Line #90 Music/WeezerTheBlueAlbum


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/weezer_blue_album.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:350:''Only in dreams, we see what it means\
3	Reach out our hands, hold onto hers'']]
4	->''What's with these homies dissing my girl?\
5	Why do they gotta front?\
6	What did we ever do to these guys\
7	That made them so violent?\
8	\
9	(Woo-hoo) But you know I'm yours\
10	(Woo-hoo) And I know you're mine\
11	(Woo-hoo) And that's for all time''
12	-->-- '''"Buddy Holly"'''
13
14	''Weezer'' (retrospectively known as ''The Blue Album'' to separate it from the band's other self-titled releases) is the debut studio album by Music/{{Weezer}}, released in 1994 through DGC Records in North America and Creator/GeffenRecords internationally.
15
16	It generated massive critical acclaim upon release thanks to its [[LighterAndSofter softer, more radio-friendly sound]] in the midst of the AlternativeRock and {{Grunge}} movements of TheNineties, and would prove to be an inspiration for countless softer [[EmoMusic Emo]] and PopPunk bands in the years to come. With over 15 million copies sold worldwide by 2009, including at least 3.3 million sales in the United States, it still stands as Weezer's highest-selling album.
17
18	Produced by Ric Ocasek of Music/TheCars, ''The Blue Album'' captured a [[DeadpanSnarker sense of irony characteristic of younger bands]], while the band's nerdy persona garnered a cult following from audiences outside the core PostPunk movement. The album's PowerPop and ArenaRock melodies helped elevate Rivers Cuomo's charming but angst-filled lyrics, which made the subject matter accessible to a mainstream audience.
19
20	The album's singles -- "Buddy Holly", "Undone (The Sweater Song)", and "Say It Ain't So" -- were very well-received on the radio; the music videos for the former two songs were directed by Creator/SpikeJonze, whose creativity contributed to extensive airplay on MTV. Weezer's clean-cut image spurred their success, though it eventually proved to be a thorn in the band's side as their lyrical concerns began to mature and their style began to progress.
21
22	Rivers Cuomo would later [[CreatorBacklash dismiss the videos as "gimmicky"]], and his disillusionment with the rock lifestyle resulted in the band's original plans for their second album, a RockOpera titled ''Songs from the Black Hole'', to be scrapped and eventually replaced by their DarkerAndEdgier 1996 follow-up ''Music/{{Pinkerton}}''.
23	----
24	!!Tracklist:
25	# "My Name Is Jonas" (3:23)
26	# "No One Else" (3:14)
27	# "The World Has Turned and Left Me Here" (4:26)
28	# "Buddy Holly" (2:40)
29	# "Undone – The Sweater Song" (5:05)
30	# "Surf Wax America" (3:04)
31	# "Say It Ain't So" (4:18)
32	# "In the Garage" (3:56)
33	# "Holiday" (3:26)
34	# "Only in Dreams" (8:03)
35
36	[[AC:The deluxe version of the album featured, apart from live versions and remixes, the following tracks:]]
37	# "Mykel and Carli" (2:53)
38	# "Susanne" (2:47)
39	# "My Evaline" (0:44)
40	# "Jamie" (4:19)
41	# "Paperface" (3:01)
42	# "Lullaby for Wayne" (3:36)
43	# "I Swear It's True" (2:57)
44	----
45	!!Principal Members:
46	* Rivers Cuomo – lead vocals, guitar, keyboards, harmonica
47	* Brian Bell – guitar, backing vocals
48	* Matt Sharp – bass, backing vocals
49	* Patrick Wilson – drums, percussion, backing vocals
50
51	----
52	!!''My love is a trope taker:''
53
54	* AlcoholicParent: The premise of "Say It Ain't So" is a subversion of this. Rivers thought his parents split up because his dad was an alcoholic, though this wasn't actually the case.
55	* TheAllegedCar: The car in "My Name is Jonas":
56	--> ''Tell me what to do\
57	Now the tank is dry\
58	Now this wheel is flat\
59	And you know what else''
60	* [[AscendedFanboy Ascended Fangirl]]: "Mikel and Carli" describe two young girls who started the Weezer fan club during the band's earliest days.
61	* AsianBuckTeeth: Not quite buck teeth, but the Asian girl whom Rivers defends in "Buddy Holly" is described as having racial characteristics.
62	--> ''Your tongue is twisted, your eyes are slit\
63	You need a guardian''
64	* BigRockEnding: The vocal for "Only in Dreams" ends at the 4:16 mark, and the rest of the song features a dramatic, slow-burning buildup to a loud climax, before ending cold with the [[EpicRiff Epic Bass Riff]] finally resolving itself.
65	* BreakupSong: "The World Has Turned and Left Me Here". It alludes to the fact that the boy in the song was not very nice to his ex, though he's an UnreliableNarrator.
66	* ClothingDamage: "Undone", obviously.
67	--> ''If you want to destroy my sweater\
68	Pull this thread as I walk away''
69	* ConceptVideo: "Buddy Holly" is done InTheStyleOf a ''Series/HappyDays'' episode, complete with a commercial break halfway through and Al Molinaro reprising his role as Al Delvecchio.
70	* CrazyJealousGuy: The narrator of "No One Else" doesn't want his girl hanging out with any other guy but him. Even though it sounds rather sexist and harsh, it represents the beginning of Cuomo's maturation as a songwriter, as he would later expand upon this in ''Music/{{Pinkerton}}''.
