# Does 'Weird Al' Have Mental Issues? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 10, 2015, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-weird-al-have-mental-issues/730500 "2015-09-10T04:24:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2015, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-weird-al-have-mental-issues/730500/61 "2015-09-13T03:30:10Z")
I rewatched Al’s “Bob” video: ["Weird Al" Yankovic - Bob - YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JUQDzj6R3p4) Then I decided to watch Bob Dylan’s “Subterranean Homesick Blues” video: [- YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=67u2fmYz7S4) And holy crap if that doesn’t appear to be exactly the same Jewish(?) guy in the background. ---
**Author:** ![Cabin\_Fever\_1](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cabin_fever_1/32/2908_2.png) [@Cabin\_Fever\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cabin_Fever_1)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2015, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-weird-al-have-mental-issues/730500/62 "2015-09-13T03:39:30Z")
Thanks to the OP and all other posters in this thread, I have been immersed in Weird Al’s videos on YouTube for the past two hours. I’m going back for more, so I don’t know whether to cuss or thank you all as it is past my bedtime. 😛 At least it is keeping me off the streets. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2015, 3:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-weird-al-have-mental-issues/730500/63 "2015-09-13T03:54:02Z")
> [@Mister\_Rik](#): > > I rewatched Al’s “Bob” video: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JUQDzj6R3p4](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JUQDzj6R3p4) > > Then I decided to watch Bob Dylan’s “Subterranean Homesick Blues” video: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=67u2fmYz7S4](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=67u2fmYz7S4) > > And holy crap if that doesn’t appear to be exactly the same Jewish(?) guy in the background. No, the two guys in Dylan’s video were beat poet Allen Ginsberg and songwriter Bob Neuwirth. The guys in Al’s video were his drummer Bermuda Schwartz and his manager Jay Levey in a parody of the guys in Dylan’s video. ---
**Author:** ![Urbanredneck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ea5d25/32.png) [@Urbanredneck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Urbanredneck)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2015, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-weird-al-have-mental-issues/730500/64 "2015-09-13T04:48:28Z")
I’ve heard many artisits find it quite a compliment when Weird Al does one of their songs. Take for example the rap artist Krayzie Bone who’s song “Ridin” was the setup for “White and Nerdy”. What I would like to see someday is Weird Al doing a side by side singing one of his parodies with the original artist. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2015, 11:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-weird-al-have-mental-issues/730500/65 "2015-09-14T11:24:46Z")
Mister Rik, Yeah, there’s some darkness and twistedness in Weird Al’s songs, but it’s not nearly as much as in Tom Lehrer’s. Have you listened to very much of Lehrer’s songs? Search Youtube for them. Weird Al has songs that are just fun. Lehrer has little of that. ---
**Author:** ![choie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/choie/32/7829_2.png) [@choie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/choie)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2015, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-weird-al-have-mental-issues/730500/66 "2015-09-14T14:37:31Z")
> [@Wendell\_Wagner](#): > > Mister Rik, > > Yeah, there’s some darkness and twistedness in Weird Al’s songs, but it’s not nearly as much as in Tom Lehrer’s. Have you listened to very much of Lehrer’s songs? Search Youtube for them. Weird Al has songs that are just fun. Lehrer has little of that. Just to refresh your memory, you’re the only one who compared Weird Al to Tom Lehrer– **running coach** , whom you quoted when you brought Lehrer up, simply said there are dark/twisted elements to Weird Al’s songs. And, clearly, there are, as you just said. So… why are you defending Tom Lehrer, and to whom? ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2015, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-weird-al-have-mental-issues/730500/67 "2015-09-14T14:40:49Z")
> [@Wendell\_Wagner](#): > > Mister Rik, > > Yeah, there’s some darkness and twistedness in Weird Al’s songs, but it’s not nearly as much as in Tom Lehrer’s. Have you listened to very much of Lehrer’s songs? Search Youtube for them. Weird Al has songs that are just fun. Lehrer has little of that. [And guess what?!](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=768380) ---
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2015, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-weird-al-have-mental-issues/730500/68 "2015-09-15T02:05:48Z")
> [@Urbanredneck](#): > > I’ve heard many artisits find it quite a compliment when Weird Al does one of their songs. Take for example the rap artist Krayzie Bone who’s song “Ridin” was the setup for “White and Nerdy”. ??? Did Chamillionaire change his name to “Krayzie Bone”? > [@Wendell\_Wagner](#): > > Mister Rik, > > Yeah, there’s some darkness and twistedness in Weird Al’s songs, but it’s not nearly as much as in Tom Lehrer’s. Have you listened to very much of Lehrer’s songs? Search Youtube for them. Weird Al has songs that are just fun. Lehrer has little of that. I’ve listened to almost everything Lehrer recorded, and I’ve seen him on PBS, hosting shows and making “current” commentary (granted, in the 1990s). Both Al and Tom are brilliant. Your mistake in comparing the two, Mr. Wagner, is that Tom Lehrer is a satirist, whilst Al Yankovic is a parodist. Two different, but sometimes overlapping, things. ---
