Hi everybody, this is Patreon mixtaper Philip
Berkman and you're listening to my weekly mixtape
with Brian Colburn. And if Brian's wife is listening,
Ross and Rachel were on a break. Yeah, I said
it. What you gonna do about it, huh? Welcome
to My Weekly Mixtape, a podcast that takes the
classic mixtape approach to building a modern
playlist. I'm your host, Brian Colburn. Joining
me tonight as guest curator is Patreon mixtaper,
Philip Bergman. Philip, welcome to the show,
man. Thank you. I'm glad to be here. Glad to
have you. And I'd like to start by asking you
the same question I ask all of my first -time
guests, and that is, what does the word mixtape
mean to you? Oh, Brian, I have the worst answer
for you, because for me, mixtapes were just about
grabbing songs off the radio for my own sake,
for posterity, for me to learn those songs and
to cherish them and treasure them. I didn't do
the whole curation thing. It was just grabbing
songs as who knows when you're going to hear
them again. I grew up listening to oldies radio
during my teenage years. And so my mixtapes would
go from Napoleon the 14th. to Gary Puckett in
the Union Gap, to Buddy Holly, to the Drifters,
to the OJs, to the Beach Boys. It would be all
over the place. So when it comes to the finesse
of curation, I mean, I was basically just a squirrel
on bath salts as far as that goes. Well, we're
going to be putting that squirrel on bath salts
approach to the test tonight because we are curating
our first topic that actually has to do with
our first comedic subject matter on the show.
And that is the legendary Weird Al Yankovic.
Now, Al has 14 studio albums, singles, compilations,
and a box set. So there's a huge swath of songs
to go through here. Did you have a hard time
coming up with your bank of tracks for tonight?
I did and I didn't because I kind of came into
this with a very specific approach. I came into
this looking for songs. As you know, Brian, one
of my hobbies is the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
And as you also know, Weird Al is not an inductee.
So I wanted to come into this to create a mixtape
that I could. theoretically put into the hands
of someone on the nominating committee like Tom
Morello or Alan Leiter, Karen Glauber or Steven
Van Zandt to say, here, here is why you need
to nominate Weird Al Yankovic for the hall. So
that was kind of my approach to this. So I'm
curious to see how this goes. Well, I think it's
criminal first that he's not in the Rock and
Roll Hall of Fame. Got to put that out there
in the universe. I am team Weird Al at the Rock
and Roll Hall of Fame. I am team Weird Al should
be the Super Bowl halftime show performer. I
am team Weird Al needs an Oscar. for the weird
movie. I mean, look, I am all team Al here. So
let's get down to business tonight. As I mentioned
at the top of the show, Philip and I will be
curating the ultimate Weird Al Yankovic mixtape,
and we're going to use the old cassette deck
approach. Philip, as my special guest, will begin
side A with his first song choice, and then I'll
add a song that I feel best follows up that choice.
We'll then flip -flop choosing songs until we've
mapped out 10 songs for side A. We'll then give
our mixtape a proverbial flip and we'll map outside
B. Only this time, I'll kick things off with
Philip choosing second. Our overall goal for
this episode is to craft the best Weird Al Yankovic
mixtape possible through only 20 songs. And at
the end of the show, you can take our conversation
to the next level by visiting the episode page
at myweeklymixtape .com to give our final mixtape
a listen. via the embedded playlist. And if you
like what you're hearing on the show, you can
help me out by either telling a friend, leaving
the show a five -star review wherever you're
tuning in, or becoming a Patreon mixtaper at
patreon .com forward slash myweeklymixtape. And
we have a few Patreon mixtapers that chimed in
with their opening tracks. I want to throw those
out there. Ben from the Too Vague podcast chimed
in saying, the Devo style parody, Dare to Be
Stupid. But I think you saw that one coming.
Yeah. Ben has been on the show. We talked about
number one hits of the 80s and New Wave, and
that is definitely in his wheelhouse. No shock
there. Cactus Pete chimed in with The White Stuff,
the parody of New Kids on the Blocks, The Right
Stuff. And Seeker chimed in with Eat It, as it
was probably the first song of his to break through
in Australia, which is interesting because. For
the general public in the United States, Eat
It was probably the song to break him here as
well. So some great food for thought there. And
with that, Philip, I am going to press the record
button on our mixtape and pass the mic over to
you. Why don't you dive into the song you chose
to kick off, Side A? Well, I actually want to
explain this pick a little first, because as
I said, for me, this is about Weird Al getting
in the rock hall. And one of the few valid criticisms
of his candidacy is that his music really isn't
timeless because it's always about capturing
pop culture in the moment. But what those people
fail to recognize is that the songs themselves
may not be timeless, but he himself is because
he is constantly evolving with the zeitgeist.
And sometimes he finds that song... That will
last and is based on a moment of pop culture
that will last. So that is why I have decided
to kick things off with the Hamilton polka. So
you think about what a cultural phenomenon the
Broadway musical Hamilton was, is really. I mean,
we are talking about a phenomenon so powerful,
it literally took a global pandemic. to stop
its march to conquer the world of Broadway, basically.
This is not just a flash -in -the -pan occurrence,
and the medley that Weird Al put together out
of this soundtrack, I think it should be offered
as a bonus track to anybody who purchases the
Hamilton soundtrack at this point. It is just
a phenomenal job, great medley, great transitions.
It basically stands the test along with the entire
soundtrack as far as I'm concerned. So I'm starting
things off with the Hamilton Polka. Well, first
off, bravo on starting with a polka because I
put out the word on social media just to kind
of see where people's pulse was on what they
enjoyed most about Weird Al. And song parodies
were the number one. But make no mistake about
it. Polka's style parodies and original songs
all got a lot of votes. So I'm glad to see polka
is represented right from the jump. Hamilton
is a game changing musical. It has redefined
musicals for the modern era. And for Weird Al
to be able to tap into that and capture the essence
of what Hamilton is about and still put his unique
spin on it through the polka, but still be able
to verbally. enunciate the words the way it was
done in the original, that is something that
takes an extreme amount of talent. And I think
right there makes a great case for what you're
saying about the whole Rock and Roll Hall of
Fame thing, because not anybody can just sit
there and spit the words out to this song. And
he does it so effortlessly, even with changing
the style. So I absolutely applaud the pick there.
