Off the Deep End

by Weird Al Yankovic

Overview

Following his exposure in the mid-'80s, Weird Al Yankovic's career stumbled with the poor-selling Polka Party in 1986 and his feature film UHF that tanked in 1989. Clearly, many people had grown tired of Yankovic's presence, just as they'd grown tired of the artists he was satirizing. Thus his chance for a comeback came in 1992, when Nirvana stormed the scene with "Smells Like Teen Sprit," a song that turned the music world upside down and ended the careers of many of the artists Yankovic had once used to heighten his success. Not too surprisingly, "Smells Like Nirvana" was the first single off of Off the Deep End, Yankovic's first album in three years. The song, which pokes fun at the original version's incoherent lyrics, was a smash hit, and not undeservingly -- it reveals the kind of brilliant writing Yankovic was still capable of doing. Though no other parody on the album matches the cleverness of "Smells Like Nirvana," satires such as "I Can't Watch This" and "Taco Grande" come quite close. In addition to re-establishing his satirical craftsmanship, Deep End showcases some of Yankovic's best originals ever; "Trigger Happy," "When I Was Your Age," and "You Don't Love Me Anymore" prove to be the album's greatest songs. As his best album since In 3-D, Off the Deep End is the answer to those who questioned Yankovic's credibility as an evolving artist. ~ Barry Weber

Product Details

Release Date:	01/01/1999
Label:	Way Moby
UPC:	0886979177925

Tracks

1. Smells Like Nirvana
2. Trigger Happy
3. I Can't Watch This
4. Polka Your Eyes Out
5. I Was Only Kidding
6. The White Stuff
7. When I Was Your Age
8. Taco Grande
9. Airline Amy
10. The Plumbing Song
11. You Don't Love Me Anymore

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Weird Al Yankovic   Primary Artist,Vocals,Accordion,Keyboards,Vocals (Background)
Cheech Marin   Guest Artist
Tommy Johnson   Tuba
Carmen Twillie   Vocals (Background)
Joel Peskin   Clarinet
Jim "Kimo" West   Vocals (Background),Banjo,Guitar
Oren Waters   Vocals (Background)
Brad Buxer   Synthesizer
Luther Waters   Vocals (Background)
Gene Morford   Vocals (Background)
Jon "Bermuda" Schwartz   Drums,Percussion
Peggy Newman   Vocals (Background)
Alisa Curran   Vocals (Background)
Steve Jay   Guitar (Bass),Vocals (Background)
Jerry Whitman   Vocals (Background)
Warren Luening   Trumpet
Julia Waters   Vocals (Background)
Jon Joyce   Vocals (Background)
Jim Haas   Vocals (Background)
Maxine Willard Waters   Vocals (Background)

Technical Credits

Suzanne Vega   Composer
James   Composer
Bill Berry   Composer
Zac Foley   Composer
Marlene Aragon   Overdubs
Edith Fore   Overdubs
Robert Van Winkle   Composer
Gerardo Mejia   Composer
Beau Weaver   Overdubs
Brian May   Composer
Tony Papa   Engineer
Alonzo Miller   Composer
The B-52s   Composer
Bernie Grundman   Mastering
Billy Idol   Composer
Kurt Cobain   Composer
Kirk Hammett   Composer
Bootsy Collins   Composer
Freddie Mercury   Composer
Lars Ulrich   Composer
Frank Farian   Composer
James Hetfield   Composer
MC Hammer   Composer
Jeff Raymond   Composer
John Deacon   Composer
Roger Taylor   Composer
Peter Buck   Composer
Maurice Starr   Composer
Nirvana   Composer
Rick James   Composer
Nikki Sixx   Composer
Michael Stipe   Composer
David Bowie   Composer
George Clinton   Composer
Diane Warren   Composer
Alan Ray   Composer
I. Dench   Composer
Neil Ross   Overdubs
Weird Al Yankovic   Arranger,Composer,Producer