Deep Purple’s “Anyone’s Daughter” from Fireball always made me snicker.
Pearl Jam often performs unusual covers or cover snippets in concert, such as “Everyday People” or “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun”.
The Who had a few funny songs, like “Boris the Spider” and “Now I’m a Farmer”.
Emerson Lake and Palmer had a few funny tunes including Benny the Bouncer.
I once saw Sebadoh play in Hammersmith, with Country Teaser and someone else I can’t remember as support.
For the final encore everyone came onstage and played a version of The Stone Roses’ “I Wanna Be Adored” that must have gone on for about 15 minutes. Half way through the Country Teaser singer started signing The Smith’s “Heaven Knows I’m Miserable Now” in a Morrisey voice whilst doing an impression of Ian Curtis’ (Joy Division) dancing.
Definitely the funniest thing I have seen on stage. The fact that HKIMN worked over the music to IWBA still confuses me to this day.
Speaking of The Smiths, I’d say “Girlfriend in a Coma” and “Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others” meet the criteria of the OP.
You could go on forever on this subject, but a few favorites, from bands who’re typically much more earnest:
Aztec Camera, “Jump”: yes, the Van Halen number. Done as a mostly acoustic, downtempo ballad.
Translator, “Ronnie Raygun Blues”. A throwaway, but funny nonetheless, particularly from a band that usually didn’t feature witty or clever lyrics. Favorite line: “I like the way his neck skin wiggles when he chews”.
Faith No More. Listen to the Epic album. There’s some really funny stuff on there. And they used to throw New Kids on the Block’s The Right Stuff into their song We Care a Lot in concert.
Faith No More also does, both live and on an EP, A perfectly straight version of Lionel Ritchie’s dentist office classic “Easy”, complete with a blown line from the original. All the funnier for being so straight faced!
I’d like to take issue with this statement in the OP. When has Weird Al ever been anything other than embarrassingly lame?
It’s not quite the same as a funny song, but Chris Isaak has an hour long comedy show now, that my fiance and I watch religiously (cause it’s just about the best show we’ve ever seen). Chris appears to be a born comedian; his drummer, Kenny Wayne Sheppard, is also hysterical. In one episode, VH1 was going to do a “Behind the Scenes” with Chris; watching Chris ham it up for them was great; “I don’t do drugs, except marijuana and heroin. But I don’t consider those drugs, 'cause they’re nature’s flowers.” Said dead straight.
Also, “Lincoln Park Pirates.” I have fond childhood memories of Bill Stammer (close friend of the family) performing that one for us during family parties. Then he’d do “Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.”
Steve Goodman: we lost him too soon. He wrote the final verse of “You Never Even Call Me…” to contain every element of a perfect country song. Of course you know this if you’ve heard David Allen Coe sing it, because he tells the story.
I was drunk the day my momma got out of prison
So I went to pick her up in the rain
But before I could get to the station in my pickup truck
She got run over by a damned old train…
I always loved the song “Hook” by Blues Traveller.
The song is beautiful, kind of sappy-love song sounding for a little while. Then comes the hook of the song…It sounds like it’s a love song, but it’s about how artists only have to have a catchy hook in order to sell albums. I tried explaining this to my friends, and they looked at me like I was nuts. (They all thought it was a love song.)
I think that the various funkutations of George Clinton, The Reverend Horton Heat, the Butthole Surfers, and Devo are all more-or-less humor acts, though they are all grossly misunderstood by some.
There used to be some hilarious punk bands. D.O.A. and The Meatmen could make a grown man cry with laughter live, and Fear was supposedly financially backed by John Belushi.
There is a Satanic ska band called… Mephiskapheles.
Huh, I just posted this in another thread, but it’s more appropriate here. I’ve only got two albums by The Cardigans, so I don’t know if it’s a running gag, but the two I have have light-jazz covers of “Sabbath Bloody Sabbath” and “Iron Man.” “Iron Man” in particular is absolutely hilarious.
And since they’re known for being goofy, I guess they don’t count, but: the one Barenaked Ladies concert I’ve been to was funnier than most of the comedy shows I’ve seen. They segued from one 80’s song to another, my favorite being when one of the guys broke into “The Method of Modern Love” by Hall & Oates, apparently surprising everyone else in the band.
Anyone familiar with Duncan Sheik? I saw him at his first stop for his “Phantom Moon” tour this year and he closed the show with AC/DC’s “She Shook Me All Night Long”. It was pretty good, too!
DarkRabbit
Saw Warren Zevon perform “What’s New Pussycat” in concert. Quite a bold move on his part. He also recorded an excellent version of Prince’s “Raspberry Beret” with a few members of REM.
With titles like ‘They Ain’t Makin’ Jews LiKe Jesus Anymore’, ‘Get your Biscuits in the Oven and Your Buns in the Bed’ ‘Mama, Baby, Mama Let Me Jump in Your Pajamas’ and more Kinky Friedman has to be one of the funniest singer/songwriters around.
Anyone ever heard the “Modern Lovers” with Jonathan Richman(?)
Somewhere I have a couple of ML LPs. “Rockin’ Leprechauns,” anyone?
RR
OK, y’all are missing the point of the OP:
Laibach (the Slovenian industrial band) did a cover of the Beatles’ Let It Be. Not just the song…the whole album…“Dig It” and all!
Megadeth did speed metal versions of Rod Stewart’s “I Ain’t Superstitious” and Nnacy Sinatra’s “These Boots are Made for Walking”…complete with Dave Mustaine growling…“Are you ready boots? Start walking!”.
And who can forget Sid Vicious’“My Way”…