And with that, I have to follow up a polka. Which
is interesting. I mean, look, it is all what
Weird Al is. So I absolutely love it. But I think
I know what I'm going to, because basically I
have a clean slate here. I would just not follow
it up with a second poke. It would probably be
the only way that I think we'd be kind of steering
the ship in the wrong direction. Although I have
made in the past mixtapes of just every poke
he's ever released, thrown it on OCD and brought
it onto a road trip. And it was just. A blast
to put that on for an hour. But today I'm going
to switch that up and I'm going to go with one
of his style parodies. And I want to give a shout
out to fellow Patreon mixtaper Ben from the Too
Vague Podcast because I am in lockstep with him
as Dare to Be Stupid was the first Weird Al vinyl
record that I bought with my own money. And when
you style parody a band like Devo to the point
where Devo basically hates you for the fact that
you made a Devo song better than Devo. You gotta
go with Dare to be Stupid. It is actually a song
he has used in the number two spot, seeing him
live before. This song just has that second track
energy. Obviously, it's the second track on the
album, so I'm kind of used to it in that slot
regardless. But this song, to me, truly shows
how Weird Al can take himself and throw himself
into a sound and a character so effortlessly.
And the fact that, look, Devo kind of wasn't
thrilled with it. There's a clip out on YouTube
that shows his reaction to the parody years later.
And I guess you could just kind of take that
for what you want. But lyrically, I feel like
some of the absurdness of the song, as absurd
as Weird Al gets, it still fits in the Dio camp.
You burn a candle at both ends, look a gift horse
in the mouth. Mashed potatoes can be your friend,
which is paid off in the UHF movie when he's
building the... mountain of mashed potatoes.
Anyway, Dare to be Stupid following up the Hamilton
polka. Dare to be Stupid is a great choice that
was in my bank of songs. That is one of those,
as you were saying, the meticulous analysis of
an artist's sound to almost perfectly replicate
it is just phenomenal. I have another song that
I definitely want to bring to the table. That's
kind of in that same vein, but speaks more to
me and my personal experience. But going off
of that, what do I want to follow that with?
I mean, we have to include some song parodies
because those are the songs that got promoted.
Those are what made him a household name. So
I am going to follow. I'm going to stay in the
same album of Dare to be Stupid, and I'm going
to follow that up with Like a Surgeon. Ooh, OK.
Yeah, I think this speaks to his whole candidacy,
too, because one of the things that really does
matter is peer respect. And the fact that Madonna
basically steered him towards this song says
a lot about the respect she has for Weird Al.
And there have been others like even just giving
him permission to parody their songs. speaks
to the level of respect they have. The fact that
he's kind of considered a badge of honor, how
you know you've made it in the business. During
the recording of his last album, Mandatory Fun,
I forget which member it was, but one of the
members of Crosby, Stills, and Nash ran across
for it and said, hey, when are you going to do
a parody of us? And he had just finished laying
down Mission's statement. And he played it for
them to show. This is how much respect the man
has. So I think... Like a surgeon really speaks
to that aspect, the respect that people have
for him. So you've got to include that if you're
going to make a case for him. So following that
up, same album, but it has to be on there like
a surgeon. Absolutely love the pick. And obviously
the relationship with Madonna, which was explored
in the weird movie, truly shows you the length
that Madonna is willing to go for Weird Al. And
obviously, Weird Al, this was the first song
on the first album that I purchased of his with
my own money. So there's not a single song on
Dare to Be Stupid that you can mention where
I would not be 100 % on board with. So I absolutely
love this pick. And I'm going to follow it up,
I think, now. Hmm. I'm debating between two.
And I'm trying to figure out. Which way we want
to go here. So we've put in a polka, a style
parody, a song parody. So now I feel like the
only logical thing to do is put one of his originals
in here. Because again, we're trying to make
a case for him. So in order to do that, let's
go with an original. And I am going to head over
to off the deep end. And I'm going to go with
the gorgeous acoustic ballad. You don't love
me anymore. Whereas the video goes with a style
parody because it parodies extremes more than
words. The song is just a Weird Al original.
And it's so absurd and so ridiculous. And so
everything I love about Weird Al. Oh, why did
you disconnect the brakes on my car? That kind
of thing is hard to ignore. Got a funny feeling
you don't love me anymore. I mean, I could pick
like 30 different lines in that song that make
me crack up. But now we have one of each of the
four song styles that Weird Al represents in
his music. And if you have the CD like I did
and you stick around, you get a nice little bonus
a few minutes after the song ends. So little
hidden bonus CD track that parodies the bonus
track on Nirvana's Nevermind. But following you
up, you don't love me anymore from off the deep
end. It's a great side. I absolutely love that
song as a closer, just as a closer to the placement
of that song is just perfectly placed. He listened
to his albums and it jumps from one song, one
style to another in almost squirrel on bath salts
fashion. So putting that this soon in the mixtape
is both brilliant and hilarious. So I absolutely,
yes, gotta have it. So how do I, oh, looking
around here, you know, I think I'm going to,
I'm going to go with another style parody at
this point, I think. I'm going all the way up
to Alpocalypse. Now this song, I have to admit,
isn't so much funny. as it is just awesome because
it's true. People complain that his songs don't
age well because they're not about timeless themes.
Well, I think Skipper Dan is a song that does
have a timeless theme to it. It's just one people
don't want to talk about. It's about what happens
when dreams don't come true. I think it was Langston
Hughes who said, what happens to a dream deferred?