71	* ForbiddenFriendship: "Buddy Holly" was inspired by Rivers's high school friendship with an Asian girl, which they were both bullied over.
72	* GarageBand: "In the Garage", obviously, though it's more about how the band wants to stay true to its roots and fans despite their fame.
73	* GeekReferencePool: The [[MotorMouth motor mouthed lyrics]] during the bridge of "Buddy Holly", "''What's a matter you''" specifically, is an obscure reference to ''WesternAnimation/TheRockyAndBullwinkleShow'', which featured the fake university "''Wossamotta U''" in the show.
74	* HulkSpeak: "Undone – The Sweater Song" (arguably a PlayedForDrama example)
75	--> ''Oh no\
76	It go\
77	It gone\
78	Bye-bye''
79	* InTheStyleOf: "Say it Ain't So" takes obvious musical inspiration from [[Music/RedHotChiliPeppers "Under the Bridge"]].
80	* LastNoteNightmare: "Undone (The Sweater Song)" has a particularly menacing one, sounding almost like something out of a horror movie.
81	* LocationSong: "Surf Wax America" and "Undone" generally reference the beach party culture of [=SoCal=].
82	* LongestSongGoesLast: The album closes with "Only In Dreams" (8:03).
83	* LyricalColdOpen: "Buddy Holly" jumps right in:
84	-->''What's with these homies dissin' my girl?\
85	Why do they gotta front?''
86	* LyricalDissonance: "Surf Wax America" is an energetic surf rock song about a guy who blows off work to go surfing, only to get pulled into an undertow and drown.
87	* MinimalisticCoverArt: The band's picture on the cover reflects this. It has become so iconic that the band reprised it for ''Green'', ''Red'', and also ''White'', to an extent.
88	* MoodDissonance: "Say It Ain't So" is about alcoholism – and the lyrics reflect this, along with a sad guitar riff – but it's so catchy that the song got famous for its charming attitude toward depression. The music video, thus, features the band simply hanging out at their old house.
89	* NocturnalEmission: Done ''through music'' at the end of "Only in Dreams". The elevated crescendo is supposed to represent an orgasm, though most listeners don't know this.
90	* OneWomanSong: "My Evaline", "Susanne", and "Jamie" all qualify, although "My Evaline" is a rearranged traditional song and the remaining two songs are actually addressed to professional associates of the band.
91	* RecordProducer: They asked to self-produce the album, but naturally DGC wouldn't allow this for a debut album. Then they contacted Ric Ocasek, who they admired not only for his work in Music/TheCars, but also his production for bands like Music/BadBrains. Ocasek loved the demos they sent him and readily agreed to produce.
92	* SequelSong: According to Hari Kondabolu, a comedian and [[AscendedFanboy huge Weezer fan]], the song "The World Has Turned and Left Me Here", describes the same character as its previous song, "No One Else", [[TheAtoner atoning for his jealousness]]. The character in "No One Else" as mentioned above is a jealous guy; in the next, his girlfriend has broken up with him for being so possessive.
93	* ShoutOut: Music/BuddyHolly and [[Series/TheMaryTylerMooreShow Mary Tyler Moore]], obviously, in the fourth track. Also the string of TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons, comic book and Music/{{KISS}} references in "In the Garage", and the [[Creator/JackKerouac "on the road with Kerouac"]] part in "Holiday".
94	* TheSomethingSong: "Undone (The Sweater Song)" is named for two words in the chorus, which appear separately.
95	* SpokenWordInMusic:
96	** The conversations in "Undone", both with an unnamed protagonist who feels bored about catching up with his friends.
97	** Different versions of the song use different spoken parts in those sections. One early demo just had Rivers and Matt muttering various NonSequitur quotes. The final demo version had them filled with sound bite snippets from various sources, like [[Film/ANewHope "You are part of the Rebel Alliance and a traitor"]] and [[Theatre/YoureAGoodManCharlieBrown "This is what you call a failure face"]]. The conversations on the album version were a backup plan after DGC refused to pay the money to license those samples.
98	* StepUpToTheMic:
99	** Matt Sharp, who had never sung a verse before joining Weezer, learned to sing an octave higher than Rivers in songs like "Buddy Holly" and "Undone".
100	** Sharp is also the "Hey brah! How we doin'?" guy in the "Undone" intro, with band friends Karl Koch as the depressed guy, and Mykel Allan as the girl asking for a ride to the party after the show.
101	* SubduedSection: "Surf Wax America" and "Holiday" both have quieter, slower bridges, with elaborate, counterpoint-heavy vocal harmonies, before loudly reverting back to the main theme.
102	* SurfRock: "Surf Wax America" is a tip of the hat to this genre.
103	* ThreeChordsAndTheTruth: "Paperface" was recorded in the band's kitchen, which explains its rather primitive sound. It was an early session that later got included as a BSide.
104	* UnusualEuphemism:
105	** In "The World Has Turned and Left Me Here":
106	--> ''I just make love to your sweet memory\
107	One thousand times a night''
108	** "Wrestle with Jimmy" in "Say It Ain't So" is sometimes taken this way as well, but Rivers says it really is a reference to roughhousing with his brother Jimmy (aka Leaves). The same song has a non-sexual example in an American band using the very British term "telly" to refer to a television set.
109	* WorkingClassHero: The titular character in "My Name Is Jonas", who convinces the workers to strike to oppose unfair regulations.

Context Music / WeezerTheBlueAlbum