Happy Birthday, Al!
I heard on NPR this morning that Weird Al Yankovic turns 48 today! Happy birthday, Al! I feel like we're on a first-name basis because we've been so very close.
A long, long time ago--actually, it wasn't really that long ago, but it was before I was on LiveJournal. In fact, I remember thinking, "If I had a blog, I would certainly put this on my blog!" Now that I have an excuse to retell the story, those of you who have already heard it can opt out, or you can hang around. I mean, this never gets old, does it? (Don't answer that.) Where was I? Oh, yes. A long, long time ago....
Brilliant Husband and I loved Weird Al--well, before we loved each other, since we both listened avidly before we met each other. Somehow, though, we'd never made it to a concert. We seemed to keep missing them, or (in one case) I was pregnant, and they were advising pregnant women not to attend concerts (because a) it might cause permanent hearing damage in unborn children and b) people apparently fall down the steps a lot at concerts. I have never fallen down the steps at a concert. I did, however, fall down my basement steps shortly before the due date, which might explain--oh, never mind).
Small Child has grown up (insofar as she has grown up, which isn't awfully far) listening to Weird Al, singing along, usually with no concept of the original song behind his parodies. That's just fine. She'll come to appreciate the subtler bits later (yes, Weird Al does have--oh, maybe "subtle" isn't quite the word).
We were thrilled to hear several months ago that Weird Al would be appearing at a Concert Venue Near Us. We bought tickets--in row three, on the far right (stage left), one aisle seat and two right next to it. We waited eagerly, even anxiously. Finally the day arrived. Finally the evening arrived.
And what a concert it was! Al did many, many of his best songs. In fact, he and the band were on for about three hours, with frequent short breaks for costume changes; excerpts from Al TV and The Weird Al Show appeared on the screens to entertain us during such breaks. They did both classic Star Wars songs, "Yoda" and "The Saga Begins," which alone would have made my day. But that's not all! They did "Smells Like Nirvana." They did "White and Nerdy" (which, BH points out, really described the crowd awfully well). They did many, many more songs (closing with "Albuquerque," which is much more fun in concert than on a CD, where it feels like it goes on forever, mostly because it does).
The highlight, however, I will treasure forever. For "Wanna B UR Lovr" (from the album Poodle Hat, for those who want to pull the album up and review it), Al came into the audience. He jumped off the stage on the far side of the audience, going up the left-hand (stage right) aisle, singing couplets to specific women while making (occasionally slightly lewd) gestures, dance moves, etc. So he went up the aisle.
Then he went across the break between the reserved seats and general admission and started back down our aisle! I was, of course, completely turned around to see him approach from behind. And when he got really close, my brain kind of shut down, so I only have a guess what he was singing. I think the lyrics at the crucial moments were:
There aren't enough o's in "smooth"
to describe how smooth I am
Yes, those were the lyrics (we think) Al was singing when he threw himself over the arm of the seat and into my lap.
At least, into what little lap I had when I was sitting turned completely around to look behind me. Al may not look like it, but he's pretty tall. And not exactly light. And I couldn't feel my leg properly for hours. But that's okay! Because WEIRD AL YANKOVIC SAT IN MY LAP!
And I have photographic proof! It wasn't easy for BH to get, because the spotlights were following Al, but here it is, preserved for posterity:
Al finished the couplet, got back up, sang briefly to some other woman (but he didn't sit in her lap!), and made his way back on stage.
So happy birthday, Al. Maybe sometime you can come back and sit in my lap again.
Love,
Aelfgyfu
A long, long time ago--actually, it wasn't really that long ago, but it was before I was on LiveJournal. In fact, I remember thinking, "If I had a blog, I would certainly put this on my blog!" Now that I have an excuse to retell the story, those of you who have already heard it can opt out, or you can hang around. I mean, this never gets old, does it? (Don't answer that.) Where was I? Oh, yes. A long, long time ago....
Brilliant Husband and I loved Weird Al--well, before we loved each other, since we both listened avidly before we met each other. Somehow, though, we'd never made it to a concert. We seemed to keep missing them, or (in one case) I was pregnant, and they were advising pregnant women not to attend concerts (because a) it might cause permanent hearing damage in unborn children and b) people apparently fall down the steps a lot at concerts. I have never fallen down the steps at a concert. I did, however, fall down my basement steps shortly before the due date, which might explain--oh, never mind).
Small Child has grown up (insofar as she has grown up, which isn't awfully far) listening to Weird Al, singing along, usually with no concept of the original song behind his parodies. That's just fine. She'll come to appreciate the subtler bits later (yes, Weird Al does have--oh, maybe "subtle" isn't quite the word).
We were thrilled to hear several months ago that Weird Al would be appearing at a Concert Venue Near Us. We bought tickets--in row three, on the far right (stage left), one aisle seat and two right next to it. We waited eagerly, even anxiously. Finally the day arrived. Finally the evening arrived.
And what a concert it was! Al did many, many of his best songs. In fact, he and the band were on for about three hours, with frequent short breaks for costume changes; excerpts from Al TV and The Weird Al Show appeared on the screens to entertain us during such breaks. They did both classic Star Wars songs, "Yoda" and "The Saga Begins," which alone would have made my day. But that's not all! They did "Smells Like Nirvana." They did "White and Nerdy" (which, BH points out, really described the crowd awfully well). They did many, many more songs (closing with "Albuquerque," which is much more fun in concert than on a CD, where it feels like it goes on forever, mostly because it does).
The highlight, however, I will treasure forever. For "Wanna B UR Lovr" (from the album Poodle Hat, for those who want to pull the album up and review it), Al came into the audience. He jumped off the stage on the far side of the audience, going up the left-hand (stage right) aisle, singing couplets to specific women while making (occasionally slightly lewd) gestures, dance moves, etc. So he went up the aisle.
Then he went across the break between the reserved seats and general admission and started back down our aisle! I was, of course, completely turned around to see him approach from behind. And when he got really close, my brain kind of shut down, so I only have a guess what he was singing. I think the lyrics at the crucial moments were:
There aren't enough o's in "smooth"
to describe how smooth I am
Yes, those were the lyrics (we think) Al was singing when he threw himself over the arm of the seat and into my lap.
At least, into what little lap I had when I was sitting turned completely around to look behind me. Al may not look like it, but he's pretty tall. And not exactly light. And I couldn't feel my leg properly for hours. But that's okay! Because WEIRD AL YANKOVIC SAT IN MY LAP!
And I have photographic proof! It wasn't easy for BH to get, because the spotlights were following Al, but here it is, preserved for posterity:
Al finished the couplet, got back up, sang briefly to some other woman (but he didn't sit in her lap!), and made his way back on stage.
So happy birthday, Al. Maybe sometime you can come back and sit in my lap again.
Love,
Aelfgyfu