**Author:** ![Defensive\_Indifference](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/defensive_indifference/32/6502_2.png) [@Defensive\_Indifference](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Defensive_Indifference)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2015, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-weird-al-have-mental-issues/730500/69 "2015-09-15T02:35:45Z")
> [@Urbanredneck](#): > > I’ve heard many artisits find it quite a compliment when Weird Al does one of their songs. Take for example the rap artist Krayzie Bone who’s song “Ridin” was the setup for “White and Nerdy”. > > What I would like to see someday is Weird Al doing a side by side singing one of his parodies with the original artist. I was just enjoying some Weird Al on YouTube and I learned that one of the reasons “Craigslist” was such a great Doors spoof is that the keyboardist on the track was… Freakin’ Ray Manzarek. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/Ra5x88C0yQY/maxresdefault.jpg "Ray Manzarek plays "Weird Al" Yankovic's "Craigslist"") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ra5x88C0yQY) Too cool. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2015, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-weird-al-have-mental-issues/730500/70 "2015-09-15T02:45:39Z")
> [@Bayard](#): > > I was just enjoying some Weird Al on YouTube and I learned that one of the reasons “Craigslist” was such a great Doors spoof is that the keyboardist on the track was… Freakin’ Ray Manzarek. > > [http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Ra5x88C0yQY](http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Ra5x88C0yQY) > > Too cool. Mark Knopfler played guitar in _Money For Nothing/Beverley Hillbillies_ Dweezil Zappa played the opening riff in _Genius In France_ ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2015, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-weird-al-have-mental-issues/730500/71 "2015-09-15T02:52:09Z")
If Al has mental issues all I can say is I wish more performers had the same problems. He gives a good show and doesn’t want to disappoint his fans. When his parents died he performed up until the funeral was set, because he said as long as he was working he wasn’t crying. ---
**Author:** ![Defensive\_Indifference](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/defensive_indifference/32/6502_2.png) [@Defensive\_Indifference](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Defensive_Indifference)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2015, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-weird-al-have-mental-issues/730500/72 "2015-09-15T03:03:45Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > Mark Knopfler played guitar in _Money For Nothing/Beverley Hillbillies_ > Dweezil Zappa played the opening riff in _Genius In France_ That’s awesome. Here’s an interview with him ( [http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=p0qEoKX9Zts](http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=p0qEoKX9Zts)) where he talks about how most artists are fine with his parodies because it’s all in good fun, and he’s not making fun of the artists themselves. That link, by the way, is part one of three (each part is short). All three parts are worth watching if you’re a fan. He seems pretty normal in those clips. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2015, 11:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-weird-al-have-mental-issues/730500/73 "2015-09-15T11:02:13Z")
Mister Rik writes: \> . . . Tom Lehrer is a satirist, whilst Al Yankovic is a parodist . . . Um . . . um . . . this is a rather fine distinction you’re making. I suppose one could say this. In any case, I find Lehrer’s songs darker and more twisted than Yankovic’s. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2015, 12:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-weird-al-have-mental-issues/730500/74 "2015-09-15T12:44:46Z")
> [@Urbanredneck](#): > > I’ve heard many artisits find it quite a compliment when Weird Al does one of their songs. That would be something of an understatement; it’s considered a badge of honor in the industry. Nirvana, famously, loved Weird Al and adored “Smells Like Nirvana” with all their hearts and thought the video was better than their own. Cobain described Yankovic as a genius. “Like A Surgeon” was actually Madonna’s idea, the only known example of Weird Al getting a parody idea from the original artist. In the case of “Fat,” Michael Jackson made sure Yankovic’s crew knew exactly where to film the video to ensure it looked just like the original. Perhaps most famously, Don McLean claims that when he’s perming American Pie, the lyrics to Weird Al’s parody “The Saga Begins” will start filling up his brain and he has to deliberately avoid singing that version. Stories of artists being delighted by Weird Al’s parodies could fill a thread. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2015, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-weird-al-have-mental-issues/730500/75 "2015-09-15T13:16:49Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > Stories of artists being delighted by Weird Al’s parodies could fill a thread. The members of the band Imagine Dragons (_Radioactive_, parodied as _Inactive_), grew up as fans of Al and have childhood pictures of themselves meeting Al. ---
