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The Weirdly Enduring Appeal of Weird Al Yankovic
- 01100011 7y agoHe's in the same vein as Zappa in my book. They both forged unique and entertaining personas, and, rare for rock stars, they did it sober. We need more role models who show you can be in control of your mind and still be cool. You can choose to be weird, and amazing creativity can come from your natural mind. I'm not trying to demonize drug use. I've done my fair share. But I hate the notion that rock music requires it. It places a huge burden on people just looking to make a living doing what they love.
- Mediterraneo10 7y agoUnfortunately, if Yankovic is so comparable to Zappa, then one might predict a steep decline in his popularity after his death. While Zappa is still considered a major figure, most of his output has never quite entered the wider rock canon and is not widely listened to today. I get the impression that Zappa is about as niche now as Captain Beefheart. As for bands being sober role models, I used to think that about Rush, which had a reputation for most of its career as the thinking man’s rock band whose members did not have hard drug problems, tattoos or other unkemptness. But then it gradually became known that in the 1980s the guitarist had a cocaine problem. (And he also began extolling the virtues of ecstasy in interviews which, though arguably a soft drug, might have made some people uneasy.) So, for other clean-looking bands, appearances may be deceptive.
- yellowstuff 7y agoSadly, it's hard for me to imagine Weird Al will have much appeal to younger generations. If you've heard "Bad" 1000 times then his parody of it is hilarious, if you've heard "Bad" once on an oldies station maybe the parody still sounds goofy and funny, but you won't have the context to totally get the joke.
- chris_st 7y agoWell, he's continuing to do new music, rather than relying on just playing "My Bologna" a million times. He's done Lady Gaga at least, so I think he'll last longer than you might guess (hope so!).
- DonHopkins 7y agoNobody would remember The Knack if it weren't for My Bologna. In their day, they were marketing themselves as "The Next Beatles". I bet Weird Al will still be making new song parodies when nobody can remember Lady Gaga but for Perform This Way. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Knack https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Knack >However, the band's rise to the top of the charts also precipitated a backlash. Capitol's packaging of Get the Knack included a perceived cover likeness to Meet the Beatles! with the record's center label being the same design and style as the Beatles' early 1960s LPs. Coupled with the band's "retro" 1960s look and pop/rock sound, the company's stylings led detractors to accuse them of being Beatles rip-offs, which the band and their record company denied. Fieger acknowledged the band's likeness to the Beatles, claiming that it was their intention to present the Knack as a replica of the British Invasion. He went on to mention how fans of the Knack had not been able to experience the times of the 1960s, and that it was wrong to deny them the privilege of experiencing something similar. Critics fought back, claiming the band was imposing inadequate memories of the 1960s on those who didn't know better. Soon, as Get the Knack became more popular, the band was met with hostility from other artists who felt the intense marketing of the band was invalidating their own efforts of invoking the 1960 sound. This perception, and the perception that the object of some of the Knack's songs were teenaged girls (subsequently acknowledged when the band were years older), quickly led to a "Knuke the Knack" campaign led by San Francisco artist Hugh Brown.
- filoeleven 7y agoFor completeness, here’s Weird Al’s style parody of Frank Zappa, Genius In France: https://youtu.be/ZwFf9vGRqcs https://youtu.be/ZwFf9vGRqcs His style parody originals are as much fun (and as numerous) as his song psrodies.
- soylentcola 7y agoI will always love and respect his direct parodies, but his talent as a style-mimic tickles some part of my brain in a deeper way. I guess on some level it's because like many people I spent a good portion of my youth (and occasional moments of my adulthood) changing the lyrics of songs to silly (or vulgar) alternatives. I don't spend the amount of time Al does and I don't have his level of talent/dedication of course, but I get it. But being able to write a song that sounds recognizably like another artist while being entirely original is a whole other level of talent. It requires both an understanding of what makes a song sound like The Police or Crosby, Stills, and Nash and the musical chops to sing/play/produce it. Hearing those songs gives me a feeling like I know which one he's spoofing but not being able to put my finger on it--because it doesn't exist.
