But for their 50th anniversary, the Boys are Back!

Surviving members Brian Wilson, Mike Love, Al Jardine, Bruce Johnston, and David Marks will kick off a 50-show reunion this spring, playing around the country and presumably the globe. No tour locations/dates have been set yet beyond the kickoff at the New Orleans Jazz Festival, but it seems like a safe bet they’ll end up somewhere in the greater New York metro area. (Hopefully.)

And that’s not all! Not only are they going on tour, they’re also reuniting for a new album! They’ve re-recorded (appropriately enough) “Do It Again,” and judging from the below video, they all still sound great, half a century after first recording “Surfin’ Safari.”

Long live The Beach Boys!

Christmas music is inescapable this time of year. If you listen long enough, you’ll notice two things. First, there’s only actually a dozen or so Christmas songs, they’ve just each been recorded so many times that the stations can go 24-7 and rarely play the same song by the same artist more than once a year. Secondly, a lot of these songs have some seriously demented messages. Observe:

Santa Claus is Coming to Town – Guess what, children of the world?! There’s a guy out there who wants you to adhere to a strict moral code, and to make sure that you do, he watches you. All the time. Even when you’re sleeping! Pleasant dreams, kids!

Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer – If bullies are picking on you just because you’re different from them, go out of your way to do them a massive favor. Then you’ll all be best friends! Also, apparently Santa’s strict code of ethics doesn’t apply to his own reindeer.

Baby It’s Cold Outside – Cold weather and holiday parties are a perfect excuse for coercing an unwilling woman to sleep with you. Guys, never take no for an answer, say whatever you need to in order to keep the woman from walking out the door, and feel free to use alcohol to get what you want. Seriously, date rapists probably use this song to psych themselves up.

Do They Know It’s Christmas – People in Africa are starving? Now, during Christmas? Man, can these people NOT depress us with all of their problems when we’re trying to be joyful? Instead of just being hungry, can’t they just play in the snow or do something festive? No? Jerks.

Winter Wonderland – Playing in the snow is fun! Building snowmen is fun! Pretending that a snowman is a minister that can perform marriages is… fun? Huh?? How has the religious right not rallied around this song as destructive to the holy sanctity of matrimony?

Santa Baby – Hey Santa, I’m ordinarily a rather fast gal, but this year instead of throwing myself at a variety of rich men, I’ve decided to streamline things and simply throw myself at you. After all, you have access to the best material goods, which is all that’s important! Thanks!

We Wish You a Merry Christmas – We, the singers of this song, hope you and your family have a great holiday! Now that we’ve wished you well, we would like you to give us an obscure dessert. Yeah, we know it’s a random request, and it’s not something that most people keep lying around in ample quantities, but we demand it, and we will not leave your property or give you any of the peace we previously wished you until you succumb to our command.

Any others that I missed?

This Saturday night, Courtney and I got a rare night out, just the two of us. We always look forward to making these “date nights” fun and romantic evenings, and this time was no different. We started off at a lovely local restaurant called Ruvo, where we sat at a corner table and enjoyed pancetta wrapped scallops, grilled mahi mahi and crispy Long Island duck, and two rich deserts, all accompanied by a nice bottle of Prosecco. After dinner, we took in a night of legitimate theatre:

“Weird Al” Yankovic live in concert!

I wrote about my desire to go to this concert before, and my mother got me two tickets for my birthday.  (Thanks, Ma!)   Courtney was initially not totally on-board, but she was a good sport and figured we’d have a fun night out even if she isn’t quite as obsessed with Weird Al as I am. And I am pleased to report that on my fourth time seeing the mighty parodist live, I was not disappointed.

First of all, The Paramount in Huntington is a really nice venue. Having just reopened, it was a great opportunity to get in there while everything is still new. It’s a smaller venue, to be sure, but there’s something to be said for a more intimate experience, and the Paramount certainly felt more cozy than cramped. The fact that it’s right in downtown Huntington is a great bonus. And they have an abundance of bars around the place, so if you like to enjoy a cocktail while at a concert without having to walk too far, this is the place for you.

