Retro Spins: Weird Al Yankovic - In 3-D

In 3-D, or In 3D, without the hyphen, was the first album from Weird Al Yankovic which I was introduced to in the 80's. It was of course made highly popular by its inclusion of Eat It, the parody of Michael Jackson's Beat It. As a kid, I giggled with glee as I listened to the funny sounds, unique music style and humorous lyrics.

As an adult, this is no different. As Eat It launched the album for today's Retro Spins, I found myself giggling to the hand "fart" sounds which played in time with the drum beat.

Though it's not my favorite, In 3-D certainly has some of the strongest tracks from Al's library of hits. Though I didn't know it at the time, I can appreciate his original songs done in the style of Bob Marley (Buy Me A Condo) and B-52's (Mr. Popeil). Though I don't know for certain, I think this was his way of parodying bands who wouldn't give him the rights to certain songs he wanted to directly spoof.

However, as I've said time and time again when talking about the artist, my favorite material from him has always been when he wrote and recorded his own original music. Two of my favorite tracks from him are featured on this particular album, That Boy Could Dance and Nature Trail To Hell. When he's not bound to mimicking someone else, Weird Al shows and shines his talents to their fullest.

In fact, I'd be lying if I said I didn't think his parody tracks were the weakest material on the album. Naturally, you can't go wrong with Eat It. However, King Of Suede, The Brady Bunch, I Lost On Jeopardy and Theme From Rocky XIII (Rye Or The Kaiser) really fall flat.

Another aspect that Al does great are his polkas, and Polkas On 45 is no exception to this. Though it's nothing short of a medley of hits from other artists, I enjoy the comedic style in which they're mishmash-ed together.

Overall, it's always been a satisfying album to listen to. In 3-D was a staple in my library as a kid (on vinyl) and remains so as an adult (on CD).

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Retro Spin: "Weird Al" Yankovic - Dare To Be Stupid

I actually had to think a moment before settling on today's Retro Spin. I knew it was going to be "Weird Al", I just didn't know if I wanted to go with his 1984 album, In 3-D, 1985's Dare To Be Stupid, 1986's Polka Party or 1988's Even Worse. Well, if you read the title, then I guess you know where I finally landed.

I've always felt like "Weird Al" shines the most when he's not focused on parodying hits of the day, but rather, writing his own creations. I think it's because of this that I'm drawn to Dare To Be Stupid. On this album, you get parodies of styles of music, but not necessarily blatant "rip offs" of others music.

Take for example the title track itself, Dare To Be Stupid. It's clearly a poke at the styling of Devo, yet it's Al in his own realm, writing whatever he feels like singing. He gets to take the gloves off and be as silly as he wants to be and it works. While it's not on this album, you also get a sense of this in, You Make Me, from 1988's Even Worse. This song parodies the style of one of my all time favorite bands, Oingo Boingo. Again, Al gets to be silly, and because the style is so obvious who he's parodying, it works.

With that said, this album does have one of my all time favorite parodies from the guy, Girls Just Wanna Have Lunch. I don't know what it is about the underarm fart noise interlude, but it cracks me up even to this day. Hey, I guess I'm never going to grow up. What can I do?

It's interesting that Ray Parker Jr. faced a lawsuit from Huey Lewis for "borrowing" the riff to I Want A New Drug for his Ghostbusters theme. Yet Al can make a song called, I Want A New Duck, completely stealing the song from start to finish, but changing the words, and nobody says boo. Hypocrites! I'm joking. Just stirring the proverbial pot that nobody's even interested in.

Overall, Dare To Be Stupid s definitely one of my more favorite albums from "Weird Al". Like I said above, I like the original material more than the parody work, and this album delivers on that.

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Retro Spins: "Weird Al" Yankovic - UHF

"Weird Al" Yankovic's feature film, UHF, was set to put Orion on top. Instead, they would eventually file for bankruptcy. That's what happens when you release you movie in the summer of 1989 to contend with the likes of Batman, Indian Jones and the Last Crusade, Ghostbusters II, Honey I Shrunk the Kids and Star Trek V: The Final Frontier. Oops. For what it's worth, I think the film is a timeless classic.

George Newman ("Weird Al" Yankovic) is a daydreamer whose hyperactive imagination keeps him from holding a steady job...until he becomes the general manager of Channel 62, a local television station his uncle wins in a poker game.

Unfortunately, the station is about one week away from bankruptcy. In a moment of desperation, George makes janitor Stanley Spadowski (Michael Richards) the star of a dull children's show and stumbles onto a ratings goldmin...who else would treat lucky kids to a drink from a high-pressure fire hose? "Stanley Spadowski's Playhouse" is just weird enough to attract an audience!

Before long, endless reruns have been replaced with bizarre programming that could only have come from one place: George Newman's unique imagination. Shows like "Wheel Of Fish," "Name That Stain," "Conan The Librarian," "The Wonderful World Of Phlegm," and "Raul's Wild Kingdom," where poodles learn to fly from third story windows!

But as Channel 62's ratings start to rise, so does the wrath of TV mogul R.J. Fletcher (Kevin McCarthy), who wants to buy the station and turn it into a parking lot.

Can Channel 62 come up with the money it needs to stay on the air? George Newman's imagination is the only place to find out! - Back of the original VHS

Part soundtrack, part studio album, all what you would expect from the likes of "Weird Al" Yankovic.

As I grew older, I went from a fan of his music to someone who actually despised his work. I would tell people things like, "All he's doing is stealing other people's hard work and putting silly words in it." Which I suppose to an extent is still factual.

However, it finally dawned on me what the real problem was. It wasn't that I had stopped liking "Weird Al". Instead, it was that I had actually stopped liking current music. As a result, his "new" music wasn't resonating with me because I already disliked, or in a lot of cases as of late, didn't know the songs he was parodying. With that said, I actually do prefer his original material to that of his parodies.

Upon returning to the era of his music I knew and loved, 1983 to 1989, I was actually able to rekindle my appreciation for his work. A lot of this was helped by his movie, and to an extent the soundtrack to, UHF.

As I mentioned above, this album is a mix of both soundtrack and studio album. It features, well, I guess all of "Weird Al's" contributed music to the movie, as well as some of the commercial breaks from the film - Such as Gandhi II and Conan The Librarian. Additionally, you get all new material in the form of tracks such as Spam, Generic Blues, Isle Thing, and my personal favorite, The Biggest Ball Of Twine In Minnesota.

UHF is by no means his best material from the 80's, but it's certainly a solid entry. Overall, I'd still rather just watch the movie than listen to the soundtrack. But, that doesn't mean the soundtrack doesn't entertain all the same. It's just more fun to watch "Weird Al" Yankovic's shenanigans than listen to them.

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