Weird Al Yankovic - Poodle Hat
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Free Music Notes for Poodle Hat
Free Music Review: Weird Al only gets better with age!
Hit: 5 Stars
This is my favorite Weird Al album to date. Although I didn't find anything groundbreaking in his lyrics (I suppose it would be difficult for him to outdo himself there), the quality of the music gets better and better with each album. The harmonics, sound effects and instrumentals make his songs very convincing, as well as fun and amusing to listen to.Not only are the parodies hilarious, but his completely original songs are enjoyable too. Weird Al has an amusing sense of humor...for example, the song "Bob" consists entirely of sentences which say the same thing written forward or backward (something you wouldn't immediately notice, until you start wondering what the heck the song is supposed to be about). Both "Wanna B UR Lovr" and "Genius in France" make use of cliche jokes; the first song uses stupid pick-up lines, while the latter uses many ways to describe someone as an idiot.
The album is on an enhanced CD containing bonus features if you use it on your computer. As far as I can tell, however, it can't be played as a regular music CD on a computer (with a program such as WinAmp or similar). When used on a computer, it is similar to a DVD. You can watch some home videos of Al when he was young, look at photos, listen to bonus mixes, and read the lyrics. As far as I can tell (but I could be wrong), the only way to listen to the album on a computer is to click on "Lyrics" from the menu, and choose the song you want to hear. The lyrics will scroll up as the song plays. It's a neat feature, but you should use a regular CD player if you just want to listen to the album.
I bought this CD to cheer myself up as I recovered from a nasty cold, and I can say that I almost literally died laughing! My brothers and I were laughing so hard that I couldn't breathe. I would definitely recommend this CD to anyone who appreciates the genius of Weird Al!
Free Music Review: Awesome return for Al after 4 years
Hit: 5 Stars
A great CD. Enough said. Okay, I can be more specific. Here are my comments for each song (along with the info in brackets)...Couch Potato (parody; Lose Yourself by Eminem):He rocks, he jazzes, he ballads, he polkas, now he raps! funny song about TV. Amazing how he adapts to any style of song...Hardware Store (original): interesting song about exactly what the title says. Cool because of it's speed...Trash Day(parody; Hot In Herre by Nelly):Funny song about taking out the trash...Party At The Leper Colony(original): Hilarious song, although it's a bit "punny"...Angry White Boy Polka(medly):With the exception of two albums, Al has always included one of these. Excerpts from popular(?) songs are set to a polka style music...Wanna B Ur Lovr(original):laugh out loud song where Al comes up with some of the wackiest pick-up lines ever...A Complicated Song (parody; Complicated by Avril Lavigne):Very humorous. Deals with three different "complicated" topics...Why Does This Always Happen To Me?(original):Awesome. Al brings out his everpopular "torture humour"...Ode To A Superhero (parody; Piano Man by Billy Joel):I like the original, so this song is awesome. It's Poodle Hat's, "The Saga Begins". It's a funny ballad based on the movie of SpiderMan...Bob(original):A clever song where Al simply rhymes a bunch of palindromes (to any really young readers, those are phrases which say the same thing spelled backwards)...Ebay(parody; I Want It That Way by The Backstreet Boys):Remember the B-Boys phase? Well, youll recognize this tune. Great parody...Genius In France(original):A song shorter than Albuquerque, but longer than the Biggest Ball Of Twine In Minnesota. While this song isn't a huge laugh, it's a take on the style of Frank Zappa (Al's other invention is "style-parodies")...Go ahead. Buy this CD. now. Now. Noooowww. Music Review: Another Weird Al ClassicHit: 5 Stars I've listened to this album entirely three times as of today (May 20, 2003, release day) and the album has gotten better with each listen. Each track is excellently written as Weird Al proves once again that he is the master of parody and lyrics in general.
My favorite track on the album is Genius in France, a 9 minute tribute to Frank Zappa with a kickin' rad guitar intro by Dweezil Zappa, the late Frank's son. This track is a perfect representation of Zappa's music in general and I can already say with relative confidence that this is my new favorite Weird Al song.
The five parodies on the album are excellently done, including an incredibly notable parody in A Complicated Song. eBay is also a great song, perfectly capturing the world's most popular internet auction site.