The answer is... You work the jungle cruise ride
and you're living that way. That's what happens
to a dream deferred. I mean, this song speaks
to me personally because in my line of work,
my profession, it's just a matter of fact that
this was not the plan A career for 98 % of us,
but we're making a living out of it. We're working
day to day. And I think that also envelops some
of the working class ethos that. Certain rock
stars like Mellencamp and Seeger and even the
Four Seasons have to a degree. And I just love
the song. It speaks so much to me. It hurts,
but it also heals at the same time in a way.
So from Alpocalypse, I'm going with Skipper Dan.
Alpocalypse is a very underrated Weird Al album.
I had that and a couple other songs on there.
from my list so i'm gonna not say anything more
about the album just yet because i have no idea
where this playlist is gonna go but skipper dan
i love the fact that for that album there were
some music videos that accompanied it and one
of them being a cartoon for this song he did
it on the apocalypse tour which i got to see
from the i want to say my wife and i were third
or fourth row in rutland vermont which was just
unbelievable it's a funny song but it's also
Like you said, it's real. It's real. Yeah. It's
funny in nature, but it's something that people
can actually relate to. And he delivers it in
true Weird Al form. Now, coming out of that,
because we've touched on a lot of styles. And
while you touched on a little bit of hip hop
in part through the Hamilton polka, we haven't
really touched on his ability to. song parody
some fantastic hip -hop where we've kind of stuck
in the rock side of things through a lot of the
songs so i'm going to go with a song parody and
i'm going to go with one that i think is truly
iconic and for weird al it was a very important
and critical one for him as there was some pushback
after the song was approved by the label for
him to parody the artist didn't necessarily do
that and there was some issues there so i'm going
to go off a bad hair day And I'm going to go
with his remake of Coolio's Gangster's Paradise
and the hysterically funny Amish Paradise. Again,
his way of delivering humor through lyrics. I'm
the pious guy the little omelets want to be like
on my knees day and night scoring points for
the afterlife. So don't be vain and don't be
whiny or else my brother, I might have to get
medieval on your hiney. I mean, come on. Unbelievably
funny. And the end of that music video. Where
Weird Al is rapping. And everything is happening
in reverse. Fun fact. That was shot on film.
And he learned the song in reverse. So everything
as it was being recorded. Was recording in real
time. The horse and buggy was moving forward.
Everybody was going forward. And Weird Al was
actually rapping. Going. As he walked away. Towards
the screen. And then when you roll the tape back,
it creates this hysterically funny Weird Al music
video moment. And I think an iconic one, honestly.
But the song, again, rooted in a little bit of
controversy, which shows that not everything
was a smooth ride for Weird Al, but he always
had the best intentions. And this showed that
even though he's bringing humor to hip hop songs,
that he could do so in a way that's respectful
to the original music. Still funny. So Amish
Paradise. Yes, that is one I figured had to make
the cut, and there's no way around it. I've only
seen him once in concert. He was with the Strings
Attached Tour, and I believe that was what he
finished his encore with. So yeah, it is a great
song. It's just, it's not going to go anywhere,
and I'm so glad it won't. Yeah, what else can
you say about that song? It's just... So legendary.
So amazing. Oh, which makes it so much harder
to follow it up. But, oh, let's see here. Where
do I want to go? You know, there's one that's
kind of staring at me. Like I said, this is going
to be so many left turns. You're going to want
to put in a jug handle for me there, Brian. I
think I'm going to go with a huge stylistic change
and I'm going to poodle hat. I'll go with Party
at the Leopard Colony. Whoa! I know, but here's
the thing. He doesn't do blue humor, and I love
him for that. I mean, even as late as Jackson
Park Express, the most risque line he had was
the bit about, I like your boobs. That's like
the most risque thing he has really ever said
in a lyric that might get somebody clutching
their pearls. But Party at the Leopard Colony,
it's the bit of low -hanging fruit humor, but...
I love the jokes about how many idioms in our
dialogue, our verbiage, are based on body parts.
And that's a lot of what the song is lyrically,
and it just kind of captures that prom night
vibe in a way. Just a dance party scene. It's
a hilarious song, so going with Party at the
Leper Colony from Poodle Hat. I love the way
you refer to it as a low -hanging fruit, because
it is, but sometimes who cares? Because at the
end of the day, it is funny, regardless. And
Poodle Hat is one of those, to me, underrated
albums, because it has what I feel is one of
his best pokas, angry white boy polka, because...
It was kind of absurd hearing songs like Last
Resort and Chop Suey and Down With The Sickness
done in polka form. And that album to me is fantastic.
Again, he gets to parody Eminem twice on the
album via Couch Potato as well as Angry White
Boy Polka. A complicated song has me rolling
and the style parody of Bo Diddley. I mean, when
you hear the beat to this song, it kind of makes
you want to get up and dance. And that's exactly
where Al went with it only. At a leper colony.
So bravo on his sense of humor. And coming out
of that, I'm going to keep the energy up. We're
going to keep this party going, but I'm going
to go to another style parody. Slightly different
in nature, but it's a Weird Al album, so who
cares? And sometimes you make me want to build
a model of the Eiffel Tower out of Belgian waffles.
I'm going off of even worse, and you make me
the style parody of Oingo Boingo. I've heard
him do this song live. It's brilliant live. It
has this manic punk energy that would make Oingo
Boingo proud. And having grown up with music
like that, hearing Al do it, you can listen to
this song on an 80s mix, even though the lyrics
are silly. Musically, it fits right in seamlessly
with anything from Oingo Boingo. And it's just
so fun and so upbeat. And coming out of Party
at the Leprechaun, I feel like we're just kind
of keeping this. extremely fun vibe going so
i'm following up with you make me from even worse
oh yes love the choice i have to admit i'm not
as familiar with oingo boingo's style so i thought
he was doing another devo parody because it does
kind of capture the vibe a little bit um and
i looked at it like oh yeah that makes sense
that's totally uh tracks so going off of that
you know I'm actually going to take it all the
way up to mandatory fun now. I'm going to go
with this direct song parody. One of the things
Weird Al had started to do a little bit with
some of his later albums, he found a way to do
some social commentary. Lighthearted, but nevertheless,
it does hold a mirror up to our society a little
bit. So it's not blowing in the wind, necessarily.
