The Weezerful Wonders of "The Blue Album"

“My Name is Jonas”

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The first song on Weezer’s self-titled album, “My Name is Jonas”, is about the lead singer Rivers Cuomo’s brother who got into a car accident. As well as the themes of the car accident, the song includes themes of childhood nostalgia. This song features great transitions between beautiful acoustics and heavy power chords. With Rivers’s beautiful vocals, “My Name is Jonas” was the perfect way to start this one of a kind album. I give this song four out of five stars.

“No One Else”

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 “No One Else” is the satire story of a character who is overprotective and jealous of his girlfriend. With lyrics like “if you see her tell her it's over” and “I want a girl who will laugh for no one else”, this song really shows the insecurities that people can have when it comes to relationships. Although this song sounds very upbeat and happy, the lyrics really prove otherwise. I give this song five out of five stars. 

“The World Has Turned and Left Me Here” 

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The third song on Weezer’s “blue album” is one of my favorites from the album, “The World Has Turned and Left Me Here.” This song goes hand in hand with the story from the previous song, “No One Else”. In this song, the overprotective character ends up getting his heart broken by the woman he was so in love with. The character is distraught and really doesn’t know what to do with himself. Some lyrics like “I talked for hours to your wallet photograph, and you just listened” as well as “and in your place, an empty space has filled the void behind my face” help to describe the self destruction that can come from jealousy. I give this song  five out of five stars.

“Buddy Holly” 

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One of the most popular songs on the album, “Buddy Holly” is a very upbeat and energizing song. Including many pop culture references and the iconic Weezerful riff, “Buddy Holly” holds a spot on Rolling Stone’s top 500 songs of all time. Rivers Cuomo originally didn’t want this song to be on the album at all, but Weezer’s producer, Ric Ocasek, convinced him otherwise. This song took the world by storm, and “Buddy Holly” is now a song that almost everyone recognizes. I give this song four out of five stars.

“Undone - The Sweater Song” 

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Weezer’s first ever single, “Undone - The Sweater Song” also appears as the fifth song on Weezer’s “self-titled album”. In my opinion, this song is probably one of the most original songs on the album, with spoken conversation during the opening and in between the first and second verse. Inspired by the Velvet Underground, this song is another one of Weezer’s most recognizable melodies. This song talks about detachment and “coming undone” when trying to leave a situation. While this song has very deep and sad lyrics, the beautiful instrumentals and vocals really show why this song became as popular as it is. I give this song four out of five stars.

“Surf Wax America” 

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A very underrated song on the album, “Surf Wax America” tells the story of a surfer just having fun at the beach with his friends. Taking much inspiration from the Beach Boys, this song has a punk rock spin on it with a mix of mystery at certain parts. Personally, this is one of my favorites on the album, as it has a really fun and upbeat vibe that's really fun to sing along to. The instrumentals are perfect, the lyrics are fun, and it's overall just a very underrated song on the album. I give this song four out of five stars.

“Say It Ain’t So” 

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The seventh song on Weezer’s self titled album, “Say It Ain’t So”, is another recognizable tune that most people have heard at least once. This song deals with very heavy topics of alcoholism that Rivers Cuomo witnessed his father and step-father taking part in at a young age. According to Cuomo, “When I was 16, I opened up the refrigerator and I saw a can of beer. All of a sudden I made the connection that my step-father was leaving…because my father started drinking when he left my mother.” Drummer of Weezer, Pat Wilson, says the song has many influences from the Red Hot Chilli Peppers. A very catchy yet emotional song, “Say It Ain’t So” is a Weezer fan favorite. I give this song four out of five stars.

“In the Garage” 

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“In the Garage” tells the story of a garage filled with posters, comic book characters, and board games that houses a young loner. This garage provides great comfort for the character, shown in lyrics such as “In the garage I feel safe, no one cares about my ways”. The inspiration behind this song actually came from the garage that Weezer used for early rehearsals and recordings in Los Angeles. This song is probably my current favorite off of the album, as it is a really fun song to listen to and I can relate to it in more ways than one. I give this song five out of five stars.

“Holiday” 

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Another song inspired by the Beach Boys, “Holiday” tells the story of a character sporadically deciding to go on vacation and leave everything behind. Lyrics like “don’t bother to pack your bags” and “not knowing where we’re gonna stay” help to capture the rushed and spontaneous nature of the events taking place. “Holiday” was written shortly after Weezer got their first record deal, and the excitement and energy behind this event is very apparent in the song with its upbeat energy and positive vibes. I give this song five out of five stars.

"Only in Dreams"

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The longest Weezer song ever recorded, “Only in Dreams” is another Weezer fan favorite. At over eight minutes long, this song is incredibly unique with very energetic parts to very quiet and calmer parts. With it’s beautiful buildup to the iconic guitar solo, this song is a very commonly skipped over song because of its length. However, listening to the whole song really does take the listener on a journey. Another very underrated song on the album, listening to the whole thing is really an adventure. I give this song four out of five stars.

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