Weird Al Yankovic - Poodle Hat (12 tracks) +Album Reviews

Weird Al's Poodle Hat

06/06/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is a great CD. Funny, yet kind of gross. I'll do some short reviews right here.1. Couch Potato - Parody of Eminem's "Lose Yourself." Funny, because the guy the song is about has memorized just about every show on the planet. 5/52. Hardware Store - Wow. Weird Al can talk really, really fast. I tried singing along - its really, really hard. Very funny, especially all the different items found in a store. 5/53. Trash Day - Spoof of Nelly's "Hot in Herre." I thought the original was kind of annoying, so I didn't really like this one. 2/54. Party at the Leper Colony - Kind of makes you squirmy, because the lyrics are all about various disembodied body parts. Funny, yet gross. 4/55. Angry White Boy Polka - Medley of various rock songs, all by "angry white boys", and accompanied by accordion. 5/56. Wanna B Ur Lover - Song of all cheesy pickup lines. Case in point: "I wish I was cross-eyed, so I could see you twice". Very, very clever and funny. 5/57. A Complicated Song - One of my favorites. He uses all the rhymes for "complicated" imaginable. Parody of Avril Lavigne's "Complicated" (as you can probably guess.) 5/58. Why Does This Always Happen To Me? A funny song about a guy who only thinks about himself. Pretty funny. Also with Ben Folds of Ben Folds Five. 5/59. Ode to a Superhero - Parody of Billy Joel's "Piano Man." "The Saga Begins"-esque. Summs up the plot of "Spider-Man" within 5 minutes. I laughed so hard at this one. 5/510. Bob - Very goofy. Sang exactly like Bob Dylan. If you can't get the lyrics, here's a clue: Read 'em backwards. Get it now? Very funny. 5/511. eBay - Parody of "I Want It That Way" by the (YUCK) Backstreet Boys. Very funny. About this eBay-obsessed guy who owns all the useless stuff humanly possible. 5/512. Genius in France - "Albequerque" of "Poodle Hat." About 9 minutes long. All about this really stupid guy who's brilliant in France. Good if you hate the French, if so many of us do nowadays. Hilarious lines. Example: "It's hard to keep the fans at bay/they say 'Sign my poodle, si'l vous plait". Changes tempo every minute. 5/5Total, thats a 57/60. Pretty good - definently an A.BUY IT!!"

Some of his finest work...

G. E. Leifer | 05/21/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I got this album at 10:30am on May 20th, and I started listening to it and I instantly LOVED it. Here's my main reviews for each song:
Couch Potato: Parody of Lose Yourself by Eminem.
This is a very cool song. But I just can't tell if he's dissing TV, or saying that he likes it.
Hardware Store: An Original Song by Al
This is one of my favorite songs on the album. I love it. He sings very fast and for so long. It's amazing!
Trash Day: Parody of Hot in Herre by Nelly
Another rapping by Al and it's hilarious.
Party At The Leper Colony: An Original Song By Al
It's funny but kind of makes you squirm.
Angry White Boy Polka: A Polka Medley Arranged by Al
Includes polka versions of songs by Staind, Papa Roach, Eminem, P.O.D., Kid Rock and more.
Wanna B Ur Lovr: An Original Song by Al
A funny love song by Al. Wait, A LOVE SONG BY AL?!
A Complicated Song: Parody of Complicated by Avril Lavigne
This song is so funny, but the first part is about constipation. Ew.
Why Does This Always Happen To Me?: An Original Song by Al
This is my least favorite, mainly because it's so violent. But Ben Folds does do a good job on the keyboard.
Ode To A Superhero: Parody of Piano Man by Billy Joel
The story of Spider-Man told in the tune of Piano Man. Nuff said.
Bob: An Original Song by Al
Um, this is one kinda hard to understand, but I like it.
Ebay: Parody of I Want it That Way by The Backstreet Boys
I love all the stuff he thought of to put in this song. The ending's really funny too.
Genius in France: An Original Song by Al
This song is the Albuquerque of Poodle Hat. Long and funny, though not as funny as Albuquerque."

Vintage Al

Christopher Derry | Macomb, IL United States | 06/03/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I love this CD. I had to look everywhere for it. "Couch Potato" is a very funny parody of Eminem's "Lose Yourself" and mocks all the [stuff] thats on TV right now. Namely all the stupid shows Fox comes up with now. The funniest line is "I saw Will and Grace one time, one day, and I wish I hadn't cause Tivo now thinks I'm gay". A great song, CD is worth is just for it."Hardware store" is an epic in fast speech. I'd like to see him sing that bridge in concert."Trash Day" is alright, mostly because Nelly's music makes me cringe. But, since I hear "Hot in Here" all the time, it deserves recognition."Party at the Leper Colony" makes fun of the easily pull apart limbs of lepers and is kind of low, but kinda funny."Angry White Polka" is decent, I've only heard a couple of the songs in it, but it is basically filler."Wanna B Ur Lovr" is chalked full of pick-up lines. "Girl you must be Jamaican, because Jamaican me crazy". Worth listening to a couple times."A Complicated Song". In a word, hilarious. Another gem on this ALbum."Why Does This Always Happen To Me". Incredibly unrelenting, unsympathetic, and quite enjoyable."Ode To A Superhero" is a parody of Billy Joel's Piano Man. "Sling us a web, you're the spider man". Hilarious. Another keeper, follows along the same lines as "The Saga Begins" and "Jurassic Park" in the Al's movie summarization songs."Bob" is a tribute to Bob Dylan and contains a lot of palindromes, which are phrases that are spelled the same forwards and backwards, like "Race Car" for example. Must have taken a while to do, even though on the first listen sounds like it was slapped together with no sense."Ebay" is a parody of the Backstreet Boy's "I Want it That Way" and is the best and closest sounding parody on this album, but probably the third best song to Complicated and Superhero."Genius in France" takes a great opportunity to make fun of the French. And it is just as unrelenting as "Why Does THis Always Happen To Me"There you have it. One of the best ALbums to date. Great job Al."