In fact, some people just find it tacky. I got
to go with Tacky from Mandatory Fun. He's just
talking about the trappings of our modern life
and the things that we do. A great direct song
parody of Pharrell Williams. And I got to go
with it. Tacky from Mandatory Fun. Bravo. One
of the funniest parodies, but that album again,
which is most likely his last full length studio
album. At least for now, because that album is
very close to turning a decade old right now.
So it looks like the full length Weird Al albums,
unfortunately, are a thing of the past. But this
song to me is so perfect. And I want to take
a moment because we haven't talked about it yet.
Weird Al's band. Oh, my God. Just from the last
three songs alone. Not talking about all the
others. Let's go last four here. Amish Paradise.
The Hip Hop of Coolio. Party at the Leper Colony.
Bo Diddley. You Make Me. Oingo Boingo, Tacky,
Pharrell Williams. The songs are played with
such perfection that if Pharrell got Weird Al's
band to play on the original, nobody would know.
That is how talented this band is. And I think
that is such a huge part of Weird Al's success.
Because if it was just Weird Al and the accordion
doing these songs. They might seem a little monotonous,
but the fact that he can immerse himself in the
original so much, Al can actually take his voice
and change it to fit the style that the original
does. And there's such an admiration and a care
for the original that you have to respect it.
Because to me, Happy is going to be one of those
songs that for the next 40 years you hear at
every wedding you attend. So to be able to take
that song and make it funny, but still... danceable
and listenable is such a credit to the talent
of this band of his. No argument there. And that
was actually going to come up in a track. I'm
still planning on bringing up no matter how out
of place. It seems that the song that I have
to include, but obviously we'll get to that in
a bit. Cause you got to follow that up, man.
Good luck. Yeah. Closing out the side. So I get
to close one side out tonight. And I have to
go with my favorite all -time Weird Al road tripping
song. It was with my buddies since the album
dropped, and it is to this day with my kids.
There is nothing more I enjoy than the nearly
12 -minute epic madness off of 1999's Running
With Scissors, the closing track, Albuquerque.
Now, if you know this song, you know all there
is to know about this masterpiece. And if you
haven't heard it, I don't want to say too much
because to me, there's no better feeling of finding
out that somebody hasn't heard this song and
letting them experience it in all its glory.
So this is the one time I don't want to offer
commentary on the track. I want people who don't
know this song to listen to its comedic genius.
for 12 straight minutes. Because if there is
a song that follows up the amazing start of the
Hamilton polka, to me, it's Albuquerque, my favorite
Al original song, and quite possibly my favorite
Weird Al song of all time. Oh, you scoops me.
That was going to be my absolute closer because
this song captures so much of Weird Al's essence.
You've got the amazing ability to weave a great
story. You've got the food humor with the donut
shop. You got a slight nod to the TV humor with
the specter vision. You've got the buildup of
hyperbole with all the stuff he's bringing out
of the airplane. The absolute unbelievability
of it, just subtle touches here and there. It
encapsulates just about everything that is the
man's style. So I originally had that to close
out the tape altogether, but closing out aside,
it makes perfect sense too. Yes, Albuquerque
had to be on the list. That was one of my absolute
must -haves. Yeah, when you listen to like the
Weird Al, Wendy Carlos retelling of Peter and
the Wolf that came out in the 1980s, you take
that kind of madness that's happening, how odd
and absurd the content is, and you apply that
to a Weird Al track. It's the longest track in
his discography. And it's the one where the first
time I played it for my kids, they said, can
we hear that again? And it put a tear in my eye
because... How great is that? Like, of course
we can listen to it again because A, it's shaving
off 11 minutes of the car ride every time they
want to hear it. And yeah, it's absolutely hysterical.
That concludes side A of our ultimate Weird Al
mixtape, which kicked off with the Hamilton Pocah
single, Dare to be Stupid from the album of the
same name, Like a Surgeon from Dare to be Stupid,
You Don't Love Me Anymore from Off the Deep End,
Skipper Dan from Apocalypse, Amish Paradise from
Bad Hair Day, Party at the Leper Colony from
Poodle Hat, You Make Me from Even Worse, Tacky
from Mandatory Fun, and Albuquerque from Running
With Scissors. Head over to myweeklymixtape .com
to hear all the songs we've discussed in this
mix through the playlist embedded on the episode
page. Now, Philip, before we flip things over
to Side B. You said you wanted this mixtape to
make a case for Weird Al to be in the Rock and
Roll Hall of Fame. Do you feel like we're hitting
that nail on the head so far? I think we are.
Between Dare to be Stupid showing his meticulous
nature, the pure respect we've got, we've got
everything encapsulated in Albuquerque, the humor,
the social commentary, lighthearted as it's been.
I mean, it's just everything that... The Hall
seems to look for, for the most part, there's
a couple aspects maybe we haven't quite touched
on, but hopefully we'll be able to. We've still
got 10 more songs to go, and I am looking forward
to exploring this even further. I also love how
we have touched how many of his albums already?
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8. We've already hit 8 of
his 14 albums, plus one non -album single. So
we are really... Showing his whole catalog as
making a good argument quality from beginning
to end of why he belongs in the Rock and Roll
Hall of Fame. So I'm very pleased with where
this is heading. Me as well. And let's take that
eight albums and stretch it to nine because I'm
going to kick off Side B with something from
1984's In 3D. Now, Seeker had said that Eat It
is the song that broke him in. Australia. It
is one of the songs that truly broke him out
in the US. And I am. I am thinking that with
Albuquerque off the table, you might close the
whole mixtape with eat it because of the big
nature of that. So I don't want to scoop you
on that one. And instead, I'm going to go to
track two, which is extremely underrated original.
