Maps of Music

“Weird Al” Yankovic (1983)

Where the lyrics of “Weird Al” Yankovic take you, and where it was really made.

Cherokee Studios agreed to record an album's worth of these songs for free, with payment to come out of future sales.

Key places

Cherokee Studios, Hollywood (1983)

Recording site Cherokee Studios — Most tracks of the album, including 2, 3, 5 to 8 and 10 to 12, were recorded at Cherokee Studios in Hollywood. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Santa Monica Sound Recorders (1983)

Recording site Santa Monica Sound Recorders — Tracks 1 and 4 of the album, “Ricky” and “Buckingham Blues,” were recorded at Santa Monica Sound Recorders. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Debut studio album by American parody musician “Weird Al” Yankovic
• First of many albums produced by former The McCoys guitarist Rick Derringer
• Mostly recorded in March 1982, released by Rock 'n Roll Records on LP and compact cassette
• Five direct parodies and seven original songs, twelve tracks in total
• Parodies pop and rock of the late 1970s and early 1980s, and satirizes American culture of the same period
• Nearly half the album consists of parodies of Toni Basil, the Arrows, Stevie Nicks, the Knack and Queen
• The accordion, Yankovic's trademark instrument, is used on every track

Background

• Songwriter Jake Hooker suggested guitarist Rick Derringer as producer after hearing Yankovic's parody “I Love Rocky Road”
• Derringer was raised in a family that enjoyed novelty music, and agreed to work with Yankovic
• Derringer convinced Cherokee Studios to record an album's worth of Yankovic's songs gratis, to be paid from future sales revenue
• Jay Levey gave KIQQ-FM a copy of “I Love Rocky Road”; the station played it immediately and it became one of the most-requested songs by the next day
• Rock 'n Roll Records president Tad Dowd pressed parent company Scotti Brothers Records to sign the 22-year-old Yankovic
• The Scotti Brothers contract planned an April 1983 release for a twelve-track album
• Nine songs were already recorded before the contract; “Another One Rides the Bus” was the original 1980 live recording from The Dr. Demento Show

Recording

• Tracks 2, 3, 5 to 8 and 10 to 12 were recorded at Cherokee Studios in Hollywood
• Tracks 1 and 4 were recorded at Santa Monica Sound Recorders
• Track 9, “Another One Rides the Bus,” was recorded live on The Dr. Demento Show, KMET, Los Angeles, 14 September 1980
• March 1982 marked Yankovic's first time stepping into a professional recording studio

Cover

• Cover designed by Brazilian artist Rogerio
• The band chose him for his Mad magazine-like drawing style
• The cover contains individual elements that correspond to each of the album's twelve songs

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Career

• Alfred Matthew "Weird Al" Yankovic (born October 23, 1959) is an American musician known for comedy songs that often parody other musicians' songs.
• He also performs original songs in the style of other acts and polka medleys of popular songs, usually featuring his accordion.
• His first on-air exposure came in 1976, when a comedy song he made was played on The Dr. Demento Radio Show at age 16.
• He has sold more than 12 million albums (as of 2025), recorded more than 150 parodies and original songs, and performed more than 2,000 live shows.
• He has won five Grammy Awards and earned eleven further nominations.
• His first top ten Billboard album (Straight Outta Lynwood) and single ("White & Nerdy") were both released in 2006.
• His album Mandatory Fun (2014) became his first number-one album in its debut week.
• He wrote and starred in the film UHF (1989) and the television series The Weird Al Show (1997).
• He has produced two satirical films about his own life: The Compleat Al (1985) and Weird: The Al Yankovic Story (2022).
• He has not released a full album since Mandatory Fun and mainly releases singles.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Critical reception was lukewarm; many reviewers felt Yankovic was a throw-away act who could not overcome the stigma of a novelty record
• AllMusic reviewer Eugene Chadbourne judged that while Yankovic was a detailed harbinger of parody to come, the album does not hold up well on its own
• Chadbourne praised most parodies, including “Another One Rides the Bus,” “My Bologna” and “I Love Rocky Road,” for their comedic value against their originals
• Chadbourne found “Ricky” lacked the comedic connection Yankovic cultivated on later albums
• Chadbourne described the original songs as little bits of puff whose impact on an album side is more like ballast

Reappraisal

• Introducing Yankovic as guest DJ for All Songs Considered on NPR in 2006, host Bob Boilen said that upon his debut Yankovic seemed the epitome of a throw-away novelty act
• Reviewing Yankovic in 2008, Brian Raftery of Wired magazine credited “Ricky” with introducing the world to an accordion-playing performer
• Raftery noted that in 1983 Yankovic was considered a fad of the time and thoroughly disposable
• AllMusic and Artistdirect each rated the album three and a half out of five stars

Records

• Peaked at No. 139 on the Billboard 200, fueled by the underground success of “My Bologna” and “Another One Rides the Bus”

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• The accordion appears on every song here, the only album in Yankovic's discography to do so; later albums use it only where deemed appropriate or inappropriate for comedy
• “It's Still Billy Joel to Me,” a 1980 parody, was originally planned for this album, but the band never asked Billy Joel for permission and the song was dropped
• “Yoda” was a huge hit on The Dr. Demento Show, but permission from George Lucas and the Kinks' publishers delayed its release until 1985
• “My Bologna” is a re-recording, and the original Capitol Records single did not appear on a Weird Al album until the 1994 box set Permanent Record
• The first official concert tour, with Dr. Demento, began at the Bottom Line in New York City on May 21, 1983 and ended at Mickey's in Milwaukee on June 10, 1983

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

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