A great album, with lots of great extras!

Kurt A. Johnson | North-Central Illinois, USA | 01/25/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"My children and I are big Weird Al fans, and I was pleasantly surprised when I got this CD for Christmas! It contains five parody songs, one that parodies a singer, and six great Weird Al originals, including one of his great polka hits. The songs are all very good, with a group of them being fantastic (Couch Potato, Hardware Store, Ode to a Superhero and eBay)!The liner notes are nice, containing the lyrics to all of the included songs, plus some nice pictures. But, be sure to pop this baby into your computer! The included MOV file has some great home movie clips of little Al, all hilariously narrated by big Al. Plus, there is a photo gallery, some bonus mixes (six instrumental versions, a vocal only mix, and a Al + piano mix), and the song lyrics. But, when I say song lyrics, I don't mean they are just typed in there, they actually scroll across the screen while the music is playing!Yep, this is a great album, with lots of great extras! My kids and I highly recommend this CD to you. Buy it!"

Al is back and he hasn't missed a beat!

G. E. Leifer | Clifton Park, NY United States | 06/02/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Having seen Al in concert twice (the showmanship alone is worth the price of admission), I practically bounced off the walls when I heard about Poodle Hat's upcoming release. And boy oh boy was I ever rewarded for my anticipation...
For the reader's convienience, a track by track review follows:
1. Couch Potato (parody of Eminem's "Lose Yourself")
- I'm kind of torn. I'm very impressed with Al's use of the music, yet at the same time I think he said all he needed to say with previous songs like Headline News and I Can't Watch This. A fun tune nonetheless.
2. Hardware Store (original Al)
- This song is great! I can say with all honesty I am addicted to this tune now. From the catchy music to the deftly edited chorus to the downright brilliant bridge (with a machine-gun speed listing of the wares of the store), this is one of Al's best.
3. Trash Day (parody of Nelly's "Hot in Herre")
- This shows how truly amazing Al is. I had a severe dislike for the original, but Al's version made me appreciate it again. Solid stuff with some great female backing vocals.
4. Party at the Leper Colony (original Al)
- I'll say this for Al: He knows he's not perfect and he won't hit one out of the park every time. The cute leper puns don't always work in the song, but the music is just so darned catchy that it more than makes up for it. Just don't think too hard about what the song is saying and you'll have a great time hearing this track.
5. Angry White Boy Polka (Al's polka medley of, well, angry white boys from Staind to Disturbed and everything in between)
- I heard this track for the first time in a Borders and almost knocked over a display laughing. Al has got the modern polka medley down to a science and does not let up here either. You've got to hear it to believe it.
6. Wanna B UR Lovr (original Al)
- This is the only song on the record that faltered a bit for me. I just never found the constant stream of bad pickup lines that funny. Maybe I just need to listen to it some more...
7. A Complicated Song (parody of Avril Lavigne's "Complicated")
- Another of my favorite songs on the album. It starts off as a simple parody, and just gets better and better as the song goes on. One of the things that has impressed me most about Al through the years is that his voice is so incredibly versatile. He puts those pipes to great use here. Even if you hated the original, you'll find yourself loving this one.
8. Why Does This Always Happen To Me? (original Al)
- Ben Folds tickles the ivories on this track to great effect on a nice piece of musicianship by Al and the band. Al doesn't try too hard, and he doesn't have to. Solid lyrics with some good music make for a good song to listen to.
9. Ode to a Superhero (parody of Billy Joel's "Piano Man")
- It worked when Al used the Phantom Menace for fodder, and it works again with Spider-Man. This is another of my favorites on this album, as Al does a perfect job of using Joel's music for his own purposes. It's not necessarily funny all the way through, but it doesn't need to be. This is one parody that stands on its own. You won't be able to help yourself singing along (I sure can't).
10. Bob (original Al, with a nod to Mr. Dylan)
- Sheer lyrical brilliance from Al! Not only does the delivery of the words and the music capture the folk legend perfectly, but the words...wow. Every phrase of the lyrics a palindrome? Unreal.
11. EBay (parody of the Backstreet Boys' "I Want It That Way")
- Another great example of Al making a hated song great. This is another of my favorites on this album. Excellent lyrics plus dead-on impressions of the boy-band style which he has always done well (see also "The White Stuff"). Quality stuff.
12. Genius In France (original Al, with a nod to Frank Zappa)
- Dweezil Zappa guest plays guitar on this hilarious homage to his father. Absolutely brutal towards the French in ways to numerous to count, the song is this album's "Albuquerque" (see Running with Scissors for that gem). Granted it runs over 9 minutes, but you hardly notice the time flying by. What a way to end the album!When you buy the album, put it in your computer for 8 bonus remixes (the vocal mix of Hardware Store is my personal favorite), photos, song synchronized lyrics, and a hysterical group of Al's home movies narrated by none other than Al himself. All in all, this is one of Al's best albums to date and even if you are not a die-hard CPFOA (Close Personal Friend of Al), the amazing work comes through which makes for a highly enjoyable time! Do I smell a Grammy?"

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	Weird Al Yankovic Poodle Hat Genres: Special Interest, Pop, Rock Track Listings (12) - Disc #1 Couch Potato Hardware Store Trash Day Party at the Leper Colony Angry White Boy Polka Wanna B Ur Lovr A Complicated Song Why Does This Always Happen to Me Ode to a Superhero Bob E-Bay Genius in France
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