From Weird Al. And it was one of my favorites
to play my. Showing my age here. Atari 2600 and
7800 too. When I was growing up. From my original
cassette tape. I'm going to go with Midnight
Star. When you talk about social commentary.
When this song came out. The lyrics were meant
to be absurd. But somehow in this. Idiocracy
world that we live in right now. Some of these
lyrics, as absurd as they sound, I would not
be shocked if they popped up on my real news
feeds now. Like, eat jelly donuts and lose 20
pounds a day, hear the story about a man born
without a head. And top psychics all agree that
the telephone company will have a brand new service
that lets you talk to the dead. I mean, I watch
a show called Upload on Amazon TV. And that is
actually one of the plot points of the show.
And almost 20 years ago, Weird Al had it in one
of his songs. To me, this shows that Weird Al
is a great songwriter because I am sorry if I'm,
again, listening to this song, I am singing along
to the read it. You could read it. You could
read it. You could like, it's so much fun. And
it's a little bit of a, at a left field pick
to start a side off. Because I kind of want to
keep making this case for why he should be in
the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame right now. And
I feel like some of his originals that are often
overlooked, except for when he does the ridiculously
indulgent tours, these songs need a spotlight
outside of those tours. And Midnight Star is
my example of a great one. I'll admit that one
was actually not on my list of 75 songs. Wow!
I know, but everything you said is absolutely
true. You'd almost call it prophetic in a way
it just speaks to the absurdity of headlines
yet to come. But I like what you said about his
songwriting too. And I gotta tell you, I am really
stoked. Of all the tracks that I get to pick,
the second song on side B is the most exciting
for me because... When we did Playlist Wars,
like for me, the second song on the second side
is the linchpin. It's the secret weapon, whether
it's the best song or it's maybe the really good
one that nobody saw coming. Like I did that with
the Motown episode with the Jimmy Ruffin song.
So I really want to follow that up with a song
that maybe people just were not thinking of,
but they'll be extremely. pleased to hear it
when it comes on and i am going with a song that
i think is just perfect well not really but it's
good enough for now from polka party nice i love
this song this is first of all i just want to
say weird al is primarily comedy and this song
is hilarious i played this for a married friend
of mine And she was just about doubled over with
laughter. She says, I gotta play this for my
husband. And she says, he loves this song too.
Just the subtlety of his word choices in this
song. I'm relatively lucky. I guess I couldn't
ask for too much more. Not only that, first of
all, country, the old time country style, the
Rock Hall loves. To somewhat. And they've shown
country music a lot more love in the past couple
classes. But this has that old time Hank Williams,
Bob Wills feel of country music to it. And what
makes this so brilliant as well, because country
music tends to be self -parodying long enough.
Like there's actually a country song about when
you play a country music. song backwards you
get everything back that you lost like country
music actually takes its own shots at itself
so this song in all its glorious humor could
pass for a straight -laced country song like
this song could have been a john prine casey
musgraves duet and no one would have been any
the wiser like you could just have casey sing
Instead of the woman I've always longed for,
you could just have the one man instead of woman.
Change that one bit for her and they could have
sung it together as a duet. Sometimes a joke
is so funny you don't realize it's a joke. I
was reading YouTube comments for this song and
somebody wrote, My parents two -stepped to this
song at my sister's reception and had no idea
it was Weird Al. This song is so brilliant. It's
hilarious. And it really does sound great going
back to what you said about his band. So I have
to include from Polka Party. Good enough for
now. Well, I swear I'm never going to leave you,
darling, at least till something better comes.
I applaud the pick. And to me, that actually
gives me such a perfect thing to launch into.
And I'm actually going to stick with because
you did the style parody of the country ballad.
I want to take that style parody and lean into
it lyrically just a little bit more and kind
of take it to where maybe in good enough for
now, he's kind of okay with things, but I want
to take it back an album back to dare to be stupid
where things aren't going so well and do the
amazing style parody of Elvis and doo -wop with
one more minute. I'd rather have my blood sucked
out by leeches. Shove an ice pick under a toenail
or two. I'd rather clean all the bathrooms in
Grand Central Station with my tongue than spend
one more minute with you. This was the first
song that truly made me burst out crying laughing
at a Weird Al song as a kid. I thought this was
the funniest thing I had ever heard. The first
time I saw him live, he played it. And it just
has always been one of my favorite. Weird Al
songs because it's everything I love about his
sense of humor. Diving into a swimming pool filled
with double edged razor blades. I mean, yeah,
sure. Don't I wouldn't recommend doing it, but
it's hysterical to think of in the context of
this song. So coming out of good enough for now,
one more minute from Dare to be Stupid. And not
only does he capture the Elvis and the Jordan
Nears kind of crooning ballad style, but it also,
again, showcases. His gift for hyperbole and
how it just keeps getting more and more outlandish.
I love that song. That was on my list as well.
And, oh, there are two songs I really want to
follow it up with, and they're both from albums
we've already tapped. But, you know, I'm going
to stick with this lyrical theme. And I'm going
to go back to Bad Hair Day. And I'm going to
go with I'm so sick of you. First of all, Elvis
Costello and the Attractions Hall of Fame inductee.
So you got that box checked. Second of all, let's
talk about music and how it hits people personally.
