Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

Except the statement says "we were told he denied permission" not that "he denied permission".

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

That's the "official" statement. Al also called him out directly on Twitter:

http://www.dailydot.com/unclick/weir...pitiful-owned/

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

Let's be honest. Weird Al is no more relevant than James Blount. I love Al. But it's the truth.

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

However, with social media and reality tv making celebrities even more self-important and obnoxious I think someone like Weird Al is needed more than ever. He can take them down a notch or two and can do it way more politely and professionally than most.

Also, I somehow doubt that James Blunt will still be recording albums after 30 years and still winning Grammys after all that time.

James Blunt just sounds like a sore loser because he's going to be a one-hit wonder no matter how many albums he makes. Al's song didn't even make fun of him at all in it. If anyone should have been sore about a parody it should have been Billy Ray Cyrus.

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

Billy Ray Cyrus seems the type to be able to roll with the punches. He's dealing with being Miley's dad, if you'll recall.

And we already have every album, I hope the rarities disc gets a separate release.

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

So, I ordered this

http://www.pledgemusic.com/projects/weirdalyankovic

Legacy Recordings, home to definitive releases by the world’s foremost recording artists including Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, Elvis Presley, Pink Floyd and Miles Davis, proudly presents Squeeze Box: The Complete Works of “Weird Al” Yankovic, a career-spanning box set of all fourteen of Al’s studio albums, remastered for CD and 150-gram vinyl, and lavishly housed in an exact replica of the artist’s signature accordion.

In addition to his studio albums, Squeeze Box will also include a special 15th bonus album, Medium Rarities, featuring previously unreleased and non-album tracks selected by Weird Al, plus a 100-page book including a treasure trove of unseen photos and memorabilia.

Squeeze Box will be officially released November 24, 2017, with a long-lead manufacturing time due to its unprecedented custom packaging. Fans have the opportunity to pre-order the box set now to be guaranteed delivery of this historic set, as only a limited number of sets will be manufactured after this pre-sale.

Fans who pre-order here will also gain access to a private section of this site (via the “Access Pass”), where they will be able to enjoy exclusive videos of how Squeeze Box was created and made, factoids of Al’s career, and special video greetings from the master himself.

LIST OF ALBUMS

“Weird Al” Yankovic (1983)
“Weird Al” Yankovic In 3-D (1984)
Dare To Be Stupid (1985)
Polka Party! (1986)
Even Worse (1988)
UHF – Original Motion Picture Soundtrack and Other Stuff (1989)
Off The Deep End (1992)
Alapalooza (1993)
Bad Hair Day (1996)
Running With Scissors (1999)
Poodle Hat (2003)
Straight Outta Lynwood (2006)
Alpocalypse (2011)
Mandatory Fun (2014)
Medium Rarities (2017) Exclusive to Box Set

Please note that all purchases are final. Due to manufacturing timelines, the box set will ship in Fall 2017.

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

It makes no sense not to include all of Al's music videos in this set as well. The visuals are at least half the enjoyment of the songs.

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

The more I think about it the worse deal it is.

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

I wonder if there will be a non-accordion version down the line

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

For those who haven't seen the announcement video, the Medium Rarities will include:

1. Take Me Down (1978)
2. My Bologna (Capital Single Version) (1979)
3. Yoda (demo) (1981)
4. Dr. Demento Jingle (1981)
5. Pac Man (1981)
6. Dare To Be Stupid (Instrumental) (1985)
7. Jurashiku Park (1993)
8. Headline News (1994)
9. Since You've Been Gone (Karaoke Version) (1996)
10. The Night That Santa Went Crazy (Extra Gory Version) (1996)
11. Spy Hard (1996)
12. Lousy Haircut (from The Weird Al Show) (1997)
13. Homer and Marge (2003)
14. The Brain Song (from the 3-D Film Al's Brain) (2009)
15. 30 Rock Theme Parody (2012)
16. Super Duper Party Pony (from My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic) (2014)
17. Sir Isaac Newton vs. Bill Nye (from Epic Rap Battles of History) (2014)
18. Let the Pun Fit the Crime (from Wander Over Yonder) (2015)
19. Hey, Hey, We're the Monks (from Galavant) (2015)
20. Comedy Bang! Bang! Theme (2016)
21. It's My World (And We're All Living in It) (from Milo Murphy's Law) (2016)
22. Happy Birthday (New Version)

What's odd is they advertise it as a 23 track album, but I only saw 22 tracks. Did I miss something?