- agentwiggles 7y agoI love his style parodies best of all, and I totally agree with you. I always bring those songs up if I'm arguing with someone about his musicianship. "Close But No Cigar" is probably my favorite Cake song.
- Mountain_Skies 7y agoWeird Al has avoided the temptation of taking the low road and being mean spirited in his parodies. He makes fun of people and groups but it's always playful. No doubt some can look back at some of his earlier work through a contemporary lens and find something to be fashionably offended by but everyone knows in their heart he wasn't trying to make anyone unhappy for his own benefit.
- davidw 7y agoFrom Wikipedia: Cobain is claimed to have considered that Nirvana had "made it" with the success of Yankovic's parody. I always thought that was kind of nice - that they liked being parodied because it meant they were legit.
- dehrmann 7y agoDidn't he also add the condition that it not be about food?
- robotnixon 7y agoSounds like he just asked if it was going to be about food: "I told [Kurt] I want to do a parody of 'Smells Like Teen Spirit,' and his first thing was: 'Is it going to be about food?' and I said, 'no, it's going to be about how no one can understand your lyrics.'" Cobain thought the concept was funny and signed off on it." https://www.howardstern.com/show/2016/5/17/weird-al-mandatory-fun-calling-kurt-cobain-and-not-making-eye-contact-prince/ https://www.howardstern.com/show/2016/5/17/weird-al-mandator...
- dgritsko 7y agoAnother fun bit of trivia about "Smells Like Nirvana" - when shooting the music video, they used many of the same props, actors, camera angles, and even the same sound stage as the original "Smells Like Teen Spirit" video: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smells_Like_Nirvana#Music_video https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smells_Like_Nirvana#Music_vide...
- randfish 7y agoOne of the best, most beautifully written articles I've read during this dark timeline. So glad someone submitted it here. Highly recommend listening to the audio version.
- davidw 7y agoDon't feel like dealing with the paywall, so I'm not sure if it's mentioned, but his movie UHF is ... not bad. It's got some funny scenes, and an early Michael Richards (aka Kramer from Seinfeld).
- 8jef 7y agoI love UHF. This is a truly great funny movie. Thanks for that Weird Al!
- b0rsuk 7y agoSame. It's a playfully silly movie. The two movie parody scenes could have better pacing though, they feel too long.
- bhk 7y agoI'll never forget the Spatula City ad.
- itronitron 7y agohttps://youtu.be/4BUDwj_mXKE https://youtu.be/4BUDwj_mXKE
- chris_wot 7y agoIt was “No more Mr Passive Resistance” that did it for me!
- xzlzx 7y agoAdd a . after .com
- ggm 7y agoHe refused to do "My Corona" and I think, was probably right. I would totally buy an album of Weird Al playing Jimmy Shand scots accordion tunes.
- geocrasher 7y agoHe did "My Bologna" in the early 80's.
- schoen 7y agoYep! https://www.metrolyrics.com/bologna-lyrics-weird-al-yankovic.html https://www.metrolyrics.com/bologna-lyrics-weird-al-yankovic... That was on a Weird Al tape that I had back then. I still think of his versions of the songs on that tape (like "Another One Rides the Bus") as the "real" versions. I had almost never heard any of the things he was parodying anywhere else. It must have been his self-titled album, released in 1983: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%22Weird_Al%22_Yankovic_(album)#Track_listing https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%22Weird_Al%22_Yankovic_(album...
- toyg 7y agoI don't think my kids will ever listen to "Beat It" by Michael Jackson, Weird Al's "Eat it" is their favourite song ever. Same for "Another One Rides The Bus".
- DrScump 7y agoHe got his start on "Dr. Demento". IIRC, My Bologna and Another One Rides the Bus were first performed during an in-studio visit to Dr. Demento (which then aired on Sunday evenings via Westwood One).
