Weezer (Blue Album)


Weezer is the eponymous debut studio album by American rock band Weezer, released on May 10, 1994 by DGC Records. The album came two years after the band's founding, after they initially struggled as an alternative to grunge music, which was prevalent in Los Angeles during the early 1990s. It was almost entirely arranged and composed by frontman Rivers Cuomo, who also anticipated to lead the band in self-producing the album. However, at the behest of DGC, the band was required to include a producer, and collectively opted for Cars frontman Ric Ocasek. Most of the recording was conducted at Electric Lady Studios in New York City between August and September 1993, a period that coincided with founding guitarist Jason Cropper being fired and replaced by Brian Bell.
Under Ocasek's direction, the band opted for a brighter sound, while bassist Matt Sharp collaborated with Cuomo to ensure that the album contained an overriding sonic concept of treating the guitars and bass as isolated ten-string instruments, thus maximizing its potential when united. Lyrically, Weezer focuses on outsiderdom and social awkwardness, while also touching on melancholic themes of love, romance, and familial issues.
Weezer was supported by the singles "Undone – The Sweater Song", "Buddy Holly", and "Say It Ain't So", which, alongside their respective music videos, brought Weezer mainstream success. The album itself peaked at number sixteen on the US Billboard 200, and was certified triple platinum by 1995. It is also the band's best-selling album, having sold at least 3.3 million copies in the U.S. and over fifteen million copies worldwide by 2009.

Background

Weezer was formed on February 14, 1992, in Los Angeles by singer and guitarist Rivers Cuomo, drummer Patrick Wilson, bassist Matt Sharp, and guitarist Jason Cropper. Although they performed future hits including "The Sweater Song" and "Say It Ain't So", Cuomo said they struggled to engage audiences, who wanted to see grunge bands instead.
In an effort to create buzz around LA, Weezer recorded a demo, The Kitchen Tape. This attracted attention from major-label A&R reps looking for alternative rock bands to perform on the same bill as That Dog. Weezer were signed to DGC Records on June 26, 1993, by Todd Sullivan, an A&R rep from Geffen Records.

Recording

While preparing for the studio sessions, Weezer focused on their vocal interplay by practicing barbershop quartet-style songs, which helped Cuomo and Sharp feel more comfortable collaborating during rehearsals. Sharp, who had never sung before joining Weezer, developed his falsetto: "I had to sing an octave higher than Rivers. After a lot of practice, I started to get it down."
Weezer rehearsed 15 songs in New York in preparation for the Electric Lady Studios recording sessions. Four songs from this rehearsal would not be attempted for the album: "Lullaby for Wayne", "I Swear It's True", "Getting Up and Leaving", and a reprise version of "In the Garage". The other song, an ode to two women who ran the Weezer fanclub called "Mykel & Carli", was attempted during the Electric Lady sessions, but was also abandoned. A later recording of "Mykel & Carli" was featured as a B-side on the "Undone – The Sweater Song" single.
The band considered self-producing, but were pressured by Geffen to choose a producer. They decided on Ric Ocasek, who had played with the Cars. Ocasek convinced the band to change their guitar pickups from the neck to the bridge, resulting in a brighter sound. Sharp and Cuomo imposed several rules on recording, banning reverb and insisting on all downstrokes on guitar. According to engineer Chris Shaw, the "overriding concept" was to treat the guitars and bass as a single, 10-string instrument, playing in unison. Weezer insisted that the guitars were mixed as loudly as those in the Radiohead song "Creep", burying some vocals.
During the recording, Cropper learned that his girlfriend was pregnant and began acting erratically. Weezer collaborator Karl Koch said: "He wasn't handling it well... he always said he was fine, and then 20 minutes later he'd be up on the roof of Electric Lady screaming or something." According to Cropper, Cuomo told him he could not allow him to jeopardize the band's work and asked him to leave. In 2014, Cropper said Cuomo had made the right decision. Cropper was replaced by Brian Bell. While Bell's vocals appear on some tracks, Cuomo re-recorded all of Cropper's guitar parts. Ocasek recalled: "After was completely recorded, Rivers came in and said, 'I’m firing the guitar player, and I’m going to do all his guitar parts over.' I said, 'You can’t do that!' But he did. In one take." Bell is still credited for playing guitar in the liner notes. Cropper received a credit on "My Name Is Jonas" for writing the intro.

