Dare to Be Stupid
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| Dare to Be Stupid | |||||
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| Studio album by "Weird Al" Yankovic | |||||
| Released | June 18, 1985 | ||||
| Recorded | January-March 1985 | ||||
| Genre | Comedy | ||||
| Length | 37:04 | ||||
| Label | Scotti Brothers | ||||
| Producer | Rick Derringer | ||||
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| "Weird Al" Yankovic chronology | |||||
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| Singles from Dare to Be Stupid | |||||
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Dare to Be Stupid is the third album recorded by "Weird Al" Yankovic, released in 1985.
Contents |
[edit] Track listing
| Track | Title | Length | (Style) Parody of | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Like a Surgeon" | 3:32 | "Like a Virgin" by Madonna | About an incompetent surgeon performing surgery. Notable because Madonna herself gave the idea for the title of the song, when asked in an interview what sort of parody Yankovic would make of "Like a Virgin". |
| 2 | "Dare to Be Stupid" | 3:25 | Style parody of Devo | The song (and video) are a parody of Devo, bearing closest resemblance musically to Devo's "Big Mess".[1] It describes many stupid things a person can do, such as "Stick your head in the microwave and get yourself a tan." It is one of Al's most renowned original songs. It was also used in The Transformers: The Movie as the theme song for the Junkions, and was later covered by MC Chris in 2007. |
| 3 | "I Want a New Duck" | 3:04 | "I Want a New Drug" by Huey Lewis & the News | About how much the singer wants a better pet duck. |
| 4 | "One More Minute" | 4:04 | Generic doo-wop parody | Singer describes the myriad tortures he would sooner endure than spending one more minute with his ex-girlfriend. Yankovic wrote this song about an ex-girlfriend. Her picture can be seen being torn up in the video. |
| 5 | "Yoda" | 3:58 | "Lola" by The Kinks | Describes the Dagobah-setting events of The Empire Strikes Back as told from the point of view of Luke Skywalker. |
| 6 | "George of the Jungle" | 1:05 | Cover version of the George of the Jungle theme song | Yankovic's record company suggested that he do a straight cover song on this particular album. |
| 7 | "Slime Creatures from Outer Space" | 4:23 | Style parody of Thomas Dolby | Earth is under attack by the titular characters. |
| 8 | "Girls Just Want to Have Lunch" | 2:48 | "Girls Just Want to Have Fun" by Cyndi Lauper | Yankovic's record label insisted he do a Cyndi Lauper parody. The song is about every girl's habit of consuming nothing but afternoon meals. This song was notably left off of Yankovic's 1993 The Food Album compilation. |
| 9 | "This Is the Life" | 3:06 | Style parody of a 1930s-era orchestration | Exaggerated description of a lavish lifestyle, used in the gangster spoof movie Johnny Dangerously. |
| 10 | "Cable TV" | 3:38 | Style parody of Randy Newman | Singer describes his love of cable television. |
| 11 | "Hooked on Polkas" | 3:51 | Polka Medley | A polka medley including the following songs:
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[edit] Personnel
- "Weird Al" Yankovic - accordion, keyboards, theremin, vocals, background vocals
- Sonny Burke - piano
- Rick Derringer - guitar
- Gary Herbig - clarinet, saxophone
- Steve Jay - banjo, bass, background vocals
- Tommy Johnson - tuba
- Warren Luening - trumpet
- Joel Peskin - clarinet
- Pat Regan - synthesizer
- Jon "Bermuda" Schwartz - percussion, drums
- Al Viola - scratching
- The Waters Sisters - background vocals
- Jim West - guitar, background vocals
- Belen Alvarez - The Queen
[edit] Production
- Producer: Rick Derringer
- Engineer: Tony Papa
- Art direction: Donald Lane
- Illustrations: Lou Beach
- Photography: Dennis Keeley
[edit] Charts
Album
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1985 | The Billboard 200 | 50 |
[edit] Notes
- Dare to Be Stupid was the first humorous album to be recorded onto a CD format.
- As the song "Slime Creatures from Outer Space" ends, and it becomes quieter and quieter and the final shouted lines of the song become harder to hear, turning up the volume as this is happening allows a normally inaudible final line to be heard. This line is "Who ya gonna call (Slime Creatures!)" As it is a reference to the film, Ghostbusters, and not in any way relevant to the song, it was probably intended as an easter egg.