- type_enthusiast 7y agoOh, give a little space to me away from me. Please try not to sneeze in my eyes, corona. Sanitizer isn't free uh woe is me couldn't get an N-95, corona. Kids are home from school and they're bugging me stores are out of food, that's no good there's none left for me so I say: "Why, why, why, why why" Ow!
- geocrasher 7y agoAl didn't make it in music because he's funny. He made it because he's an amazing human being and incredibly musically talented. He could have made it in any genre in music but he chose comedy because that's what he loves. He and his band are as legitimate as any other band they can play any genre or they want to. I was privileged to see him live a couple of years ago in his ill-advised vanity tour. It was incredible show, and it made me really appreciate him as an artist and musician. Plus he's had the same band since the 80s and he's stuck with him and he's stuck with them.
- bouvin 7y agoI do not follow American popular music, but enjoy Al a great deal (and have also seen him live). A consequence of this it that I have heard a great many songs for the first time after I have become habituated to ‘Weird’ Al’s (usually superior) version, which can be a little odd at times.
- mcv 7y agoSame here. My impression is that Ridin' Dirty didn't cross the Atlantic until White and Nerdy paved the way. Al and his band are incredibly talented musicians, they're funny, and they're real and honest and decent people. I hope they keep doing their thing for many decades to come.
- mwcampbell 7y agoI'm American, but didn't grow up with much mainstream pop music because I was raised in a religious environment. In my twenties, I discovered Weird Al, and like you, I'd very often hear his parody or polka version of a song before I heard the original. So sometimes, after hearing him zip through the chorus of a song in one of his polka medleys, I'd hear the original song and think, "That's a whole song?"
- m463 7y agoBut he is funny. Your comment reminds me of the time the Harlem Globetrotters were accused of being comedians, but not very good basketball players. Then they held a serious game and disproved that accusation.
- dehrmann 7y agoThere's really only space for one Weird Al, but he nailed it. He's a talented musician, solid songwriter, has more musical range than any artist I can think of, is backed by a solid team, and seems to genuinely love doing what he does.
- EdwardDiego 7y agoWeird Al's satire has never felt mean-spirited, and he's genuinely musically talented. And I can never stop hearing "Living in the Fridge" when the radio plays Aerosmith's Living on the Edge
- jedberg 7y agoThe following acts have had a top 40 hit in every decade since the 80s (80s, 90s, 00s, 10s): U2 Michael Jackson Madonna and "Weird Al" Yankovic Ironically, Al has parodied the other three. :)
- TwoBit 7y agoMichael Jackson in the 70s too, right? But also Jackson died before 2010 and so whatever was top 40 was written previously?
- bigyikes 7y agoGentle reminder that the 20’s are now a “decade since the 80s” ;)
- thaumasiotes 7y agoIt seems premature to claim that someone didn't get a top 40 hit in the 2020s, though.
- ce4 7y agoAnd technically, 2020 is part of the 10's, the decade starts only with 2021. :)
- karatinversion 7y agoNo, 2020 is part of the 2020's, just like 1600 is part of the 1600's. You would have a point if he had referred to 'the 203rd decade' - but no one does.
- ponyfleisch 7y agoWow. A linguistical off-by-one bug. I have never noticed that before. Interestingly, Wikipedia contradicts itself here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1600s https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1600s > The period from 1600 to 1699, synonymous with the 17th century https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/17th_century https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/17th_century > The 17th century was the century that lasted from January 1, 1601, to December 31, 1700. I think this is going to annoy me until I forget about it.
- waffletower 7y agoI heard Al Yankovic's first radio airing of "My Bologna" live on Dr. Demento back in 1979. He went to the same college as both my parents. Everything lined up for me to like this guy and think he was great. However, by the time I heard "Eat It" I thought his gimmick was over. I was amazed that he would get media attention in the 90s and the question lingers with each passing decade. I completely agree that the appeal is weird as I have found Al's shtick to be banal for decades.