Artwork

The album artwork, photographed by American glamour photographer Peter Gowland, features Wilson, Cuomo, Sharp, and Bell standing in front of a plain, blue background. Adobe Photoshop was used to digitally alter the cover. Cuomo stated that, while the band liked the photo, Sharp was not happy with the way his head looked. The Geffen Art Director used Photoshop to swap out the head with one from another shot. The image was used prominently in the advertising of the album. The cover received many comparisons to the Feelies' album Crazy Rhythms.
On some vinyl pressings of the album, the cover does not crop off their feet. On the Deluxe Edition case the feet are presented on the back cover, and the band sold an official T-shirt with a shot of the band's feet after the deluxe edition release.
Inside the album booklet, Cuomo pays tribute to his past metal influences with a photo taken in the group's garage on Amherst. A poster of Judas Priest's album British Steel is featured on the left side of the photo, while on the right a Quiet Riot concert poster is displayed. The Deluxe Edition features additional photographs of the band and hand-written lyrics for each song.

Promotion

The first single "Undone – The Sweater Song" was described by Cuomo as "the feeling you get when the train stops and the little guy comes knockin' on your door. It was supposed to be a sad song, but everyone thinks it's hilarious." The video marks one of the early directorial efforts of Spike Jonze, whose pitch was simply "A blue stage, a steadicam, a pack of wild dogs." The video became an instant hit on MTV. The final single, "Say It Ain't So", was inspired by Cuomo believing his parents split up when he was four because he thought his father was an alcoholic. The music video, which was directed by Sophie Muller, was less successful than the previous Spike Jonze-directed video. It featured the band performing in the garage of their former house, and the bandmates playing hacky sack in the backyard.

Release

The Blue Album was released on May 10, 1994. It was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America just under seven months later on December 1, 1994, and was certified platinum by the RIAA on January 13, 1995. The Blue Album was certified 2x platinum by the RIAA on August 8, 1995. The album was certified 3x platinum by the RIAA on November 13, 1998. The album peaked at No. 16 on the Billboard 200. As a single, "Undone – The Sweater Song" peaked at No. 35 on the UK Top 40, and "Buddy Holly" and "Say It Ain't So" peaked at No. 12 and No. 37 on the UK Top 40 respectively. In the U.S., "Buddy Holly" peaked at No. 17 on the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay chart.
A "deluxe edition" of the album was released on March 23, 2004, including the original album and a second disc, Dusty Gems and Raw Nuggets, containing B-sides and rarities. As of December 2007, the "deluxe edition" had sold 86,000 copies.

Critical reception

The Blue Album received critical acclaim. Rolling Stone praised the album in their year-end review, saying "Weezer's Rivers Cuomo is great at sketching vignettes, and with sweet inspiration like the waltz tempo of 'My Name Is Jonas' and the self-deprecating humor of lines like "I look just like Buddy Holly / And you're Mary Tyler Moore", his songs easily ingratiate." Robert Christgau of The Village Voice was less complimentary and awarded the album a "neither" rating. The "Buddy Holly" video won four awards at the 1995 MTV Video Music Awards, including prizes for Breakthrough Video and Best Alternative Video. It was ranked number 299 on Rolling Stone's list of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