**Author:** ![Elemenopy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b5e925/32.png) [@Elemenopy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elemenopy)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2015, 4:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-weird-al-have-mental-issues/730500/76 "2015-09-16T04:39:14Z")
I think that he is the best kind of insane. He’s the Alexander Pope for Gen X’ers. And I’m still mildly embarrassed for kind of liking him, but so it went for Pope. Also, he was really cute when he got a normal haircut circa 2000. Also also, UHF is one of my favorite stupid movies. ---
**Author:** ![ITR\_champion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c67d28/32.png) [@ITR\_champion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ITR_champion)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2015, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-weird-al-have-mental-issues/730500/77 "2015-09-18T04:13:58Z")
I’m chiming in with those who say that Weird Al is not mentally ill, and is in fact one of the few mentally healthy people in the music industry. As evidence, his music: [ul] [li]Does not glorify murder, rape, or other violence.[/li][li]Does not celebrate or trivialize drug use.[/li][li]Does not wallow in sex.[/li][li]Displays extraordinary talent and creative energy.[/li][/ul] Weird Al himself: [ul] [li]Has never been arrested.[/li][li]Has not ruined his life with drugs or alcohol.[/li][li]Has stayed married to the same woman, and successfully raised a child.[/li][li]Has not gone bankrupt.[/li][/ul] How many other top musicians can say all that? ---
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2015, 7:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-weird-al-have-mental-issues/730500/78 "2015-09-18T07:43:36Z")
> [@ITR\_champion](#): > > Weird Al himself: > [ul] > [li]Has never been arrested.[/li][li]Has not ruined his life with drugs or alcohol.[/li][li]Has stayed married to the same woman, and successfully raised a child.[/li][li]Has not gone bankrupt.[/li][/ul] > How many other top musicians can say all that? Well … I can say he’s not alone. How about the boys in Rush? Alex Lifeson has been arrested once, after coming to the aid of his son who was being brutally arrested. When Alex was 50 years old. But, other than that … Alex likes to smoke weed, but has never exhibited any symptoms of a drug problem (nor have his bandmates). Alex is 62, and has been with the same woman since he and she were 15 years old. Bankrupt? C’mon - RUSH! They’re printing money these days. And, yeah I started this thread. But there are reasons I’ve been a fan of both Yankovic and Rush for all of these decades. ---
**Author:** ![Moriarty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moriarty/32/49_2.png) [@Moriarty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moriarty)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2015, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-weird-al-have-mental-issues/730500/79 "2015-09-18T20:05:49Z")
Count me among Weird Al’s admirers. He’s incredibly talented and doesn’t seem at all messed up. But… > [@bump](#): > > I’m sure people ask if Stephen King is mentally messed up all the time, and again, he seems relatively sane to me. He just writes some really twisted stories. Being able to imagine some twisted or off the wall stuff doesn’t at all translate into “having mental problems”. This amused me. Stephen King has battled severe alcohol and cocaine [addiction](http://www.addictioninfo.org/articles/4245/1/Stephen-King-overcame-alcohol-and-drug-addiction/Page1.html), and doesn’t even remember writing some of his most famous books. He does have [mental problems](http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-1178151/Stephen-Kings-Real-Horror-Story-How-novelists-addiction-drink-drugs-nearly-killed-him.html) (not that there is anything wrong with that). ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2015, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-weird-al-have-mental-issues/730500/80 "2015-09-18T20:22:01Z")
> [@Mister\_Rik](#): > > Well … I can say he’s not alone. How about the boys in Rush? Alex Lifeson has been arrested once, after coming to the aid of his son who was being brutally arrested. . I wasn’t there when Alex was arrested, but when I heard the incident took place in Florida, I wasn’t surprised. I have NO inside knowledge at all, but when I hear that an athlete or celeb was busted in a bar or club, I always figure it’ll turn out to have been in Texas or Florida. See, cops in Sun Belt cities don’t get paid all that well, and many moonlight as security in bars or nightclubs. Hence, a LOT of men have gone to nightclubs in Texas or Florida, gotten into a shoving match with a guy they thought was just a bouncer, and ended up face-down on the floor, cuffed, tazed or billy clubbed repeatedly. and under arrest for “assaulting a police officer.” My guess is, Alex’s kid was a little too drunk, mouthed off to a bouncer who was really an off-duty cop, and got roughed up excessively. Alex stepped in to get the bouncer off his son, and got arrested himself, for his troubles. That kind of thing used to happen to Mets players in Houston all the time, when I was a kid. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-weird-al-have-mental-issues/730500.md?page=3)