But back to Weird Al. Here’s a guy a day away from his 52nd birthday, yet the trademark manic energy of his concerts hasn’t subsided at all over the years. He changes costumes regularly, he jumps around, redefining what it means to be double-jointed, and he even jumped into the crowd to serenade every woman he saw during Wanna Be UR Lover. Not surprisingly, the set-list featured the new album heavily, but since I love Alpocalypse, I had no complaints there. He performed two of my favorites from the disc, Party in the CIA and Skipper Dan, though I was hoping he would also have sung If That Isn’t Love, but that and Stop Forwarding That Crap To Me ended up being the only two tracks that didn’t make the cut. Oh well.

The requisite old favorites were all there – Fat, Amish Paradise, Smells Like Nirvana, White & Nerdy. There were also a handful of non-parody album cuts, like the aforementioned Wanna Be UR Lover and Frank’s 2000″ TV, as well as a very long and comprehensive parody medley, that featured snippets of songs from throughout Weird Al’s entire lengthy catalog (except for the Polka Party! album, which never gets any love.) Interspersed throughout the show were video clips – short segments from UHF and The Weird Al show, Al’s fake interview bits, where he cuts himself into interviews with celebrities, and various moments where Al has appeared or been referenced in various movies and TV shows – yes, including his hilarious Naked Gun cameo.

He ended the show as he has done for several tours now, with a Star Wars mini-montage, consisting of The Saga Begins and Yoda – and a mid-Yoda “rap” of nonsense that has to be seen to be believed.

As a an added bonus, we bumped into friends of ours at the show (shout-out to Adam and Marisa!), and since we had a sitter, we were able to go out with them for an unplanned drink after the concert. (An impromptu drink with friends?! It was like we were 23 again!)

It was a great show, and I even caught Courtney laughing and bopping along to the music a few times. My only complaints about the show would be that there weren’t any new, unreleased songs, and that I’d already seen all of the fake interview pieces before. I mean, watching Al “interview” Jessica Simpson and Celine Dion is still funny, but it is definitely time for a new Al TV special, complete with all the requisite hilarity and newly spliced together interviews. Surely some television producer (with more clout than myself) can make that happen, right?

That way, there will be a ton of fresh material for Weird Al’s next tour!

Aerosmith – Come Together
I think the best thing about this cover is early-career Steven Tyler’s voice. It just feels like he was made to sing this song. And no offense to the King of Pop, but the less said about Michael Jackson’s cover, the better.

Earth, Wind and Fire – Got to Get You Into My Life
The original version is a simple, straightforward rock n’ roll tune. But EWF totally transformed it into an insanely funky song that can almost make you forget the original.

Joe Cocker – She Came In Through the Bathroom Window
A Joe Cocker pick on this list was a given, but I’m going against the grain and not picking With A Little Help From My Friends. I mean, sure, that song brings me right back to watching The Wonder Years, and it’s a great cover, but I always felt like it suffered from a bit too much of the Joe Cocker yell. This song, on the other hand, is a great reinterpretation of another classic Beatles track.

Anything off of Fried Glass Onions
This is something of a cheat as I’m not picking only one song, but oh well. This album may not be particularly well known, but we received it as a gift from an aunt who lives in Tennessee, and it features Memphis artists reinterpreting Beatles songs. The super-stripped down Blackbird, the soulful Long and Winding Road, the wah wah pedal heavy instrumental Hard Day’s Night – there’s really not a bad track on there.

Alison Krauss & Tony Furtado – I Will
Blasphemy or not, I’m just gonna say it – this version is superior to the original. The banjo and steel drum are nice, but Krauss’s voice is absolutely amazing, and she takes a short and simple song and transforms it into something profoundly beautiful.

A brand new concert venue, so close to us – how cool is that!

But it gets better.

Guess who is playing one of the very first concerts at the Paramount?

Weird Al!

After his book came out, I was hoping he would come to town to do a signing at The Book Revue, a local store that attracts celebrities/authors for book signings.  (It’s where I met the lovely Olivia Munn last year.)  Alas, it wasn’t meant to be.  But it turns out the pull of Huntington was too much for Weird Al to resist!

And it gets even better still – the concert will be this October, which is the month of my birthday and wedding anniversary!  It’s the perfect present – though for which occasion is still to be determined, given as how Courtney has expressed the tiniest bit of hesitancy.  But c’mon, you can’t fight fate!  Right?!

