Feb. 28, 1984, or as I like to call it, the day Weird Al broke into pop culture. With a shiny new studio sound and a tracklist more clear to Al form (zig-zagging between parodies and originals, with a medley cherry on top), it's much more organized than his debut. Highlights here include "Eat It" (do I need to say anything else?), "I Lost on Jeopardy" (they practically brought Jeopardy back!), and "Mr. Popeil" (underrated...so very underrated...). Not quite peak classic Al, but still very close.
Thoughts: The song that put Weird Al on the map. It doesn't get any more famous than this, folks.
The question is this, though: does it hold up?
YES!! He thought of the perfect alternate lyrics and immaculately imitated the original music video. Only Al could make a song about trying to get someone to eat their dinner so dang catchy. To wit, I listened to it a while back and it got into my head every few hours, on the hour. And I wouldn't have it any other way!
Favorite Part: That rockin' guitar solo - you know the one. The lyric I used for the tab title is pretty damn good, too.
Rating: 9 square meals out of 10
Thoughts: You know the tabloid magazines they stock at those 1-dollar stores? The Midnight Star is like that, but better. It's got alien sightings, it's got tips for stress, it's got telekinetic phone lines, and best of all... It's 100% ABSOLUTELY TRUE*!!!
In all seriousness, though, "Midnight Star" is a good song. I love the instrumental, I love the details of the magazine, and I love the way it's sung. The slower-than-usual pace also works out well; you'll be at the edge of your seat waiting for what else's in the Midnight Star.
Favorite Part: "You can use you ESP to learn to play guitar! (sick guitar lick)"
Rating: 8 tabloid magazines out of 10
Thoughts: Do you know who the Brady Bunch are? I don't, but I do know what the Safety Dance is, so it's fine by me.
Regarding the song itself, it's about two men with a simple conflict: only one of them wants to watch the Brady Brunch. The guy who doesn't want to watch 'em (henceforth known as Guy #1) is the one singin', and he tells Guy #2 about all the things they could watch that isn't about the Bradies. Of course, Guy #2 doesn't listen, and Guy #1 copes by singing the theme song to the tune of "The Safety Dance". Basically, a TV version of "Achy Breaky Song" (interesting, huh?). I would've just left, but this was the 80s, so maybe he didn't have TV access anywhere else.
Fun fact! While "Money for Nothing/Beverley Hillbillies*" is more well-known, this was Al's first (official) attempt at mixing TV theme songs and popular 80s music together. In my opinion, this was the better one of the two, but hey, it's not like they ever used "The Brady Bunch" in a movie before...
If you want to hear more of The Brady Bunch theme being set to different songs, listen to Brady Bunch Fields Forever now. Trust me, it's good.
Favorite Part: I prefer the first part of the song in general, but "But there's only one set, so whatever you watch... Well, you know I gotta watch it too!" is my favorite lyric.
Rating: 7 other TV channels to watch out of 10
Thoughts: I haven't listened to this yet (and given the lyrics, I probably won't anytime soon).
Rating: N/A
Thoughts: One thing before I get to the song itself: the music video is good — really good. I just love the visuals and attention to detail, and you should watch it as soon as you can.
Anyways, back to the actual review. As the song goes, Alfred (who seems to be in a universe where he doesn't have any talent) goes on Jeopardy and...[honk]s up. Bad. To the tune of Greg Kihn's "Jeopardy", at that. (Hey, I never said these things were really plot heavy.) Yes, it's as amusing as it sounds, although the shining moment here for me is Don Pardo's breaking monolog to Al. To put it short; "No fortune nor fame for you, so HIT THE ROAD!"
Fun fact! This was one of the first Weird Al songs I remember listening to (the other is "Jurassic Park").
Favorite Part: Pardo's speech, obviously, but "Don't know what I was thinkin' of, I guess I just wasn't too bright... Well, I sure hope I do better next weekend on The Price Is Right-ight-ight!" shouldn't be overlooked.
Rating: 9 missed questions out of 10
Thoughts: While, as I've said before, I prefer the pre-studio version, the offical "Polkas on 45" is still pretty darn good. The obvious plus, of course, is having shiny, new studio quality instead of the crunchy in-concert quality of before. I don't even mind the replaced songs and different snippets used; I can handle the lack of "1999" and "She Blinded Me with Science" if he sings all the new songs so well.
Favorite Part: His covers of "Jocko Homo", "Hey Joe" and "My Generation". The yodeling's pretty good, too, even without context.