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

Track listing for Medium Rarities has been released:

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/82FPTnk50q0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Text version:

1. Take Me Down (1979 Original)
2. My Bologna (Capitol Records version)
3. Yoda (Demo)
4. Dr. Demento Show Jingle
5. Pac-Man (Parody of Tax Man by the Beatles)
6. Dare to be Stupid (Instrumental)
7. Jurashiku Park (Japanese Language version of Jurassic Park)
8. Headline News (Parody of "Mmm Mmm Mmm" by Crash Test Dummies, from Al's previous Box Set "Permanent Record: Al in the Box" and Greatest Hits Vol. 2)
9. Since You've Been Gone (Karaoke)
10. The Night Santa Went Crazy (Extra Gory Version)
11. Spy Hard (Theme from the movie)
12. Lousy Haircut (Parody of "Firestarter" by The Prodigy, from "The Weird Al Show")
13. Homer and Marge (Parody of Jack and Diane by John Mellencamp, from "The Simpsons")
14. The Brain Song (From the Film "Al's Brain in 3D")
15. 30 Rock Theme (Al's Parody from the show)
16. Super Duper Party Pony (from "My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic")
17. Sir Isaac Newton vs. Bill Nye (from Epic Rap Battles of History)
18. Let the Pun Fit the Crime (from "Wander Over Yonder")
19. Hey, Hey, We're the Monks (from "Galavant")
20. Comedy Bang! Bang! Theme
21. It's My World (And We're All Living in It) (theme from "Milo Murphy's Law")
22. Happy Birthday (2017 Version)



There's a few things I'd like to have from here, but color me largely unimpressed.

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

Yeah, this is not that great. Certainly not worth buying that overpriced box set.

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

Yeah, here's hoping it gets a standalone release after a while.

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

Well it is called "Medium Rarities." It certain does only generate medium excitement. :(

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

It was right in front of our faces the whole time!

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

Info on Al's tour for 2018 from his facebook page. Only original songs, no parodies.

BE YE ADVISED: I will be announcing ALL THE DATES for my 2018 North American tour tomorrow morning, October 13 at 9:00 AM Pacific on weirdal.com.

In case you haven’t heard the rumors… THIS WILL NOT BE OUR NORMAL KIND OF TOUR. I decided we should try something different, just for a change of pace. So next year we’re scaling way, way back. No costumes, no props, no video screens, no computer servers. We’re just going to walk out on stage, sit down on stools, and play a bunch of old songs. Oh, and we’re going to be performing almost exclusively originals (i.e. not parodies). The deep cuts and obscure tracks. The songs that were never hits. The ones you barely remember.

Okay, obviously this tour is not for everybody. By design, it has extremely limited appeal. Instead of doing festivals, fairs and arenas, we’ll be doing small, intimate theatres. Instead of putting on a big flashy production, we’ll be trying to go for something very informal and low-key… kind of an Unplugged/Storytellers vibe. Like we’re just hanging out, playing in your living room. So if you’ve really got your heart set on seeing fat suits and Segways and hearing all your favorite parodies… this probably isn’t the tour for you. Chances are we’ll be doing that kind of show again sometime in the future, just not THIS time.

It might sound like I’m trying to talk people into NOT buying tickets… Actually, I just want people to be very aware of the nature of this tour so that they can make an informed decision now and not be disappointed later. Having said that, I know that there’s a small but enthusiastic subset of fans that literally have been waiting decades for this kind of a show, so… this tour is for them. And me. And the band. After putting on “multimedia extravaganzas” for 35 years, we just wanted to take it down a few notches and have a little musical palate cleanser.

Because all my concerts in the past were so highly produced, they needed to be rigidly planned down to the SECOND, and therefore the shows were virtually identical from one city to the next. But since this tour is unencumbered by theatrics, we have a lot more flexibility. So… EVERY SINGLE SHOW WILL BE DIFFERENT. We’re going deep into the catalogue and mixing up the set list every night. This show will be loose, unpredictable, and maybe a little sloppy – we’ll be making it up as we go along.

Oh, one other cool thing… For the first time ever, I’m bringing an opening act with me on the road. I’m very pleased to announce that on every show of the 2018 Tour, I will be sharing the stage with my good friend, the legendary Mr. EMO PHILIPS.

We’re calling it THE RIDICULOUSLY SELF-INDULGENT, ILL-ADVISED VANITY TOUR.

If this isn’t your metaphorical cup of tea – hey, I get it, no worries, we’ll see you next time. But for everybody else – please check out the full list of tour dates tomorrow morning on weirdal.com!

Your close, personal friend,
Al

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

Since I've already seen his normal show, I'd be all over this.

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

It doesn't say only original songs, it says almost exclusively original songs. So I expect there will be SOME parodies, but not a lot, and probably not the big hits.

That said, as someone who loves Al's entire catalog, this sounds like an awesome chance to see songs performed live that we wouldn't get to see otherwise.

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

I imagine his stories and jokes in between songs would be great, too. These kinds of settings makes it easier for the artist to engage with the audience.

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

This sounds like a very cool experience. Our son hasn't been to a Weird Al concert yet, and we were hoping he'd go on tour this year.