Legacy

The Blue Album has become one of the most highly regarded albums of the 1990s, appearing on many "Best-of" lists. In 2003, Rolling Stone ranked the album number 297 on their list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time, and 299 in a 2012 revised list. In 2002, the readers of Rolling Stone ranked the album the 21st greatest of all time, and 299 in a 2012 revised list. Blender named the Blue Album among the "500 CDs You Must Own", calling the album "Absolute geek-rock, out and proud." Non-U.S. publications have acclaimed the album as well: New Zealand's The Movement placed it at number 39 on a list of "The 101 Best Albums of the 90s", and Visions of Germany ranked it number 32 on a list of "The Most Important Albums of the 90s." In November 2011, the Blue Album was ranked number three on Guitar World magazine's top ten list of guitar albums of 1994, with Bad Religion's Stranger than Fiction and The Offspring's Smash in first and second place respectively. The album also peaked at number 25 on Guitar World's "Superunknown: 50 Iconic Albums That Defined 1994" list.
Reviews of the album when its deluxe edition was released have reflected its rise in stature continuing to be positive. In 2004, PopMatters gave the album a very positive review, saying "I'd go so far to declare the 'Blue Album' one of the greatest records of the last 20 years." And Rolling Stone reiterated their original positive review by further describing it as "big, vibrant pop-rock that would inspire thousands of emo kids." Blogcritics Magazine gave the album a score of 10/10 and asserted that "this is one of the most important debut albums of the last ten years."
In naming Weezer the 26th best album of the 1990s, Pitchfork summed up the album's critical recognition:
NME claimed that the album "pretty much invented emo's melodic wing". AllMusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine gave the album a full 5/5 stars, explaining "What makes the band so enjoyable is their charming geekiness; instead of singing about despair, they sing about love, which is kind of refreshing in the gloom-drenched world of '90s guitar-pop."

Accolades

Since its release, the Blue Album has featured heavily in various "must have" lists compiled by the music media. Some of the more prominent of these lists to feature the Blue Album are shown below; this information is adapted from Acclaimed Music.
PublicationCountryAccoladeYearRank
BlenderUSA500 CDs You Must Own Before You Die2003*
Music UnderwaterUSATop 100 Albums 1990–20032004No. 10
Stylus MagazineUSATop 101–200 Albums of All Time2004No. 177
Pitchfork MediaUSATop 100 Albums of the 1990s2003No. 26
Rolling StoneUSAThe 500 Greatest Albums of All Time2005No. 299
Rolling StoneUSAThe 100 Best Debut Albums of All Time2013No. 35

designates lists which are unordered.

Track listing

Deluxe edition bonus disc

The 2004 deluxe edition included a bonus disc, Dusty Gems and Raw Nuggets.
The tracks on the bonus disc originally appeared on the following releases:
  • Tracks 1 and 3 from "Undone – The Sweater Song" single
  • Track 2 is from the soundtrack to Mallrats; an earlier mix of the same song was included on the "Undone" single
  • Track 4 from DGC Rarities compilation
  • Tracks 5 and 6 from "Buddy Holly" single
  • Tracks 7 and 8 from "Say It Ain't So" single
  • Tracks 9–11 previously unreleased, and part of Kitchen Tape demo
  • Tracks 12 and 13 previously unreleased, pre-production recordings done with Ric Ocasek just prior to Weezer's recording
  • Track 14 is the version featured on the original release of the album. The mix was changed for the single and was later added to newer versions of the album. The single mix is the version included on Disc 1 of this Deluxe Edition.

    Personnel

Weezer
  • Rivers Cuomo – lead vocals, lead and rhythm guitar, keyboards, harmonica
  • Brian Bell – rhythm guitar, backing vocals
  • Matt Sharp – bass, backing vocals
  • Patrick Wilson – drums
Additional musicians
  • Mykel Allan – spoken intermission on "Undone – The Sweater Song"
  • Karl Koch – dialogue, piano outro on "Undone – The Sweater Song"
  • Jason Cropper – guitar, backing vocals on "Jamie"
Production
  • Ric Ocasek – producer
  • Chris Shaw – engineer
  • Hal Belknap – assistant engineer
  • Peter Gowland, Peter Orth — photographer
  • Karl Koch — designer
  • Todd Sullivan — A&R
  • George Marino — mastering

    Charts

Album

Singles