King Of Suede:"Weird Al" Yankovic

Artist: "Weird Al" Yankovic

Album: In 3-D

Appears On (Mixes): Robert DeNiro's Mole: The Best Of "Weird Al" Yankovic

Song Notes: One of the things I love about "Weird Al" Yankovic's records is that sometimes the parodies are not only better than the original, but better-SOUNDING than the original. The Police's original just sounds so flat and empty to me, while this one is a lot more lush sounding. I also think that Al actually does a better job than [{Sting]] about capturing the actual sadness of the song than the original does -- the original's a bit too over-the-top and angsty and almost to the point of self-parody (I mean, for reals, "King of Pain"?! Come ON.  Go back to your room to listen to your Dio records with a cape made from a towel already...), where "Weird Al" Yankovic's song is much more subtle -- at first blush, it's just a funny song about a guy who runs a clothing store, but if you actually listen to the lyrics, the King Of Suede is actually a really tragic, lonely character. It's a really, really cool song and I've always adored this one. Give it another chance if it hasn't really clicked for you. - Rev. Syung Myung Me