Weird Al Yankovic: The Master of Music Mockery
If crafting music parodies were easy there would be myriad musicians like Weird Al Yankovic. The underrated master of music mockery is in a league of his own.
Yankovic is universally beloved. Have you ever heard anyone trash Yankovic? The humble humorist is a favorite worldwide. While strolling the streets of Amsterdam during the ’90s with my childhood best friend, who is Yankovic’s doppelganger, an excited restauranteur noticed and screamed, “Hey, Crazy Al Lefkowitz, come have dinner with us.”
When I revealed the anecdote to Yankovic, he cracked up, which isn’t surprising since the California native is a gracious, witty fellow who is incomparable.
Picking a favorite Weird Al parody is akin to selecting a go-to chocolate bar after opening a bag full of Halloween candy.
It’s difficult but not impossible. For some pundits and fans, it doesn’t get any better than Yankovic’s hilarious rewrite of Chamillionaire’s “Ridin,” which was transformed into “White and Nerdy” 17 years ago.
Yankovic’s rapid rap goes way over the the top when it comes to dweeby proclivities. (“Happy Days’ is my favorite theme song/I could sure kick your butt in a game of ping pong/I’ll ace any trivia quiz you bring on/I’m fluent in JavaScript as well as Klingon!”)
The video, a huge weapon Yankovic has wielded since the early ’80s (Who wasn’t blown away by “Eat It” and “Like a Surgeon”?), has increased the inventive entertainer’s profile.
Yankovic, 63, tabbed Donny Osmond, who scored a chamillion points for being a great sport throughout the two “White and Nerdy” videos.
“I thought it was going to be a lot of fun and I was right,” Osmond said. “Weird Al is one of the most inventive individuals in the business. When I saw what he was going to do with Chamillionaire’s ‘Ridin,’ I was on board.”
Osmond went the extra yard. His silly improvised dances, which helped make the video uber-popular, cracked up everyone, including Yankovic.
“I was performing behind Al,” Osmond explained. “He couldn’t see me, but he saw it was cracking everyone up…it was so cool to crack up Al since he has been cracking up everyone for so long.”
The five-time Grammy Award winner has been the top music humorist since the Jimmy Carter era. It’s been more than 40 years since his eponymous debut album dropped and four decades since Yankovic started working on parodies in his Southern California home after being influenced by the late and lamented “Dr. Demento” radio show.
His initial success, a parody of the Knack’s “My Sharona (“My Bologna”) launched a long, successful career.
“It’s been beyond my wildest dreams,” Yankovic said. “I never would have guessed anything like this could have happened. People have embraced the songs. I get to tour and the feedback from the recording artists (he’s parodied) has been amazing.”
Dave Grohl told Rolling Stone that he knew that he made it big once Yankovic parodied Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit.” Joan Jett, Sting and a number of other luminaries, were proud of Yankovic’s offbeat takes on their songs.
“I remember being floored years ago when Paul McCartney actually knew who I was,” Yankovic said. “It’s been incredible.”
Life could have been very different for Yankovic, who grew up playing the accordion and later earned a Bachelor’s degree in architecture from the California Polytechnic State University.
“I can’t imagine what my life would have been like if I pursued a career in architecture,” Yankovic said.
Architects aren’t known for being funny. Yankovic is hilarious.
“What I do just comes naturally to me,” Yankovic explained. “But it’s still hard work.”
Yankovic hasn’t released an album since 2014’s “Mandatory Fun.” However, Yankovic has more than 150 parodies in his canon. His fans are more than happy with Yankovic looking back. It’s common to hear shouts for such early hits as “Eat It” and “Another One Rides the Bus” at Yankovic shows.
“It’s so cool how the fans go way back with me,” Yankovic said.