The other 5 original tracks are excellent, especially Hardware Store. The only possible negative I can give the album is that Party at the Leper Colony is a strange song, but I'm sure it will grow on me in future listens to the album.
Finally, the polka, Angry White Boy Polka, has a very good selection of all that is angsty and, in my opinion, detestable about today's popular music.
Overall, Poodle Hat is an incredibly excellent offering by Weird Al and it is well worth the price of admission. Also, the CD is enhanced and offers photos, timed (sing along) lyrics to the music, and 8 "bonus mixes," which are mostly instrumental versions of some of the tracks. The major, and stupendous, extra, is the approximately 10 minute collection of Al Yankovic home movies (that is, movies of a young Al at work and play), narrated by the man himself. This video is incredibly funny and makes this album even more worth the money than it already is.
Highly recommended. 5 out of 5.
Boco_T
Free Music Review: Al Yankovic Shines in this Grammy Award Winning Enhanced CD
Hit: 5 Stars
The story goes that Mr. and Mrs. Yankovic were in bed one evening when Bela, their poodle, crawled up and made herself comfortable--right on Al's head. "Hey," he said to his wife, "I'm wearing a poodle hat!" And so it began.
From the first notes of "Couch Potato" through the lightening fast and giddy "Hardware Store" and into the ingenius "Genius in France", Al Yankovic once again demonstrates his uncanny ability to keep his finger on the pulse of the music scene and to assemble an ecclectic variety of styles and sounds that are funny, edgey and on target.
Al and the band recreate the sounds of the artists they parody so perfectly, that most listeners don't know it is Al until the singing begins. His "style parodies", in which he composes original lyrics and music in they style of another artist, are fascinating journeys into the minds of the original composers.
All of the songs on this CD are meticulously crafted, produced and mastered. Highlights include the song "Bob", a style parody based on the works of Bob Dylan, and composed of rhyming palindromes. (Yes, rhyming palindromes!), and the 9 minute ode to Frank Zappa, "Genius in France".
The CD itself is enhanced: place it in your CD ROM and you will have access to remixes of several of the songs, a film clip of Al showing you a home movie, and an easter egg (press the spacebar!). Don't miss the remix of "Hardware Store"--all the intruments have been removed and you can clearly hear the vocal talent that Al shows in this multi-layered track.
Listen out for Ben Folds on piano, Dweezil Zappa, and several other surprise guests...including, yes, a cameo apperance by Bela the poodle! This is one for all fans of musical comedy.
Free Music Review: FUN AND FUNNY!
Hit: 5 Stars
My family has all of Al's records and CDs and went to one of his concerts a year ago, so how does this new CD stack up?1. Couch Potato- parodies "Lose Yourself" by Eminem and mentions every TV show from Spongebob to Will and Grace. Excellent syncing, but what's up with the missing sounds in the chorus? B+
2. Hardware Store- rivals "Nature Trail to Hell" as the best non-parody song by Al ever. Excellent, especially when he lists all the tools really fast. A
3. Trash Day- parody of "Hot in Herre" by Nelly. Doesn't trump "Couch Potato" but good nonetheless. B
4. Party at the Leper Colony- Ultra-generic sounding tropical shindig song. Uses every leper joke in the book. B-
5. Angry White Boy Polka- A stupendous medley of songs by Papa Roach, System of a Down, the Vines, the Hives, White Stripes, Strokes, Disturbed, Rage Against the Machine, POD, Limp Bizkit, Staind and Eminem. Once again, stupendous! A
6. Wanna B Ur Luvr- Disturbingly seductive and funky. B
7. A Complicated Song- parody of "Complicated" by Avril Lavigne. Expect constipation and decaptitation jokes. B+
8. Why Does This Always Happen to Me- the typical exaggerated, Weird Al-type lament. B
9. Ode to a Superhero- parody of Piano Man by Billy Joel. Sling us a web/you're the spider man, all about Spiderman the Movie. Uplifting. B+
10. Bob- Sounds like Subterranean Homesick Blues by Bob Dylan, as I'm told. Nothing but palindromes here. B
11. Ebay- parody of "I Want it That Way" by Backstreet Boys. The Backstreet version didn't have many lines to parody, so Al milked all he could out. B
12. Genius in France- I heard Dweezil Zappa helped Al with this. Perfect if you hate France. Uses many stupidity jokes. B+