Lately, at every induction ceremony, somebody
has gotten up to say so -and -so is in my personal
Hall of Fame. And that phrase kind of makes me
cringe a little bit, I have to admit. But what
I do respect about it is the idea of how music
affects everybody personally, even if it's in
different ways. And I'm So Sick of You is a song
that affected me personally. Not to get into
too much detail, but after a breakup that I was
trying to be, you know, nice on the outside,
everything kind of cool. not really dealing with
my emotions in a healthy and mature way. And
then I heard this song for the first time. I
was like, oh, I have permission to have all these
feelings and to deal with them in a better way
than this. So sometimes the song you need is
going to find you and you're not even going to
be looking for it at a time you're not looking
for anything. And it's just because this is such
a personal one, it's a bit of a off the wall
one, but I have to go with it. I'm so sick of
you from bad hair day. And when you softly call
my name, it's like, I'm listening to a squeaky
chalk sound. I just want to say as a disclaimer,
like nothing he says in the song is true about
my ex. It's just about the feelings you have
that when you go through a bad breakup. And for
me, it was just about allowing myself to deal
with them in a better way. So thank you weird
Al for that. What a great followup. I mean, Honestly,
we're really taking, I mean, if I had not put,
you don't love me any more on side a, Oh my God,
it would fit really well right here. But I know
we haven't touched on any song parodies yet,
but I know the perfect way to kind of end this
good enough for now. One more minute. I'm so
sick of you. I got one more song that lyrically
I think is just perfect to come out of. I'm so
sick of you. And I'm going to take that outward.
Loathing. And turn it inward. Because I'm just
a no good scum sucking. Nose picking. Boot licking.
Sniveling. Groveling. Worthless hunk of slime.
Nothing but a low down beer belly. Bone headed.
Pigeon toed. Turkey neck. Weasel faced. Worthless
hunk of slime. His incredible blues parody. Generic
blues. From UHF. The original motion picture
soundtrack. and other stuff, 1989. We haven't
touched on that album yet, and I feel like we'd
be doing this whole episode a disservice to not
touch on, A, that brilliant movie, and B, I really
wish this song was in the movie. I should throw
out there, but the entire album's hysterical
from start to finish between the skits from the
movie and the other music he put out. Another
polka alert, the Hot Rocks polka on this album,
hysterical. Yeah, Generic Blues from UHF. my
siblings hated me because i was an only child
i mean that is probably my favorite that's one
of my favorite lines of the song also just with
the solo make it talk okay now make it shut up
again the band is so talented by doing something
like that they're taking their talents and putting
it to comedic effect because you know there's
some blues bands that kind of meander on a couple
of notes over and over again. And this is Weird
Al honing into that and making it a punchline
part of the song. So brilliant. Yes. Okay. Following
up generic blues. And again, that kind of definitely
closes that arc beautifully because it starts
with a country song and ends with blues, blues
and country, the two biggest parent genres of
rock and roll, along with gospel and along with
jazz and folk. Sure. So basically. When we're
talking about expanding the definition of rock
and roll so that we don't just think of post
-British invasion guitar bands, the idea of making
other instruments rock. And I think Weird Al
really makes the accordion rock best as a lead
instrument. Some may disagree, and that's fine
because there are a few good examples here, but...
I'm going to go all the way back to the self
-titled album, and I'm going to go with I'll
Be Mellow When I'm Dead. Yes! Yes, yes, yes,
yes! Thank you! I don't want to stick to the
narrow connotation of rock and roll, but for
those who do, who are married, wed to that mindset
of what rock and roll is, he rocks the accordion
on that track. He just makes it baller. Even
without the lyrics. which are rock and roll themselves.
I'll be mellow when I'm dead. That's also a country
theme too, but it speaks to how rock and roll
can go anywhere. I mean, you got Korn including
bagpipes. Mellencamp has a violinist. There's
no instrument you cannot incorporate into rock
and roll. The accordion is incorporated into
some dance songs or at least an electronophonic
synthesis of the accordion sound. So it's definitely
part of the rock and roll conversation. And I
think I'll be mellow when I'm dead is just the
primo example of how to make it rock. So, yes,
I'll be mellow when I'm dead. Thank you for picking
that, because I was actually debating starting
off side B with that. And then I pivoted to go
to get something off of in 3D. That was easily
in my bucket list. And that was like my 11th
song that I just couldn't figure out where to
plug it in. So thank you because you made my
life much easier now because I absolutely love
that song. Lyrically, yes, it's a comedy song,
but I mean, now it's time to go for all the gusto
you can grab. You have plenty of time to be low
key when you're laid out on the slab. This is
a punk rock song with accordion in it. Damn it,
it works so perfectly. I love this track. I love
the punky nature of his self -titled album from
83 because it's got that really independent spirit
to it. And it just feels very young and very
energetic. And this song, I think, truly encapsulates
that vibe the most from the entire album. But
coming out of it, we're now up to track seven
on side B. And we have no song parodies. So now
we got to balance it out a little bit. We're
going heavy into the style and heavy into the
originals. So we got to bring in some heavy hitting
song parodies. And to me, I can't think of a
song that bridges the gap between myself and
my kids with a song parody than 2006's White
and Nerdy. Yes. Riding by Chameleon Air featuring
Crazy Bone from 2006's Straight Outta Linwood.
I mean, come on. This song is one of Weird Al's.
most brilliant songs and again showing off the
band's talents musically they nail the music
and weird al nails the delivery because if he
could not spit the lyrics out properly you lose
the flow of the song you lose the impact that
the song has and the fact that the lyrics are
just so spot on Between, yo, I got myself a fanny
pack. They were having a sale down at the Gap.
Spend my nights with a roll of bubble wrap. Pop,
pop, hope no one sees me. Getting freaky. I mean,
this song is so hysterical. So much fun. He comes
out on stage on the Segway with it. It bridges
the Gap and shows that Weird Al's abilities are
timeless. Because if you told me in 1984 that
in 2006, the kids that listen to music then.