PS If anyone else is interested, the show is Saturday, October 22nd, at 8pm.

Or not. Taste is all relative after all.

Now I actually enjoy Bob Dylan’s singing, but if you can only appreciate his tunes when they are sung by someone else, I humbly submit my Top Five Bob Dylan cover songs.

Manfred Mann – The Mighty Quinn (Quinn the Eskimo)
OK, so the lyrics in this song may not be brilliant, but it’s definitely the catchiest song ever written about an Eskimo. And this version was released years before Manfred Mann would find further success doing another cover of a song where no one could understand the original’s lyrics, Blinded by the Light.

Robert Palmer and UB40 – I’ll Be Your Baby Tonight
Bob Dylan not sexy enough for you? Well how about Robert Palmer? And what make Robert Palmer sexier? Well, the pale emotionless ladies that stand behind him don’t hurt, but also having the reggae sound of UB40 certainly makes this cover song extra seductive.

Jim James & Calexico – Goin’ To Acapulco
I love Dylan, but I just couldn’t get into the “bio-pic” I’m Not There – it was just too po-mo for me. (Post Modern. Weird for the sake of weird.) Still, the soundtrack is full of great Dylan covers, and it’s tough to single out a favorite. I very much enjoy Mason Jennings’ The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll, Cat Power’s take on Stuck Inside of Mobile with the Memphis Blues Again, and Jeff Tweedy’s Simple Twist of Fate. But if I have to pick one song that rises above the rest, it is this version of Goin’ To Acapulco. (Pay no attention to the Spanish subtitles… unless you’re into that sort of thing, of course.)

Guns N’ Roses – Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door
Every band in the history of bands has covered this song. OK, maybe that’s a slight exaggeration, but this track has to be up there with Come Together and Feelin’ Alright. Now I mean no disrespect to Eric Clapton o anyone else, but the GNR version of this song is hands down the best. It’s hard to hear anyone else sing this song and not imagine Axl’s “Hey, hey, hey hey yeah” in your head.

Jimi Hendrix – All Along the Watchtower
Yes, it’s a cliché to put this song on my list, but there is a reason that it is the definitive Dylan cover. Many songs that were written by Dylan would go on to become much more popular after being sung by another act, but that has never been more true than with Watchtower, which became not only one of Hendrix’s biggest hits, but a true classic rock anthem. All thanks to the incomparable writing of Mr.Bob Dylan.

It’s been a long time coming, but it’s finally here! The new Weird Al CD! Alpocalypse! YAY!

So how is it?

Obviously, I picked it up on my way to work this morning, and I’ve listened to it repeatedly as much as possible. (With headphones, in case you were wondering. Not because I’m embarrassed, but because I want to enjoy this experience totally for myself, and not have other people’s conversations get in the way of my listening pleasure.)

So how is it?

Amazing.

Over the past two years, Weird Al released some tracks online as part of his “Internet Leaks” EP. (I posted some of the videos here, here, and here.)  Those original tracks, coupled with the parodies Whatever You Like and Perform This Way have already been released, so when I listened to the album in its entirety, I’d already heard half of the songs before.  That did, in all honesty, make the experience slightly less exhilarating.  Still, the tracks that were new to me were all brilliant: TMZ, Party in the CIA, Another Tattoo, If That Isn’t Love (which is so far my favorite), Stop Forwarding That Crap To Me (which is especially relevant to certain family members who absolutely LOVE sending email forwards – cough cough), and of course the newest polka medley, Polka Face.  They alone made the disc purchase worth it.

Of course, being old and out of touch, I must admit that I am not super familiar with the contemporary songs that Weird Al parodies and includes in his polkas nowadays.  (And by “not super familiar with,” I mean I’d never heard them before in my life.)  Taylor Swift?  Miley Cyrus?  Justin Bieber?  Sure, I’ve heard of these people, but I’m not really a big fan of any of them.  I wouldn’t have minded hearing some songs that I do know, at least in polka form – Single Ladies and F—/Forget You come to mind.   But (thorough fan that I am) I’ve gone back and listened to the originals to make sure I’m picking up on all of the subtle jokes along the way, as Weird Al usually gives extra winks to the source material in his parodies.  But whether or not you know the original songs or not, these songs are funny.  Weird Al is a master humorist, and the writing on these tracks is every bit as sharp as it’s always been.  The “funny music” genre has become more crowded over the last few years, with Flight of the Conchords and The Lonely Island moving in on Al’s turf.  And don’t get me wrong – those acts are damn funny, too.  But on one listening to this album, it’s clear that Weird Al, three decades into his career, still has it.

