Weezer (The Blue Album)

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Weezer, almost always referred to as "The Blue Album," is the debut album by the band Weezer, released May 10, 1994. Weezer is also the name of their 2001 "comeback" album, better known as The Green Album. The most popular songs on The Blue Album are "Buddy Holly" and "Undone (The Sweater Song)", and to a lesser extent "Say It Ain't So", all of which were released as singles. The album was produced by former Cars frontman, Ric Ocasek, and recorded in Electric Lady Studios in New York City.

"Undone (The Sweater Song)" was released as the first single. Spike Jonze directed the music video produced for the track. It featured Weezer performing on a sound stage and documented various recording studio antics, with a pack of dogs eventually swarming the set.

Jonze also directed the band's second video for "Buddy Holly." The video featured Weezer playing at Al's Diner of the television sitcom Happy Days. The video pushed the band to mainstream success.

Directed by Sophie Muller, "Say It Ain't So" reached less success as a video. It featured the band performing in the garage of their former house, and the bandmates playing hacky sack in the backyard.

As of October 2005, the album had sold 3,004,160 copies in the U.S., where it peaked in February 1995 at #16. It is currently certified 3 times platinum, making it Weezer's all-time best seller.

This album was also re-released and repackaged in 2004 as a "Deluxe Edition" which included a second disc of B-sides and other rarities that the band had yet to release on an officially released album. The re-issue sold 69,778 copies.

In 2003, the album was ranked number 297 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.

Track listing

All songs by Rivers Cuomo, except where noted.

"My Name is Jonas" (Rivers Cuomo/Patrick Wilson/Jason Cropper) – 3:24
"No One Else" – 3:04
"The World has Turned and Left Me Here" (Rivers Cuomo/Patrick Wilson) – 4:19
"Buddy Holly" – 2:39
"Undone – the Sweater song" – 5:05
"Surf Wax America" (Rivers Cuomo/Patrick Wilson) – 3:06
"Say It Ain't So" – 4:18
"In the Garage" – 3:55
"Holiday" – 3:24
"Only in Dreams" – 7:59

Deluxe Edition

"Mykel and Carli"
"Susanne"
"My Evaline"
"Jamie" (Originally appeared on DGC Rarities)
"My Name Is Jonas(Live)"
"Surf Wax America (Live)"
"Jamie" (Live and Acoustic)
"No One Else (Live and Acoustic)"
"Undone-The Sweater Song (Kitchen Tape Demo)"
"Paperface" (Kitchen Tape Demo)"
"Only in Dreams (Kitchen Tape Demo)"
"Lullabye for Wayne (Pre-Production Recording)"
"I Swear It's True (Pre-Production Recording)"
"Say It Ain't So (Original Album Mix)"

Trivia

Founding guitarist Jason Cropper left the band during the production of this record and was replaced by current guitarist Brian Bell. This has led to some speculation about how much contribution Bell makes to the music that's heard on the record. While you can clearly hear Bell's vocals (especially on "No One Else," "In the Garage" and "Undone") according to John D. Luerssen's book Rivers' Edge: The Weezer Story front man Rivers Cuomo re-recorded all of Cropper's guitar parts. According to album producer Ric Ocasek, Rivers laid down all ten tracks in one day in one take. Cropper's writing credit on "My Name is Jonas" is due to him coming up with the intro to the song.

According to Cuomo, the tracks "No One Else" and "The World Has Turned and Left Me Here" are written about one situation. According to Cuomo "No One Else" describes "the jealous-obsessive asshole in me freaking out on my girlfriend" and "The World Has Turned..." describes "the same asshole wondering why she's gone."

Two tracks on the album deal with Cuomo's family. Cuomo states "My Name is Jonas" "explains how 'the plan' is reaming us all. Especially my brother." The song refers to an automobile accident his brother Leaves suffered in 1992 while studying at Oberlin College. "Say It Ain't So" is about River's obsessing that his father figures were alcoholics.

Cuomo has compared their breakout hit "Undone (The Sweater Song)" to "the feeling you get when the train stops and the little guy comes knockin' on your door," citing that, "It's supposed to be a sad song, but everyone think it's hilarious."

"Holiday" and "In the Garage" were written in Rivers' jubliance after being signed to Geffen Records.

"Buddy Holly" describes a platonic relationship that Rivers had in high school with a young-looking Asian girl (thus, "your tongue is twisted/your eyes are slit"). The duo were frequently made fun of, yet the song describes how he "doesn't care what they say about us anyway."

The voices talking in the intro and middle of "Undone" are bassist Matt Sharp (he does the "Hey, brah! How we doin', man?" part), the band's ultimate right hand man Karl Koch (doing all the "yeah"s and "alright"s) and the late Mykel Allan, who started the official Weezer fanclub with her sister Carli (both were immortalized in the b-side 'Mykel and Carli') and ran the "Weezine" in the mid-90s.

Not a single guitar effect is used on the album besides "fuzzy bass" on "In the Garage," which was added through an "unknown non-pedal means."

Fifteen songs were tracked for the album during early practice sessions in New York in preparation for the Electric Lady Studios album recording. Ten of the songs appear on the album, but four of the songs were cut: "Lullaby for Wayne," "I Swear It's True," "Getting Up and Leaving," and an alternate version of "In The Garage." The other song, "Mykel and Carli," was also abandoned, but it would be recorded a year after the album and became a popular b-side.

Weezer
Brian Bell – Rivers Cuomo – Scott Shriner – Patrick Wilson
Former members: Jason Cropper – Matt Sharp – Mikey Welsh
Discography
Albums: Weezer (The Blue Album) – Pinkerton – Weezer (The Green Album) – Maladroit – Make Believe
Extended plays and live albums: The Good Life - OZ EP – The Lion and the Witch – Winter Weezerland

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