Ranking Internet Leaks

[HappyGilmore]

I really do think all of the Internet Leaks originals are four of Al's best originals ever, so this is tough to judge. A song does NOT have to have "jokes" in the traditional sense in order to be a funny/enjoyable song, and I really do not get all the people saying this or that song doesn't have jokes in it. I think all five of the Internet Leaks are really funny songs, whether or not there are lyrical puns. I generally appreciate Weird Al songs mostly for their overall joke, ie the style parody and how the song's lyrics relates to the original. It's now been a year so I think I can judge them now as additions to Al's catalogue rather than new material excitement.

1. Craigslist - The top three are all basically tied for first place, but this is on top because of the bonus live action video which does manage to take the style parody one step further. I had the chance to tell Al a week or two after this song came out how genius it was to pair The Doors music with the modern strangeness that is Craigslist. I think this song works lyrically the same way Germs captured NIN's paranoia. This is easily the best song musically on Internet Leaks, and I think the lyrics are funny throughout the song.

2. CNR - I admit to being biased as a White Stripes fan, but man did Al nail their style. Jon and Jim really pulled this off and they're much more successful here than they were with Green Day. Additionally, Charles Nelson-Reilly is someone I was already familiar with for years as I grew up watching Match Game reruns with my parents. The idea to use CNR (a nickname I was also aware of years before this song) as a man of mythic proportions is inspired, and not just because as some people say "he's the opposite of Chuck Norris." I think you just have to be familiar with CNR over many episodes of Match Game to fully appreciate where Al was going with it. Additionally, the music just really rocks.

3. Skipper Dan - I don't care if this is supposedly a Weezer style parody. I really consider it a straight original, though I do hear little bits that sound like Island In The Sun and Pork & Beans. More importantly, this idea that the song is somehow not funny or lacking in jokes: WTF is wrong with you guys? Since when does comedy require a list of funny jokes back to back? Why can't the overall concept of a song be what's funny about it? The funniest Weird Al songs to me are the ones where you take a step back and realize what the whole song is about, and that itself is funnier than any individual joke in the lyrics. This song fits that category. I do think the lyrics have funny moments anyway (the grandfather line sticks out). Downside: video is very unmemorable.

4. Ringtone - Like Amerah I wish this was higher than 4th, but the other songs really are better. This is the only song of the five where I agree the lyrical content is somewhat lacking. But musically, Al and the band really did a number on Queen's style. Also, it's the only one of the five that features Rubén which is a big plus. Finally, Ringtone gets bonus points for being the first Weird Al music video to feature a sitting US president since Christmas At Ground Zero.

5. Whatever You Like - This is definitely the worst of the five, but I think the song is vastly underrated by everyone here and I'm going to attempt to defend it somewhat. First of all, T.I. was a good (not great) choice as far as universal appeal artist. I don't know anyone who was unfamiliar with this song at the time it came out. As for the people who say it's mostly food-based humor, I think you're kind of missing the point. Compare the lyrics of the original to the parody and it's more or less a line by line parody. The overall concept is as well-conceived as it is timely, and most of the individual jokes are successful. Cold Duck on ice instead of Patron on ice epitomizes the song's concept for me. The narrator is a rapper with the mind of T.I. but without the money. It follows the idea that rappers always brag about how rich they are and this song specifically has T.I. talking about how well he would treat his woman and she can have whatever she like. In the Al version, he is essentially doing a style parody of that whole style of rap based on these tough economic times. That's why he kept the same song title: it's basically the exact same song except the singer is now broke. I think it is above average in the annals of Weird Al parody, but far from his best. If this is the worst song on the next album, it will be a tremendous album.

I agree with basically everything you said, especially on the Skipper Dan and Whatever You Like parts. What you said about Whatever You Like is what I was trying to convey. It is a vastly underrated parody. Only disagreements I have mainly have to do with Craigslist. I don't hate it, I just don't like it as much as Whatever You Like, CNR or Skipper Dan.