the original song; it’s VERY ’80s, in a bad way. Getting a hernia helped this position, I suppose.

12. King of Suede; #62 in US, 1984
(a parody of “King of Pain” by the Police; from “Weird Al” Yankovic In 3-D, 1984)
A song about a proud clothier next to an arcade. Love the reference to Blue Suede Shoes. The original song is about depression and rejection, so it’s a great diversion.

The illustrious Illinois blogger SamuraiFrog decided to rank all of “Weird Al” Yankovic’s songs, 165 of them, an impressive undertaking. So, I decided to come up with a list of my 33 favorite Weird Al songs. Why 33? Because LPs play at 33 revolutions per minute. And I’m going to break them up into three posts of 11 songs each, mostly because posting 11 posts of three songs each would be weird.

Why now? Other than the fact that yesterday was Al’s 56th birthday, no real reason. I just like it, and isn’t what blogging is supposed to be about? I’ll post Part 2 in a month or so, and part 3 a month after that, unless I’m desperate for blog content.

First, a couple of nearly on the list:
* The Biggest Ball of Twine in Minnesota
(sort-of-based on Harry Chapin’s “30,000 Pounds of Bananas,” from UHF and Other Stuff, 1989)

*This Is the Life
(Original; single from the motion picture Johnny Dangerously, 1984)
This is from some apparently terrible Michael Keaton movie I’ve never seen.

33. Ode to a Superhero
(Parody of “Piano Man” by Billy Joel; from Poodle Hat, 2003)
Spider-Man was the character I most related to in the Marvel Universe, and I own the first two Sam Raimi movies on DVD. No, that’s not true; it was Peter Parker, his beleaguered alter ego. I’m fond of Billy Joel’s music; I saw him live in concert c 1974. If it’s merely telling the story of Raimi’s Spider-Man, that’s OK.

32. First World Problems
(Style parody of the Pixies; from Mandatory Fun, 2014)
When The Daughter made her list of favorite Weird Al songs last year, this was #1. Love the hair, and the acting: the facial expressions, the walk. The misplaced outrage would be funnier if it weren’t often so true.

This is from Al’s first #1 album, and the first comedy album since Allan Sherman’s over a half-century earlier to hit the top of the charts.

31. My Bologna
(Parody of “My Sharona” by The Knack; from “Weird Al” Yankovic, 1983)
Those early parody versions were not as polished as they would develop into. It uses accordion (in lieu of guitar), like much of his early work. If it’s a dumb song, I enjoyed it at that level.

30. Jurassic Park; #5 in Canada, #84 in Australia in 1993
(Parody of “MacArthur Park” by Richard Harris; from Alapalooza, 1993)
Have I actually seen the movie Jurassic Park? I’ve seen big chunks of it. The song MacArthur Park is such over-the-top kitsch that I developed an odd affection for the Richard Harris performance. A great pairing.

29. The Brady Bunch
(Parody of “The Safety Dance” by Men Without Hats; from “Weird Al” Yankovic in 3-D, 1984)
I never actually watched one minute of The Brady Bunch, until it went into reruns. I discovered it was a pretty terrible show, as the protagonist in the Al song notes. At least the theme song at least told you what the show was about.

28. Callin’ in Sick
(Original; from Bad Hair Day, 1996)
From SamuraiFrog: “Man, Given Al’s ability to absurdly paint small dissatisfactions as life-defining (and life-thwarting) obstacles of epic proportions, he really ran with the joke. I think it says a lot that, 19 years later, this song sounds less like a parody of a popular style and more like a legitimate grunge single. He nailed it.” I have over 125 sick days right now; I don’t call nearly often enough.

27. Bob
(Style parody of Bob Dylan; from Poodle Hat, 2003)
Mr. Frog got it right: “I’m a Dylan fan, but if you’ve ever gritted your teeth in patience when someone goes on and on and on and on and on about how deep Bob Dylan’s lyrics are, someone doing a parody of Dylan with nothing but palindromes for lyrics is deeply refreshing.” I especially love the cue card motif, which was used in Dylan’s Subterranean Homesick Blues.

26. Hardware Store
(Style parody of Oingo Boingo; from Poodle Hat, 2003)
As Mr. Frog said: “That refrain is just pure genius. This is one of those great little songs where Al turns the mundane into the glorious.”

25. Mr. Popeil
(Style parody of the B-52’s; from “Weird Al” Yankovic in 3-D, 1984)
Not only is this a great style parody, it reminds me of all those endless Ron Popeil ads where he says, “But wait–there’s more!”

24. The Alternative Polka
(Medley; from Bad Hair Day, 1996) – songs listed HERE
My specific affection for this is that there are several songs, “Loser” by Beck, and “Black Hole Sun” by Soundgarden, for two, that I had never heard in their original forms until I had heard them in the medley, so it was informative. And his treatment of the angst-ridden “You Oughta Know” by Alanis Morissette just cracked me up

23. Pancreas
(Style parody of Brian Wilson; from Straight Outta Lynwood, 2006)
This is SO much Beach Boys, circa 1967. And given that the Daughter is now studying biology, maybe this should be part of her educational curriculum.