- thordenmark 7y agoI'd agree his shtick is gimmicky, but due to sound musicianship and genuine creativity he continues to entertain. Saw him play live at our local county fair and was surprised at just how good his music and act were. He really put on a show.
- Baeocystin 7y agoHe has a larger-than-you-would-expect catalogue of original songs, and they're good, too. From both a musical and a songwriting/structural perspective. No joke!
- nicklaf 7y agoCheck out some of his newer stuff. Wonderful musically and also often also brilliant satire. E.g.: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zGM8PT1eAvY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zGM8PT1eAvY
- DrScump 7y agoHis recent "Word Crimes" video is incredible artistry: https://youtube.com/watch?v=8Gv0H-vPoDc https://youtube.com/watch?v=8Gv0H-vPoDc
- Lammy 7y agoHN readers will probably appreciate Weird Al's "It's All About The Pentiums" (nee Benjamins) from 1999, an incredibly nostalgic time capsule of the late '90s dot-com era in computing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qpMvS1Q1sos https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qpMvS1Q1sos
- MaxBarraclough 7y agoThank you for this. There's not enough rock-rap about computer architecture.
- Maakuth 7y agoI imagine many are also able to identify with "White and Nerdy": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N9qYF9DZPdw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N9qYF9DZPdw
- mark-r 7y agoI've got some kind of greatest hits compilation of his, and I'm really disappointed that wasn't included.
- mcv 7y agoIt's all about the pentiums is one of those parodies where I have never heard the original. Still a good song.
- jerf 7y agoI would also advise listening in a context where you have the lyrics on hand, or listening very carefully. It isn't just some random guy using computer terms that happen to sound good; he knew his stuff. There's a correctly-done NNTP newsgroup joke in there, for pete's sake, and even at the time it was a number of years after that was topical.
- Lammy 7y ago“There's a correctly-done NNTP newsgroup joke in there, for pete's sake, and even at the time it was a number of years after that was topical.” Not only that — it’s part of the joke! The nameless “you” who’s being dissed in the song is so much of a loser that their newsgroup is “alt.total.loser” and that they’re proud of having their own newsgroup at all when they NNTP is already ancient history to the narrator who views themselves as on the cutting edge of technology in 1999.
- b0rsuk 7y agoPeople often criticize clones and parodies as cheap and derivative, but I think to make a good clone you have to understand the original and what makes it tick. Not just what is the original like, but why is it like that, where did it came from and what inspired it.
- toyg 7y agoAlso, a lot of pop music is successful for reasons that have little to do with musical skills - good promotion, lifestyle, media presence, etc... Parody lives and dies on quality alone.
- pdkl95 7y ago> Things geeks say, number 37 > "I liked the Weird Al version better" https://www.lorebrandcomics.com/number-37.html https://www.lorebrandcomics.com/number-37.html Over the last ~3 decades I've had the privilege of hearing several hundred bands perform in a wide variety of style. While this included a lot of very talented musicians and many memorable performances, one of my favorite live events - by far - was seeing Weird Al and his band perform for free at the Santa Clara County Fair.
- pfarrell 7y agoLike Spike Jones before him, you need exceptional musicianship to get to comedy. I took my 11 year old son to his first big concert, last August. Weird Al was playing the Greek at Berkeley with Strings Attached. I cherish that night. The concert shirt has become a mainstay in his wardrobe. I also love that Lin Manuel Miranda was a huge fan which led to the Hamilton Polka.
- mixmastamyk 7y agoJust saw him for the first time at the Greek theatre in LA last summer :-).
- nullc 7y agoWeird Al does a great live performance. I caught that tour in Berkeley. And I thought it was good-- but he's done better: The "strings attached" idea was fine enough and I'm glad he did it. But if that's the bar for you I expect you'll be pleasantly surprised by future tours. [As someone who's seen Weird Al in concert ...uhh... 6 times? I think that's right.]
