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The Essential Weird Al Yankovic
Weird Al Yankovic
The Essential Weird Al Yankovic
Genres: Special Interest, Pop, Rock
 
  •  Track Listings (20) - Disc #1
  •  Track Listings (18) - Disc #2

"Weird Al" Yankovic is a true artistic genius in the classic sense of the word. No other artist can parody a song or a music video without being directly compared to the maestro. Throughout his career, Al has offered up ...  more »

     
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CD Details

All Artists: Weird Al Yankovic
Title: The Essential Weird Al Yankovic
Members Wishing: 14
Total Copies: 0
Label: Sony Legacy
Original Release Date: 10/26/2009
Release Date: 10/26/2009
Genres: Special Interest, Pop, Rock
Style: Comedy & Spoken Word
Number of Discs: 2
SwapaCD Credits: 2
UPC: 886975854325

Synopsis

Album Description
"Weird Al" Yankovic is a true artistic genius in the classic sense of the word. No other artist can parody a song or a music video without being directly compared to the maestro. Throughout his career, Al has offered up an alternate reality of sorts to the history of pop music, lovingly re-casting hits of all genres into bizarre and hilarious songs and videos that themselves have become hits. In fact, Al's work became so synonymous with the hits they parodied that Michael Jackson gave Al access to the "Bad" video set to make his classic "Fat" video! This is to say nothing of Al's original songs which are as witty and endearing as his parody work. Starting with his debut album in 1983 and navigating a quarter century of popular song, The Essential "Weird Al" Yankovic is the definitive collection (assembled by Al himself!) of his masterful and enduring work. With songs from all of Al's studio albums, this double CD set features 38 tracks comprising over 2 ½ hours of music including "White & Nerdy," "The Saga Begins," "Eat It," "Like A Surgeon," "Amish Paradise" and many more!

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CD Reviews

It really IS "Essential"
J. D Moncada | Louisiana | 10/28/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)

"I picked this up yesterday, not realizing it was the day the album was released. I just saw Al on CD, and that caught my attention. I'd always been a fan, but the only other album I own is Alapalooza on cassette. So it seemed like a perfect excuse to expand my collection.



Looking at the track list, it seemed like a truly complete and well-rounded Al compilation--all his greatest hits over his career. The songs really are that good, and the track listing represents itself. In fact, the only song I personally miss is "Living in the Fridge" (parody of Aerosmith's "Living on the Edge").



So besides the songs, what else is there? Well... there's a great essay by Steven Thomas of The Onion/AV Club, and there is a wealth of photos from over Al's 30 year career. All of that adds to the overall value of the package for me. It's also a really good way to introduce new and casual fans to more of Al's work."
A good comprehensive look, but missing a few key selections
Brad K. Beahm | 10/26/2009
(4 out of 5 stars)

"Weird Al Yankovic has had a very successful career poking fun at some of best-known songs in the music industry. Who could forget his parody of Michael Jackson's "Bad" or "Beat It". Personally, I really love the parody of The President's of the United States of America. "Gump" definitely has to be up there with some of the finest and well crafted songs he has ever performed.



However, there are a few key tracks from this compilation that have gone MIA. How could this collection not include "Headline News". As any Yankovic knows, this was a parody from the Crash Test Dummies "Mmm,Mmm,Mmm,Mmm" hit. In all honesty, I like Weird Al's rendition of this song better than the original. Besides the song, the music video for "Headline News" is hysterical. To exclude this song from this collection is a travesty, and thus I have to knock a star off this review for this unbelievable omission. The omissions of "Achy Breaky Song" and "Money For Nothing/Beverly Hillbillies" also are unacceptable. I am not sure if Weird Al had a say-so in the song selection, but keeping these tracks, as well as some others really hurts the album's "essential" label."
An Amazing Collection
The Purple Menace | 11/06/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)

"I wish i could say I was an old school weird Al fan, but I'm nowhere near old enough. I can say that I was a fan before the huge White and Nerdy wave swept over my school. There is a great selection of songs on here. Of course it covers all the major singles like Eat it,Like a Surgeon,Amish Paradise,White and Nerdy,and the very old, Another One Rides the Bus. This song, going by his behind the music, was originally recorded in a bathroom in his college.



I saw another reviewer bring up the exclusion of Money for Nothing/Beverly Hillbillies. This does suck because otherwise you'd have to get it on the UHF album. This album had very few highlights and is only really good if you a big fan of the UHF movie. Which you should be because that movie was awesome and would have been a big hit if Indy Jones hadn't also come out. But that's just my opinion. This is a great album for new fans of Mr. Yankovic, especially at a price of 14 bucks for 38 songs."