SOUNDTRACK: “WEIRD AL” YANKOVIC-Dare to Be Stupid (1985).
After In 3-D, Al came out with Dare to Be Stupid the following year. It wasn’t quite as big a hit as In 3-D, even though it had the Madonna parody as well as a couple of really great originals–“One More Minute” and “This is the Life” (as seen sometimes in Johnny Dangerously–not on the VHS version for legal reasons, although it is on the DVD).
“Like a Surgeon” wonderfully skewers Madonna–Al doesn’t often do women’s songs, but this one fits his range very well. “Dare to Be Stupid” is a Devo parody (well, more tribute as this is no weirder than any Devo song). It’s a frenetic and wild song telling yo to do all the things that you were told don’t do. Okay I can hear you now.
“I Want a New Duck” is a really lame lame parody. It’s weird and while he fills out the nonsense pretty well, it sounds like he came up with the idea because nothing else sounded like Drug (the original is pretty stupid too, so there ya go).
But then there’s the sublime “One More Minute” a hilarious doo wop “love song” in which the backing band really shows off what they can do. “I’m stranded all alone in the gas station of love and I have to use the self station pumps” is absolutely hilarious and a completely under appreciated line. “Yoda” is a good parody, one that has not only held up but has been resurrected with the new Star Wars franchise.
I never understood why they did a cover of George of the Jungle, but I never watched the show so it doesn’t have any meaning for me. “Slime Creatures from Outer Space” is a goof of a sci-fi song which doesn’t quite match the absurd heights of “Nature Trail to Hell.” Al says that “Girls Just Want to Have Lunch” is his least favorite parody (the label asked him to do Cyndi Lauper) and it’s really not very good–again, the song was too goofy to mess around with that much, but even in his recording it’s not very convincing (and he returned to the hand farts) the way that he and the backing vocalists are singing even sounds like they are disdainful of the song.
“This is the Life” was commissioned for Johnny Dangerously and he really ups his game for it–lots of genre jokes and a really good quality of recording. “Cable TV” is a pretty uninspired song about TV (which is surprising given how many songs he has written about TV) which has an awful sax solo–joke or not it’s bad. “Hooked on Polkas” is the second of his mashups of songs. The banjo version of “Sharp Dressed Man” is cool as is the use of the sounds from Yes’ “Owner of a Lonely Heart” there’s also some pop metal Twisted Sister and Quiet Riot–and where else would you hear Quiet Riot next to Frankie Goes to Hollywood?
All in all some hits and misses. And yes, maybe this stuff was funnier in the 80s?
[READ: February 22, 2013] Captain Underpants and the Preposterous Plight of the Purple Potty People
I can’t believe how much I enjoyed this story The first few Underpants books were silly and a funny way to make a story about a guy in his underwear. But as the series has progressed it has gotten far more complex with fascinating twists and recurring characters (and how does he keep a storyline fresh in his head three years later?).
So Booger Boy Part 2 actually ended in the middle of a cliffhanger (but this one is not a Part 3 because the Booger Boy is no longer relevant). Rather, when we left George and Harold they were in the purple potty time machine with Sulu the hamster and Crackers the pterodactyl and they were hurtling…. somewhere.
When they exit the potty, they are in the library, but the library is full of books! The exact opposite of their own school library (and the librarian is even holding a copy of Mommy has Two Heathers. In fact everything is the opposite–the school is encouraging creativity the teachers are nice and Principal Krupp is happy to see everyone It’s really weird. Especially when the boys see themselves across the school. And they turn out to be…evil! Yes Evil George and Evil Harold look like normal George and Harold do, but they do things that are evil (they change sign letters to read anarchy rules…yipes). (more…)
I Just Read About That... 