The five-time Grammy winner performed the first of two shows at Wolf Trap on his biggest tour ever
“Weird Al” Yankovic slinked his way through the backstage area at Wolf Trap in Vienna, VA on Sunday (July 20th), his figure cutting larger than life as his journey was projected on the screen at the back of the stage.
Yankovic has expanded his band for this tour, adding a horn section and a few other players for this Bigger and Weirder Tour. This trek marks the return of Yankovic’s well-known live elements: The costume changes, the video interludes, and his greatest hits. Yankovic’s last tour was pared down to small venues and focused on album cuts and rarities, marketed mainly to his die-hard fans, with only a medley of tentpole tunes at the end.
Those costume changes included a fat suit (“Fat”), Beard and hat (“Amish Paradise”); and he even used a Segway (“White and Nerdy”). These elements bring Yankovic’s culturally-present music videos for his parodies to the stage in spectacularly entertaining fashion.
Not just a parody artist, Yankovic is known for writing original songs, such as the “Captain Underpants Theme Song. But usually his originals spoof a type of musical genre. “Dare to Be Stupid,” for instance, is a DEVO and Duran Duran-flavored 80s techno-pop-rock tune about embracing the silly goof-ups in life. Live, the latter was performed while Yankovic and crew were in yellow rubber jumpsuits and pyramid hats
“Smells Like Nirvana” saw Yankovic, dressed in a Kurt Cobain wig and 90s T-shirt-over-Henley, nearly lose it when he spit out water and took the song to the floor. It had the whole crowd rolling.
And of course, we can’t forget the polkas! Perhaps the world’s most famous accordion player, Yankovic’s polkas have become the stuff of musical legend. Each time a new one comes out, fans wait with baited breath to see which top 40 songs get a send-up.
Last year’s “Polkamania!” took a prominent spot as the third number of the night. Like a handful of other numbers in the show, this song was timed perfectly to the music video behind it, showing everyone from Billie Eilish to Ed Sheeran. The effect was the surreal mash-up of Al’s live voice coming from airbrushed pop stars in an accordion-tinged tribute. It was perfect.
About midway through, Yankovic did what we here at TMU call “Pulling a Reba.” That is, like our favorite redheaded queen of country does so often at her shows, Yankovic ran through some of his earliest major hits in a massive medley. Present were “Eat It,” “I Love Rocky Road,” and the Madonna-endorsed “Like a Surgeon” among many others. Through it all, there were rapid changes from a suit and tie, to the “Thriller” jacket, to a surgeon’s cap and many more.
I’ll stop here to acknowledge the show is as much a feat on stage as it is off. Yankovic’s whole band often joined in the costumed and choreographed fun. This includes jumping slightly after a fat-suited Yankovic lands on his feet, creating the illusion of a ripple from the character’s weight lifting the band off the ground. It was a subtle but hilarious addition.
This is to say nothing of the crew, making those quick changes and video packages roll seamlessly. This has to be a tight production by its nature, and that’s a credit to the people you never see. But one, Al’s body man, gets in on the fun. If he’s needed on stage or in the crowd to assist Yankovic, he’s dressed for the theme of the song. (And yes, I want his “One More Minute” letterman jacket.)
All Yankovic’s parodies are artist-approved. Getting the green light from his peers is a cornerstone of Yankovic’s four-decade-plus longevity as a recording artist. All entertainment industries need a court jester, and everyone from Michael Jackson to Don McLean loves being in on the joke. If they’re not cool with it, he scraps the idea.
Another thing Yankovic avoids: Politics. None of his parodies touch high-powered officials or world events. This conscious decision keeps Yankovic above the fray, and drives no one away from his music based solely on ideology. It’s clear from Yankovic’s ever-growing pop culture relevance that this big-tent policy has paid off. The closest he comes to touching the federal government is his take on a Miley Cyrus hit, which he calls “Party in the CIA.” But even then, he’s parodying himself as a character trying to get into the elite agency, not anything in the news.
He also aims at movies. The show ended with Yankovic in Resistance garb to offer a Star Wars double-header. An “American Pie” parody called “The Saga Begins” (which the aforementioned McLean has said often gets stuck in his head when performing the original live.) He closed with the fan-favorite “Yoda,” featuring Storm Troopers anchoring the Jedi Master of comedy music.
This tour may be Bigger and Weirder, but so too is Al. Some 12 or so years ago, I saw Yankovic at a small theater in Stroudsburg. Earlier last month, he sold out Madison Square Garden for his first-ever headline show at the NYC juggernaut. Far from being past his prime, love for “Weird Al” Yankovic is only growing. It seems being White and Nerdy has staying power.
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