- mcv 7y agoA couple of years ago my wife treated my to a Weird Al concert in the Melkweg in Amsterdam. It started with Tacky, but Al wasn't on stage yet. Instead he appeared on screen, singing and walking through the streets of Amsterdam, pushing someone into a canal in front of the venue, and then he entered and moments later appeared on stage, where he seamlessly finished the song. It was absolutely the most spectacular opening of a concert I'd ever seen. And after that, the concert just kept getting better and better. It was a unique experience. Particularly the encore with the Star Wars songs.
- nullc 7y agoThat would have been the "Mandatory World Tour", I saw it in San Jose and it was absolutely awesome and one of the best live shows I've seen from any performer.
- m463 7y agoI remember reading that when Steve Martin first did stand-up comedy he would frequently go out in the audience, and sometimes take the audience with him places. non-standard performances are fascinating.
- Loughla 7y agoCompletely unrelated to that comment - I saw Steve Martin and Martin Short last year when they were on tour together. Many laughs about The Three Amigos. But my absolute favorite moment, and it will remain so for the rest of my life, of on-stage performance was when they were ramping the crowd up at the start of the show by mentioning and calling back to various things they've done. They listed all of their very popular movies, skits, songs, whatever, to raucous applause. Until Martin Short talked about "Clifford". I lost my mind cheering, expecting everyone else to. I love that movie. It's so dumb and hilarious. Literally 0 other people even clapped. Just me, in a room of 2000 people, losing my mind. And Martin Short looked up at me and said, "Of course that would come from the cheap seats." Just amazing.
- ohbleek 7y ago
- DonHopkins 7y agoHere's a recent HN discussion about the story behind Weird Al's "World Crimes": Jarrett Heather presents: Word Crimes (2014) https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=22820457 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=22820457
- scottlocklin 7y agoOne of my touches with greatness; I met Weird Al. He was besties with my college roomie's wife in high school, so I met him at the wedding. I was a sleep deprived grad student, and without his pencil moustache he looks exactly like my pal Tal, who came from a vastly different non wide-bandgap semiconductor social circle, so I had a fairly surreal conversation with him, "Tal? How do you know Mike?" "I'm not Tal, I'm Al." He was a pretty cool guy; no pretense about him, and he could have totally trolled me, but was just real nice about it.
- annoyingnoob 7y agoI really enjoyed Al's children's book, 'When I grow up'. Very talented, and yet seems down to earth.
- bombledmonk 7y agoI'm surprised the corporate culture parody song Mission Statement didn't come up. Every person who's ever been in a corporation should watch. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GyV_UG60dD4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GyV_UG60dD4
- samkater 7y agoI can’t fly without thinking of Weird Al’s lyrics of “I got my tray table up, and my seat-back in the full upright position.” It has been well over a decade since I’ve actually heard the song, though. His lyrics have a weird staying-power in the mind.
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- hnu0847 7y agoI've always liked Weird Al's music but feel like most of his biggest hits were made during an era of "monoculture". As sources of entertainment continue to grow, it seems like it will be increasingly difficult to create a parody that resonates with as many people simply because people's entertainment preferences are so much more varied than they have been at any point in history. That said he's very talented and I'm sure he could be successful creating something other than parodies if he wanted to.
- RandallBrown 7y agoMy high school girlfriend got me backstage passes to a Weird Al concert. Her dad was Weird Al's manager's insurance agent. Why Weird Al's manager bought insurance from an agent in a smallish town in Michigan, I'll never know, but it was pretty awesome to meet him after the show. Last year I went to the opening show of his "Ill Advised Vanity Tour" where he only played his original songs. It was amazing seeing him up on stage just playing music without all the costume changes and videos playing in the background. Totally different feel, but still the same awesome Weird Al.
- tyingq 7y agoI'm not a huge fan of Yankovic, but I was a fan of the Dr Demento show, which is often credited with getting Weird Al (and many others) his initial exposure.
- flipcoder 7y agoI'm glad to see he's still popular since I imagine he has a lot more competition these days with youtubers doing their own parodies.
- calmworm 7y ago“He who is tired of Weird Al is tired of life.” -Homer J. Simpson