Weezer is a band fully aware of their potential for internet memes. Rivers Cuomo , the vocalist, is very influential on Twitter and always interacts with fans. That's how the band created an entire album.
It all started when a fan of the band created a campaign for them to re-record "Africa," a hit by the band Toto in the 80s. And it was a huge success. The guys recorded it, released it, made a limited edition vinyl version, and even returned to the charts for the first time in many years because of the song.
Then, out of nowhere, breaking all the paradigms of the music industry, Weezer released an entire album of covers, without announcement and without worrying about the fact that, months later, they would release an album of original songs.
With such a fantastic selection of covers, it's hard to choose the best. But, in preparation for Weezer's show at Itaipava de Som a Sol , Wikimetal has ranked the covers and presents the list now. Check it out:
10 – “Stand By Me”
"Stand By Me" is a classic, and it would be difficult for any cover to be better than the original. Weezer did a great job here, but among so many great covers, this is definitely the one that stood out the least.
9 – “Mr. Blue Sky”
Guitarist Brian Bell spoke about the cover: “I hope it doesn’t become a hit, because it’s very challenging. I’m afraid it might sound too good.” And it really does. It’s interesting how the song, originally by Electric Light Orchestra, ended up sounding so much like Weezer.
8 – “No Scrubs”
For those who don't remember, "No Scrubs" is by the girl band TLC , which was very successful in the 1990s. Once again, a beautiful adaptation by Weezer, who managed to put their own spin on the track. Vocalist Rivers Cuomo commented on having doubts about changing the gender of the pronouns in the song. Until he saw a tweet that said: "If you're a guy covering a song written by a woman, you have to keep the pronouns. For those three minutes, you're gay." So he thought: "Cool, let's try it that way."
7 – “Billie Jean”
Michael Jackson cover is always a huge challenge. The original singer recorded 75 vocal tracks, doubling and tripling everything. Cuomo recorded everything in seven hours. For that herculean effort, the cover of "Billie Jean" comes in seventh place.
6 – “Take On Me”
The a-ha cover was already being performed live by Rivers Cuomo at the band's shows and was always a hit, with the audience singing along. Everything fits Weezer perfectly, including the vocalist's range. Even though the version is quite similar to the original, it deserves sixth place on the list.
5 – “Everybody Wants To Rule The World”
This is another example of how everything fits together perfectly. The cover of Tears For Fears was a perfect fit for Weezer, who created a version close to the original, but with their own unique style. Not to mention that the guitar riffs are very well executed and match the new vibe.
4 – “Africa”
The cover that started it all came after a request from fans. It only happened because drummer Patrick Wilson is a fan of classic rock and got excited about the idea. If it weren't for Toto's "Africa," the album wouldn't exist. That's why it's fourth on the list.
3 – “Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This)”
Of the less unusual covers, “Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This)” is the best. Everything conspires to make it work: the vocals, the bands' styles. Rivers Cuomo commented that the biggest difficulty in recording the song was finding the right pronunciation of “this” so that it would rhyme with the rest of the lyrics. Luckily, he found it.
2 – “Happy Together”
This version originated from a request by film director Spike Jonze for the soundtrack of the movie 'Adaptation'. In the end, the director didn't like the version, which is absurd. Weezer's cover grows in popularity with each listen and reaches the status of an anthem.
1 – “Paranoid”
Okay, maybe our taste for metal influenced our choice of Black Sabbath as the best cover. It's great to see Weezer venturing into heavy rock and to hear guitarist Brian Bell channeling Ozzy's vocals. Not to mention Cuomo's beautiful solo. It's the number one spot on the list.
