"Weird Al" Yankovic

Who else is a fan of the King of Parody? No matter how many times I listen to most of his songs I still find them amusing and ever since Off The Deep End I've gotten his releases and plan on getting more of his older ones. Funniest of all are his music videos (which I have on DVD) and his live performances. Some people think of Weird Al as a talentless guy who just takes other people's music and makes fun of them but they don't understand that it is not an easy task to do parodies and Weird Al does write a lot of his own music as well (one song for every parody he does). Plus Weird Al can sing amazingly fast and doesn't miss a beat (even live). Also the guitarist and bassist of his band are very talented musicians.

Funny...for a minute. After that it just gets old. I will say, though, I think "When I Was Your Age" is actually a cool song.

Love me some Weird Al. I kinda lost interest in him after the "OFF THE DEEP END" album when he parodied Nirvana, mostly cuz by that point in time I was not listening to the radio or watching MTV so I wasn't familiar with any of the "new" songs he was parodying anyway.

My favorite CD of his is DARE TO BE STUPID, from 1985... I know the lyrics to "Yoda," his parody of the Kinks' "Lola," better than I know the original. If "Lola" comes on the radio I've been known to sing the "Yoda" lyrics over it.

Fat Freddy wrote:

Love me some Weird Al. I kinda lost interest in him after the "OFF THE DEEP END" album when he parodied Nirvana, mostly cuz by that point in time I was not listening to the radio or watching MTV so I wasn't familiar with any of the "new" songs he was parodying anyway.

I agree, although I like some of his stuff in the last 10 years, alot of it I dont know the original song cuz I dont listen to secular radio either. some of the songs I hear from him I kinda learn the lyrics and then I hear the original and cant help but think of his lyrics instead. Kinda backwards, typically, youre supposed to know the real lyrics first, then you hear his and laugh or whatever.
The Track "Albequerque" from Running With Scissors is hilarious, its about 10 minutes or something like that.

people either love him or hate him. I am of the latter. there's enough stress and serious crap in this world, I love to laugh. He makes me laugh.

Good parody king but not a fan all that much!

Wargod48

Amusing, but not something I enjoy more than casually. My son was on a
Weird Al kick for a while and it was driving me nuts. He thought it was
funny, which it might have been on the first listen. After that it's
just stupid.

I think I had Dare to Be Stupid on vinyl when I was a kid along with a coupla of 45's. I don't currently own anything by him, but I do appreciate his special talent and clever parodies. He's got a very loyal following, especially in the Philly area. He consistantly sells out when he plays live. How many accordian players can make that claim?

I used to be a big Weird Al fan, and still enjoy his stuff today. I really want to see him live at some point, I just get the impression it'd be a very fun gig.

I have to say, Al seems to have a surprisingly good vocal range. You wouldn't think it, but when you consider the variety of song styles in his parodies, it makes sense.

I know logically you would think I'd get bored with Wierd Al's music but I don't. One thing that I think helps me enjoy it as much as I do is that I pick up the lyrics and sing along. Metal is the number one music in my life and nothing comes close, but sometimes I just like to listen to and sing along with fun, upbeat music. I enjoy singing it as does Weird Al. Most of the popular music turns me off due to it's image, overratedness (probably not a real word), and lyrical content moreso than the catchy melodies and with Weird Al, I get the catchiness of popular music but with nonscensical (SIC?) lyrics and if accompanied by a music video (or a live performance which I've only seen on VHS), I get to see Weird Al make fun of the image. While after the first listen most of you might consider it stupid or boring, I find it enjoyable each time (when I am not quite in the mood for the greatest music in the world, metal). However, as we like to say, "to each his own".

Eyesore wrote:

Funny...for a minute. After that it just gets old.

Ditto. But some folks love him.

Amish Paradise is hilarious.

troublezone wrote:

Amish Paradise is hilarious.

"As I walk through the valley where I harvest my grain,
I take a look at my wife, and realize...she's very plain"

"An Amish with a 'Tude, well you know that's unheard of!"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GsfVw9xxoNY

Life long AL fan. I have every thing he has ever done. From regulars lps to cd-singles to and the Japanese imports. I even have the Peter and the Wolf album he did with Wendy Carlos (try tracking that one down some time).
And to anyone who thinks there in not a TON of talent there, try playing 100 different styles of music. And he has had the exact same band for 25 years! Not many bands can say that! I saw him at the state fair a couple months ago, and he busted out Albuquerque for the encore. I ran up to the front and sang every word with him. What a blast!

A couple years ago, I went to see him down in Mankato. Before the show, there was this little thing on a screen in front of the audience. It read "This show is dedicated to Al's parents". There was a smattering of applause, but no biggie. Al came out and torn the joint up!!!! I got home exhausted and got on the computer. The first thing that came on my screen was that Weird Al's parents had both died the night before (something to do with closing the flue in the fireplace and they were both poisoned). I hope that lends some respect not only to the performer, who was as professional as you can be in that situation, but the man as well.

The guy is obviously very witty and clever. He has made some really amazingly funny parodies that i actually enjoyed more than the original in some cases.

am a fan, But i gotta be in the mood for him, but defenitly a fan, I think as time goes on it gets better and better

Big fan. I love everything he has ever done.

Like I said before he gets better with each album

He was my all time favorite artist back when I was in grade 7. I'll always be Weird Al fan.

I love his song Albuquerque I've been trying to get it on my bands setlist for a long time now. I'd love to metal that one up

I love Albeuquerque

Addy wrote:

I love Albeuquerque

That and Genius In France are great songs and shows how talented Wierd Al actually is. I remember someone claiming that Wierd Al was a no talent hack who just stole other people's songs and changed the lyrics. First off, Weird Al does other songs besides parodies and making new lyrics for a song is not as easy as one would assume. I also how I like how he can sing lines like this without taking any deep breaths:

Would you look at all that stuff ...
They've got allen wrenches, gerbil feeders, toilet seats, electric heaters
Trash compactors, juice extractor, shower rods and water meters
Walkie-talkies, copper wires safety goggles, radial tires
BB pellets, rubber mallets, fans and dehumidifiers
Picture hangers, paper cutters, waffle irons, window shutters
Paint removers, window louvers, masking tape and plastic gutters
Kitchen faucets, folding tables, weather stripping, jumper cables
Hooks and tackle, grout and spackle, power foggers, spoons and ladles
Pesticides for fumigation, high-performance lubrication
Metal roofing, water proofing, multi-purpose insulation
Air compressors, brass connectors, wrecking chisels, smoke detectors
Tire gauges, hamster cages, thermostats and bug deflectors
Trailer hitch demagnetizers, automatic circumcisers
Tennis rackets, angle brackets, Duracells and Energizers
Soffit panels, circuit brakers, vacuum cleaners, coffee makers
Calculators, generators, matching salt and pepper shakers

and

Now you may find it inconceivable or at the very least a bit unlikely
that the relative position of the planets and the stars could have
a special deep significance or meaning that exclusively applies to only you,
but let me give you my assurance that these forecasts and predictions
are all based on solid, scientific, documented evidence, so you would have
to be some kind of moron not to realize that every single one of the is absolutely true.

I have practiced that last one and can actually do most of it by heart. Even then I can't do it as smoothly as Weird Al.

My kids and I listened to Al's "DARE TO BE STUPID" in the car this morning when I took them to day care!! My six year old thinks "Slime Creatures from Outer Space" is hysterical.

This was the first Weird Al tune I ever heard, waaaaayyy back in the early days of MTV...

I've got a few of his albums. His stuff cracks me up. I almost passed out cause I was laughing so hard.