Rating: 7 vaudeville shows out of 10 (the live version, of course, gets a 8 out of 10 instead)
Thoughts: Ah, "Mr. Popeil". Or, as I like to call it, "the song that immediately outdates your top ten Weird Al song lists".
But what is "Mr. Popeil"? The best dang commercial ode I've ever heard. All the product name dropping and advert stock phases. That heartbeat of an instrumental. Ron Popeil's sister even sings backup. Would I call it pure Al? The distilled essense of Al?
No, probably not. There's a few songs I can think of more deserving of the title. But is it a flawless song? You bet your lucky stars it is.
The Genius about section for "Mr. Popeil" is written like a perfect piece of paid programming. It's glorious.
Favorite Part: Al and Lisa calling out for Mr. Popeil together and "Aw, help me, Mr. Popeil; I want it! (Mr. Popeil!) Well, I need it! (Mr. Popeil!) I got to-got to-got to HAVE IT!!"
Rating: 11 Made For TV products out of 10
Thoughts: I'll admit: I don't have much to say about "King of Suede" except A) I like the soft spoken tone of it and B) I like to think this guy is where the dude from "Leisure Suit Serenade" bought his suit.
Also, nice cowbell. At least, I'm pretty sure it's cowbell.
Favorite Part: "If you need a tuxedo for your junior prom, we can get you the best one that's made in Taiwan! We got jackets with patches on the elbows, too, and we'll sell 'em all factory-direct to you..."
Rating: 8 suede suits out of 10
Thoughts: Production-wise, "That Boy Could Dance" is a good song. The instrumental's nice to listen to, the lyrics are sung well, and it's mixed smoothly. It's just that I don't care that much for Jimmy the Geek. So what if he can dance? He's a moronic little freak, an annoying pipsqueak with an unfortunate physique!! I bet he can't even sing that well.
(Can't win them all, I suppose.)
Favorite Part: "He was kind of a jerk, he was kind of a bore, but the women would scream when he walked in the door... 'Cause one thing I could tell you for sure, that boy could dance!"
Rating: 6 smooth moves out of 10
Thoughts: Another case of enjoyable songs about media I'm unfamiliar with. Going from what Al said, though, Rocky's had enough of the boxing life and now runs a deli. He chops up meat and offers people catering and doesn't even angst about his glory days! It's sweet (or perhaps more fittingly, savory).
The only lyric I didn't like was the first verse. You be nice to Mr. Balboa; he doesn't make those sandwiches for free, y'know.
Side note: I prefer this over "Eye of the Tiger", but that might just be because this song isn't as overplayed.
Favorite Part: "It's the rye or the kaiser, it's the thrill of one bite; let me please be your catering advisor! If you want substitutions I won't put up a fight; you can have your roast beef on the ryyyyyyeeeeeee...or the kaiser!"
Rating: 7 freshly made sandwiches out of 10
Thoughts: Ah, yes, Weird Al's atmospheric song about violent, volatile, and vexed B-movies. The slasher villain craze was starting to kick up, and what better time than 1984 to make fun of it? Speaking of, the slasher for Nature Trail to Hell (in 3D!) is a "homicidal maniac" (his words, not mine) who's come across a group of cub scouts and decides to take out his rage on 'em. (I'm sure there's a JTHM joke to be made here somewhere, but I can't think of one. Pity.) Anyways, this song is perfect: Al's vocals almost make me want to watch it if it were real (it's not, and I'm not a big fan of gory horror anyhow). Bonus points for the last few seconds of the song being silence; it kept me on my toes the first time I listened to it.
Side note: You might remember from my July 2023 Top Ten Songs list my brief ravings about a part of the song that kept bringing me out of it. But after a bit of contemplation, I realized it fit more than I first thought. Every great 80s horror movie worth its salt had to be at least a little funny. So, I've decided to let bygones be bygones and forgive the bubbling.
Favorite Part: "What have you got to lose? If you like the six o'clock news, then you'll love NATURE TRAIL TO HELL!!!"
Rating: 10 dead campers out of 10
This album is — put short — good. Really good. And unlike his debut, most of the songs here got their proper due. The fact that he sunk into the Al Yankovic Album Formula (practically equal amount of orginals and parodies for everyone to enjoy) probably helped. Welcome to the (then-)new age of comedy music, folks. Weird Al finally got his big break, and he's gonna use it to his advantage.
Favorite Song: "Mr. Popeil"
Final Rating: 10 improved sequels out of 10
It only gets better from here! Dare to be stupid and read about the album of the same name or come back home. Which one is it gonna be?