If I had to complain about anything (this is the internet, after all!) it’s that there is no ‘epic’ track on this album.  Running With Scissors had the 11+ minute Albuquerque.  Poodle Hat had the 9 minute ode to Frank Zappa, Genius in France.  Straight Outta Lynwood had the 11 minute parody of Trapped in the Closet, Trapped in the Drive-Thru.  I loved those long songs, and I was hoping for another one on this album.  Sadly, it wasn’t meant to be.  Yeah, Stop Forwarding That Crap To Me is close to 6 minutes, but I could imagine that track having gone on for a little while longer. Oh well… maybe next time.

Still not satisfied?  Geez, you’re demanding!  Well, you can also get a deluxe edition of the album (what, you’d really buy a NON-deluxe version?) that contains ten (Ten!) music videos.  There are 12 songs on the album, and you get videos of ten of them for an extra two bucks!  I mean, come on, you can’t beat value like that!  The videos are, not surprisingly, also very funny and well done, and only serve to enhance the album.

So bottom line – I heartily endorse this album, and every other album Weird Al Yankovic has ever recorded.  Go buy them all right now.  You can thank me later.

And just in case you missed the full video of his Lady Gaga parody, Perform This Way, here it is. (For a 51 year old man, Al makes for a pretty foxy looking lady, huh?)

The controversy started when Al wrote a blog post detailing his issues when trying to get Lady Gaga to approve a parody of her song “Born This Way” called “Perform This Way.”  Definitely give his blog post a read – he is certainly a better blogger than yours truly, after all. (And a darn good children’s book author, to boot.)

After this news hit, there was an internet outcry (is there really any other kind of outcry anymore?) Why would Gaga object to a parody of her song?  Isn’t she a champion of people being allowed to express themselves?  Isn’t that exactly what Born This Way is about?  Does she have no sense of humor at all?  Why would she make Weird Al jump through so many hoops only to reject him?  Doesn’t she realize that legendary artists like Michael Jackson, Madonna, and James Brown (remember “Living With a Hernia?”) gave Al their blessings?  Hell, the man was even going to donate all proceeds from the song to the Human Rights Campaign!  WHY IS LADY GAGA RUINING EVERYTHING FOR EVERYONE???

(And shouldn’t she know that it’s not a good idea to upset Weird Al?)

But this story has a happy ending.  By the afternoon, Lady Gaga said that the whole thing was a big misunderstanding, and that she had no knowledge of the parody at all.  She said it was her erstwhile manager who had been making these decisions on Gaga’s behalf, and that she loves Weird Al in general, this parody in particular, and she does in fact sanction Al to release it as a single.  Huzzah!  And there was much internet rejoicing.

Of course, some people are accusing Gaga of just back-peddling, and that she did n reality try to squash the parody, and only relented after the backlash.  There’s no way to really know, and who honestly cares?  The important thing is that Weird Al can release the song as a single, charity can be raised for the HRC, and of supreme importance to the human race… he can make a proper video for the song!  He’s promised it is going to be epic, and given his track record and the song’s lyrics, that’s easy to imagine.

Oh, and since this song will be his next album’s lead single, that means that there will be a new Weird Al album coming soon!  Yay!

Without further ado, here is the song that caused all of this hubbub in the first place.  Keep in mind that the text at the beginning and end are now moot – this video was posted when Al thought the song wasn’t going to be released on his album.  And this is (obviously) not the epic video that is sure to come, just the music and lyrics.  But they’re still hilarious.  Enjoy!

As a general rule, I don’t much enjoy musicals/legitimate theatre. As a kid, my mother dragged me to many Broadway shows, all of which I hated. Courtney and I have seen a few shows on the Great White Way over the years, and while I didn’t hate any of them, there were none that I truly loved. Except Avenue Q – that was pretty funny.

