Still Crazy, Again
Knowing that "Weird Al" Yankovic is still doing his thing indicates there is some small remnant of my "good old days." Days that with each year (and each old school celebrity passing) grow dimmer.
The former high school valedictorian has been doing funny song parodies for well over three decades. I bought several of his records in the 80s, which featured spoofs like "Girls Just Want to Have Lunch", "Another One Rides the Bus," "Like a Surgeon", and "Eat It." I had to wonder how awkward it was for Yankovic to get permission to record his ditties, from all those hubris soaked celebs. As if by answer there was a funny sequence in his 1985 mockumentary THE COMPLEAT AL which showed him entering Michael Jackson's hallowed inner sanctum to ask if he could use lyrics like "It doesn't matter if it's boiled or fried just eat it!".
Al also did several other tunes, originals like "Buy Me a Condo" and "Nature Trail to Hell" (an ode to slasher movies) to round out his mega selling albums. Don't forget those polka medleys! I also enjoyed the times Al took over MTV Veejaying duties ("We'll paint your mother pink!"). And his videos were just as imaginative as the songs, with a particularly funny one for "Fat", a riff on Jackson's "Bad".
So all these years later we have "Tacky", a much appreciated take on Pharrell's earworm "Happy." It is the first single from Yankovic's new album Mandatory Fun. Here's another amusing video, with special guest stars!
Many thanks, old friend.
The former high school valedictorian has been doing funny song parodies for well over three decades. I bought several of his records in the 80s, which featured spoofs like "Girls Just Want to Have Lunch", "Another One Rides the Bus," "Like a Surgeon", and "Eat It." I had to wonder how awkward it was for Yankovic to get permission to record his ditties, from all those hubris soaked celebs. As if by answer there was a funny sequence in his 1985 mockumentary THE COMPLEAT AL which showed him entering Michael Jackson's hallowed inner sanctum to ask if he could use lyrics like "It doesn't matter if it's boiled or fried just eat it!".
Al also did several other tunes, originals like "Buy Me a Condo" and "Nature Trail to Hell" (an ode to slasher movies) to round out his mega selling albums. Don't forget those polka medleys! I also enjoyed the times Al took over MTV Veejaying duties ("We'll paint your mother pink!"). And his videos were just as imaginative as the songs, with a particularly funny one for "Fat", a riff on Jackson's "Bad".
So all these years later we have "Tacky", a much appreciated take on Pharrell's earworm "Happy." It is the first single from Yankovic's new album Mandatory Fun. Here's another amusing video, with special guest stars!
Many thanks, old friend.
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