Would be just as impressed by Weird Al as we
were in 1984. I don't know if I'd believe you,
but he has found a way to reinvent himself time
and time and time again. And white nerdy belongs
in the conversation of Weird Al's best song parodies
ever. Absolutely, it does. And thank you for
taking that one off my shoulders as well. That
was one. It's like I got to find a way to work
that song in because for a lot of the reasons
you just said. But here's some more, especially
about. making a case for him in the Rock and
Roll Hall of Fame. First of all, nerd culture
has been on the rise. The Rock and Roll Hall
of Fame is trying to attract younger people to
spend money on it at the museum and get them
more interested in the rock and roll conversation.
And the way Weird Al has always been about nerd
culture, but this is probably the... anthem of
it although i mean obviously you can be other
races and nerdy as well it just weird all happens
to be white that's what it is but the thing about
nerd culture and the way gen z and even the younger
millennials really embraced it as a means of
saying whatever you're into that's awesome and
that's kind of what the rock and roll spirit
is about is just embracing what you love Obviously,
within certain parameters, you don't harm anybody.
Keep your mind on and focused on what's important
in life. Don't forget those things. But it's
about living your best life, having that attitude.
And the way Weird Al just embraces it with the
lyrics and also showing off his amazing talent,
his rapping talent is on full display there.
And also in the video, the video, the best part
for me is just Donny Osmond dancing. Oh, my God.
Yeah. I don't know what made him think to ask
Donny Osmond, but it just works. And the way
Donny just does the dancing so shamelessly and
gracefully at the same time, it just, it is so
hilarious. That song, oh, my goodness. You just
made my day with that one. Thank you very much.
And as great as the original video is, There
is a second music video for this song that features
nothing but Donny Osmond outtakes. And it is
so freaking hysterically brilliant. I'm going
to embed it over on the episode page at myweeklymixtape
.com so you could go and watch this because it
will literally make you laugh to tears. It is
as funny as the original video, just for three
straight minutes of Donny Osmond just dancing
like a jackass behind Weird Al. Unbelievably
funny. It is. Okay. Oh, so I have two songs left,
correct? Mm -hmm. Oh, this is going to be tough
because Alapalooza is the one album we haven't
gotten to yet, and I've been keeping a tally.
At the same time, I have two songs I want to
go with, and neither of them are from Alapalooza.
Oh, where do I go? All right. Well, this is one
I absolutely said had to be. on there. I was
kind of hoping to go earlier, but coming out
of White and Nerdy, and this is going to get
back to Weird Al's band behind him, too. I am
going back to Off the Deep End, and I am going
with Trigger Happy, if you can believe that.
So here's why. So, growing up, I'm a couple years
younger than you, Brian, but... Listening to
the Old East Station with my mom, running errands
with her about town, and also the resurgence
of popularity that Kokomo gave the Beach Boys,
I was already pretty familiar with the Beach
Boys pre -Pet Sounds songs by the time Off the
Deep End came out. Little Deuce Coop, Surfing
USA, Dance Dancing. I get around. I knew those
songs. So this song... I immediately got that
it was kind of, at first I was thinking like,
what, is he parodying a Beach Boys Deeper song?
But I didn't quite understand what style parody
was at the time. But the more I listen to the
song and being as familiar as I am with the Beach
Boys, I just appreciate the meticulous detail
of Al and the incredible talent of his band.
The more I listen to this song, you've got the
guitar licks. You've got the drum fills. You
have the way the kick bass is just soloing over
or under Weird Al's vocals. Even the degree to
which Weird Al even tries to sound like Mike
Love, who sings lead on most of those Beach Boys
songs that are kind of the endless summer, eternally
young tracks. Everything about this is just so
crafted to mimic the style. And this song really
speaks about it. the most. You just want to talk
about incredible talent. It absolutely needs
to be there. First of all, the Beach Boys for
the longest time were considered America's band.
So the way he just captures it in such absolute
detail that I can just appreciate more and more.
And he can kind of talk about gun humor without
offending the NRI people or the anti -gun people.
It's being funny without being offensive. And
it's such a hard line. to walk. Like I said,
you know, sometimes he goes for low hanging fruit,
but he doesn't go blue, which is sometimes even
easier than going with the low hanging fruit.
And I really respect him for that. I just think
it's a hilarious song to boot. I got to have
trigger happy. I will say this. The point that
I want to touch on this song is what you had
said towards the end. He took a very hot topic
back in the nineties, especially now. And found
a way to find the humor without punching down,
keeping it as broad as possible and making it
funny. I would say this might be one of his most
quote unquote air quotes here, controversial
songs based on the fact that he's never played
it live. But the attention to detail that this
song has musically should not be understated.
And again, this is him touching a sensitive subject.
In a way that hopefully across the board is seen
for what it is. Commentary. Meant to be funny.
Meant to be satire. To me, I think he pulls it
off. Yeah, absolutely. Coming out of that, we've
only got two songs left. And I have another favorite.
And I feel bad because we're going back to an
album for a fourth time. But it is probably my
favorite Weird Al album. It's also one of my
favorite Weird Al parodies. I know Darth Vader's
really got you annoyed, but remember, if you
kill him, then you'll be unemployed. Yoda, the
song parody of Lola by the Kinks. He always plays
it second to last at his shows. It's just one
of those songs that, to me, is timeless in its
sense of humor growing up with Star Wars. This
was a song that made me laugh and spoke to my...
eight -year -old Star Wars fandom in a sense
of humor that truly resonated with me. And it's
a song that to me is timeless because Star Wars
is still in pop culture now. And the song is
still funny to kids that go see him live now.
So you want to make a case for why Weird Al should
be in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Here's
a song that I see adults and kids singing along
to at his shows now. And that's Yoda. Yes. And
I will admit too. The Saga Begins was one of
the three songs I was juggling to use as a starter
because talk about the idea of things that last.
The Star Wars canon and even the fandom canons,
geez, the oxymoron there, it's lasted and it's
based on a classic song. So yeah, Yoda. I mean,
that is a great song and it's about things that
people can still relate to. Between the generations.