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

I think his website was getting hammered. Couldn't check tour stops.

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

He's playing 2 blocks from my office. i should probably go to this

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

He isn't playing Vegas but is in St George UT, about 100 miles away. Don't know if I want to see him bed enough to make that drive...

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

Dates (sorry if the formatting sucks)
FEB 27 BARDAVON 1869 OPERA HOUSE Poughkeepsie, NY SHOW INFO VIP
MAR 1 TARRYTOWN MUSIC HALL Tarrytown, NY SHOW INFO VIP
MAR 2 FOXWOODS RESORT CASINO - FOX THEATER Mashantucket, CT SHOW INFO VIP
MAR 4 WILBUR THEATRE Boston, MA SHOW INFO VIP
MAR 7 PLACE DES ARTS - THEATRE MAISONNEUVE Montreal, QC SHOW INFO VIP
MAR 9 DANFORTH Toronto, ON SHOW INFO VIP
MAR 10 20 MONROE LIVE Grand Rapids , MI SHOW INFO VIP
MAR 11 MICHIGAN THEATER Ann Arbor, MI SHOW INFO VIP
MAR 13 UNIVERSITY AT BUFFALO CENTER FOR THE ARTS Buffalo, NY SHOW INFO VIP
MAR 14 STATE THEATRE Ithaca , NY SHOW INFO VIP
MAR 16 CAESARS ATLANTIC CITY - CIRCUS MAXIMUS Philadelphia, PA SHOW INFO VIP
MAR 17 THE PARAMOUNT Long Island, NY SHOW INFO VIP
MAR 18 AMERICAN MUSIC THEATRE Lancaster, PA SHOW INFO VIP
MAR 20 MUSIC CENTER AT STRATHMORE Washington, DC SHOW INFO VIP
MAR 23 APOLLO THEATER New York, NY SHOW INFO VIP
MAR 24 PALACE THEATRE Pittsburgh, PA SHOW INFO VIP
MAR 25 PLAYHOUSE SQUARE - OHIO THEATRE Cleveland, OH COMING SOON VIP
MAR 26 LEXINGTON OPERA HOUSE Lexington, KY SHOW INFO VIP
MAR 28 THE BROWN THEATRE Louisville , KY SHOW INFO VIP
MAR 29 THE CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS - THE PALLADIUM Indianapolis, IN SHOW INFO VIP
MAR 30 VIRGINIA THEATRE Champaign, IL COMING SOON VIP
MAR 31 HOYT SHERMAN PLACE Des Moines, IA SHOW INFO VIP
APR 2 MAYO CIVIC CENTER PRESENTATION HALL Rochester, MN SHOW INFO VIP
APR 3 PANTAGES THEATRE Minneapolis, MN SHOW INFO VIP
APR 4 PANTAGES THEATRE Minneapolis, MN SHOW INFO VIP
APR 6 VIC THEATRE Chicago, IL SHOW INFO VIP
APR 7 VIC THEATRE Chicago, IL SHOW INFO VIP
APR 10 PABST THEATER Milwaukee, WI SHOW INFO VIP
APR 12 HONEYWELL CENTER Fort Wayne, IN COMING SOON VIP
APR 13 WALKER THEATER Chattanooga, TN SHOW INFO VIP
APR 14 MILLER THEATER Augusta , GA COMING SOON VIP
APR 15 TABERNACLE Atlanta , GA SHOW INFO VIP
APR 19 GILLIOZ THEATRE Springfield, MO SHOW INFO VIP
APR 20 LETOURNEAU UNIVERSITY BELCHER CENTER Longview, TX SHOW INFO VIP
APR 22 WAGNER NOEL PERFORMING ARTS CENTER Midland, TX SHOW INFO VIP
APR 24 STAFFORD PERFORMING ARTS CENTER Houston, TX SHOW INFO VIP
APR 26 TOBIN CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS San Antonio, TX SHOW INFO VIP
APR 27 THE MAJESTIC THEATRE Dallas , TX SHOW INFO VIP
APR 28 ORPHEUM THEATER Wichita , KS SHOW INFO VIP
APR 29 FOLLY THEATER Kansas City, MO SHOW INFO VIP
MAY 1 PARAMOUNT THEATRE Denver, CO SHOW INFO VIP
MAY 3 AVALON THEATRE Grand Junction, CO SHOW INFO VIP
MAY 4 TUACAHN AMPHITHEATRE AT TUACAHN CENTER FOR THE ARTS Saint George, UT SHOW INFO VIP
MAY 5 FOX TUCSON THEATRE Tucson, AZ SHOW INFO VIP
MAY 6 LENSIC PERFORMING ARTS CENTER Albuquerque, NM COMING SOON VIP
MAY 8 MESA ARTS CENTER - IKEDA THEATRE Phoenix, AZ SHOW INFO VIP
MAY 9 MCCALLUM THEATRE FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS Palm Springs, CA COMING SOON VIP
MAY 11 THE THEATRE AT ACE HOTEL Los Angeles, CA COMING SOON VIP
MAY 12 HUMPHREY'S CONCERTS BY THE BAY San Diego, CA SHOW INFO VIP
MAY 15 CREST THEATRE Sacramento, CA SHOW INFO VIP
MAY 17 GOLDEN STATE THEATRE Santa Cruz, CA COMING SOON VIP
MAY 18 TURLOCK COMMUNITY THEATRE Modesto, CA COMING SOON VIP
MAY 19 FOX THEATRE Oakland, CA SHOW INFO VIP
MAY 20 UPTOWN THEATRE Napa, CA COMING SOON VIP
MAY 22 CASCADE THEATRE Redding, CA SHOW INFO VIP
MAY 24 MCDONALD THEATRE Eugene, OR SHOW INFO VIP
MAY 25 REVOLUTION HALL Portland, OR SHOW INFO VIP
MAY 26 REVOLUTION HALL Portland, OR SHOW INFO VIP
MAY 27 MARTIN WOLDSON THEATER AT THE FOX Spokane, WA COMING SOON VIP
MAY 29 MOORE THEATRE Seattle, WA SHOW INFO VIP
MAY 31 GREY EAGLE RESORT & CASINO - GREY EAGLE EVENT CENTRE Calgary, AB SHOW INFO VIP
JUN 1 CASINO REGINA - SHOW LOUNGE Regina, AB SHOW INFO VIP
JUN 2 RIVER CREE RESORT AND CASINO – ENTERTAINMENT CENTRE Edmonton, AB SHOW INFO VIP
JUN 3 ESPLANADE THEATRE Medicine Hat, AB SHOW INFO VIP
JUN 5 BURTON CUMMINGS THEATRE FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS Winnipeg, MB SHOW INFO VIP
JUN 6 FARGO THEATRE Fargo, ND SHOW INFO VIP
JUN 8 JESSE AUDITORIUM Columbia, MO SHOW INFO VIP
JUN 9 SURF BALLROOM Clear Lake, IA SHOW INFO VIP
JUN 10 MEYER THEATRE Green Bay, WI SHOW INFO VIP