But when I heard about The Book of Mormon, I was downright giddy. For anyone living under a rock, this is the musical written by Trey Parker and Matt Stone – the guys behind South Park. I love South Park, I loved Team America: World Police, I loved Orgazmo, I even liked BASEketball! In a nutshell, I think Matt and Trey are brilliant, and I thoroughly enjoy everything they do. So if they’re making a Broadway musical, I’m in.

And it isn’t that surprising that they would come to Broadway, given that Team America had a great soundtrack of original songs, and South Park: Bigger, Longer, and Uncut was a musical, pure and simple.

(As an aside, comedy through music is an art form that I truly appreciate: “Weird Al” Yankovic, Tenacious D, Flight of the Conchords, The Lonely Island being examples of guys who are masters of the craft.)

Anyway, The Book of Mormon did not disappoint. Without giving anything away, it is the story of two Mormon missionaries sent to Uganda to convert the local population. It is crude, crass, vulgar, and offensive, particularly to anyone who believes in the Mormon teachings. But it also is a great story that is surprisingly positive. And of course, it is beyond hysterical. I want to give some great examples of hilarity, but to do so would be to give things away. I will say that the show is quite different from the also funny “All About Mormons” episode of South Park, the show’s cast was great, the songs were catchy, and not shockingly I wholeheartedly recommend the show to anyone who can get tickets.

Other miscellaneous notes of interest from our belated Valentine’s Weekend in April:
Our Sunday brunch at Norma’s (at the Parker Meridien) was exceptional – everything on the menu looked amazing, and though it was certainly pricey, the food is apparently good enough for a certain bald Deal or No Deal host. I went for the chocolate waffle over the chocolate french toast – but that just means I know what I’ll have to try next time!

And speaking of chocolate… Saturday night marked the only time in my life I returned a dessert. We went to a restaurant in Huntington based on the reputation of their premier desert: a fish bowl (!) full of vanilla, strawberry, and chocolate gelato served with brownies, banana bread, toffee, marshmallows, berries, caramel peanut butter sauce, chocolate sauce, and Oreo cookies. Naturally, I wanted only chocolate gelato, but I asked for some vanilla to be included as well for Courtney. They proceeded to bring out a bowl with JUST VANILLA gelato. Um, on what planet is that acceptable? We went to a different place for fondue instead.

For a long time, every time we’d walk into Buy Buy Baby (which is incredibly often, as you might imagine), I would be intrigued by their displays of Rockabye Baby! Cd’s.  For those who don’t know, these are discs of popular music that have been converted into baby-friendly songs.

The idea is simple – music that is soothing for babies, but that the parents wilkl enjoy, too.

I never shelled out the dough for the CD’s (believe me, the fine folks at Buy Buy Baby have enough of our money) but thanks to the magic of the Suffolk County Public Library System, I have had a chance to listen to a lot of their songs.

First of all I should mention that not once has this music put Eli to sleep when he had no interest in napping.  The music is soothing, but it has its limits.

That said, listening to the “baby-fied” versions of songs by The Beach Boys, The Beatles, Aerosmith, Bon Jovi, and Journey is always pretty amusing for me.  And when I want to listen to something that will relax me and drown out the background noise on the train (since the LIRR has ignored my blog post and not yet instituted quiet cars), nothing else does a better job.

Of course, after a while, all of the songs tend to sound alike, but no worse than any other collections of soothing baby music.

And if you like wordplay on song titles, I strongly recommend checking out the official Rockabye Baby! site – their descriptions for the individual CD’s are pretty darn punny.  For example, their description for the Journey album:

When the lights go down in the nursery, try these gentle renditions of Journey’s biggest power ballads. We’ll have your small town girl or city boy on the midnight train to sleepytown in no time. Who’s crying now? Not your little angel. Don’t stop believin’ in peace and quiet.

Or this one from Guns N’ Roses:

Is a sweet child o’ yours trying your patience at bedtime? Do you have an appetite for noise reduction? Don’t you cry tonight. Fire up these gentle renditions of GNR’s metal classics to rock your little devil to a peaceful sleep. Welcome to the nursery, baby. It’s paradise city.

Or for The Rolling Stones:

Do baby’s cries mean you can’t get no satisfaction? When bedtime isn’t on your side, the music of the Rolling Stones is. These gentle instrumental renditions are mother’s little helpers. Need a quiet night? We’ll help you get what you want.

Ha!