So, yes, absolutely. And now, Philip, you have
the honor or misfortune, depending on how you
want to look at it, of closing out our evening
tonight. Oh, yes, yes, yes. Boy, there is one
song I really wanted to include, but I don't
know if it works. I kind of also thought about
going. to the closing track from uh the carnival
of the animals from the peter the wolf especially
because he kind of insults the people like now
go find something better to do but i don't think
i'll do that um do i want to include alapalooza
or do i want to go with another song you know
what For those about to rock, we salute you.
Alapalooza's Young, Dumb, and Ugly. Wow! Posing
it out with the, I mean, it's an ACDC -style
parody, obviously, but also, you know, ACDC,
obviously, very beloved by the hall and by rock
lovers, but it gives that element of fidelity,
even if it is the second song on the album. I
just see it kind of as a way to bring the house
down and bring it to a close. And like I said,
who doesn't love ACDC? So yeah, let's close it
out with young, dumb and ugly. And let's get
every one of his studio albums represented here.
Fantastic. And I know there's probably going
to be, I can already hear it right now. How did
you leave off this? How did you leave off this?
Thankfully, Weird Al has enough songs to easily
do a volume two, three and four. So I'm not even
worried about that. But what a fantastic pick
from Alapalooza. Because to me. ala palusa is
one of his more underrated albums obviously you
had bedrock anthem an achy breaky song but there
wasn't a litany of tracks from this one that
continue to get played throughout the years except
for harvey the wonder hamster that got brought
out on his strings attached to her which i think
was yes absolutely brilliant But I love the pick
because to me, this is a deep cut and it's a
style parody of one of my favorite bands on the
planet. So bravo. Well, thank you. I had a lot
of great followers. You're right. People are
going to be like, how'd you leave off this one?
I noticed that we didn't bring any of the food
songs to this. And I'm actually kind of glad
about that because people who don't like Weird
Al, who say, oh, he's not worth enshrining. One
of the things they always say when they talk
about, oh, he's just the guy who does the food
songs. Like that's all they know about him. And
they don't open their ears and minds to anything
else of the man's brilliance. So that's why I
kind of wanted to stay away from food songs.
That's why I didn't go with eat it. I wouldn't
have been mad if you did. Don't get me wrong.
But I definitely wanted to keep the conversation
away from the food songs. Say, hey, the guy is
a lot more than this. Are there good food songs
of his? Obviously. But I wanted to really address
the man's whole gestalt, if you will. And since
Albuquerque was already taken, young, dumb, and
ugly. And I will say, too, it really does capture
that rock and roll spirit of just being young,
dumb, and ugly. You know, the misfits, the people
who don't fit in. I will say I also thought about
Smells Like Nirvana because... The idea of we're
so loud and incoherent, boy, this really ought
to bug your parents. How is that not the definition
of rock and roll? I also had a hard time leaving
off Everything You Know Is Wrong. That song is
just brilliant on so many levels. I don't even
have time to get in. But I'm happy with the pick.
I think it makes the statement that we all feel
good as being made even if we weren't sure if
we were going to be the ones to make it. Well,
I will challenge only one thing you said there
that we didn't mention food songs without going
into details. I think Albuquerque covers the
food topic. Yes, it does. Quite well. It's good
for you. That's all I'll say. Okay. Fair enough.
And that, Mixtapers, concludes Side B of our
ultimate Weird Al Yankovic mixtape, which consists
of Midnight Star from N3D, Good Enough for Now
from Polka Party, One More Minute from Dare to
Be Stupid, I'm So Sick of You from Bad Hair Day,
Generic Blues from UHF, I'll Be Mellow When I'm
Dead from Weird Al Yankovic, White and Nerdy
from Straight Outta Linwood, Trigger Happy from
Off the Deep End, Yoda from Dare to be Stupid,
and Young, Dumb, and Ugly from Alapalooza. Head
over to myweeklymixtape .com to hear all the
songs we've discussed in this mix. through the
playlist embedded on the episode page. Now, Philip,
I know you're a huge fan of the Rock and Roll
Hall of Fame, and you also have a blog that's
dedicated to it. So why don't you let listeners
know where they could read up on that if they
want to read more about the ongoings at the Rock
Hall, because I think it's truly a fantastic
place for commentary on the Rock Hall. Well,
thank you very much. I have to admit, I haven't
been as active because my job keeps me very busy,
but also. because my laptop broke and it's easier
to write on a laptop than on a phone. But if
you're looking for it, it's called rockhallmonitors
.blogger or blogspot, whichever you prefer, .com.
Rockhallmonitors, all one word, no special characters,
anything like that. I'm trying to get back on
it. I've done a couple fanfic playlists from
your previous podcast, Playlist Wars. I hope
you've enjoyed those posts as well. By all means.
Yeah, I was hoping to weigh in on the current
ceremony, but I haven't had a chance to. watch
it undistracted yet so hopefully that's on the
list of things to do in the near future but it's
a fun little venue for me to talk about how i
feel about things about the rock and roll hall
of fame and some members of the community have
found it useful as well and i feel very humbled
by that but yeah if you want to check it out
that's where it is well philip This is an absolute
pleasure. First off, thank you so much for being
a Patreon mixtaper and supporting the show the
way you do. And most importantly, thank you for
joining me on the show. Look forward to having
you back very soon for either a volume two of
this or a whole new topic altogether. You know
where to find me, man. I am more than willing.
Thank you for having me. Remember, Mixtapers,
you can find My Weekly Mixtape on almost all
the social media haunts at My Weekly Mixtape.
You can also head to MyWeeklyMixtape .com to
check out the full catalog of My Weekly Mixtape
episodes. And if you like what you're hearing
on the show, you can help me out by either telling
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wherever you're tuning in, or becoming a Patreon
Mixtaper at Patreon .com forward slash My Weekly
Mixtape. That's all for this week. Thanks again
for listening. And until next time, enjoy the
tunes.