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

Hey, he's actually playing something other than the state fairs in this area! So what does everybody think WILL be played on this tour? Even the songs that not obvious parodies of other one-off hit songs like "Fat" and "Like a Surgeon" are still parodies of other bands and styles. Even many of the standard polka songs included on each album are parodies of other songs done as polkas.

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

Last show of the tour for me. Looking forward to it.

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

I am all over this .. should be a cool show and the venue he is playing in Dallas is quite nice.

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

The venue he's playing at here is a nice little 1,000 seat historic theater.

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

The Bonus Track on Medium Rarities has been revealed. It's Al doing a cover of the Ramones' "Beat on the Brat" (with bonus Punk Accordion!). The track will also be available on Dr. Demento's "Covered in Punk", released on January 12.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/eJBwotLwOV8" frameborder="0" gesture="media" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

My accordion vinyl box set came in the mail today ... looks really cool.

So far, I just had a chance to thumb through the book .. which looks to be cool

The set itself seems rather well constructed

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

I wonder when Weird Al's scandal will come exposed

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

Never.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...l.jpg~original

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

I went to this last night. it was an awesome show. The song i really wanted to hear, Midnight Star, he played early in the set so that was great. I did have a really annoying lady in the seat in front of me. She was really embarrassing herself buy yelling "yeah!" real loud and holding up devil fingers. She would also head bang to some songs but could only do it for like 10 seconds. It was a really weird crowd and one of the few concerts i've been to in the last 15 years where i did not feel like i was on the 'older' side.

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

My crazy ex-girlfriend was there, but she probably wasn't that "annoying lady". I wish I had gone myself, but didn't even know it was yesterday and I would've bought tickets in advance if I really cared about it. Wish he'd put out another concert disc at least.

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

I went to the Augusta GA show last month. Epic. He opened with "One More Minute" and closed with "The Saga Begins", and the rest was buttkickin' album tracks.

Including "Albuquerque"!

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

He's also doing a different cover song every night. This is the one we got. Sorry for the poor camera work, the audio is good though.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/MNt60MM7vaw" frameborder="0" allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

I know you dislike streaming, but next month after the the tour concludes all 75 shows will be able to be streamed in their entirety at Stitcher.

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

He closed with The Saga Begins here as well. I saw that on some shows he closed with Yoda

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

He closed with Yoda in towns that had two shows.

Re: The Weird Al Yankovic Appreciation Thread
 

What'd you shoot that with? Sound quality is pretty good, my iphone only records in mono.

Audio only, or with video? If it's free or very low cost I'll check it out. If it's just audio I'll at least check out the one here that I missed.