Hungry for some laughs?

Weird Al Yankovic is notorious for doing parodies of popular songs during the zeitgeist in which they were recorded. In 1993, he released a collective of many of his popular food-based parodies, and Food was the most praised of his compilation albums. The following songs have contributed to that praise.

The album starts with a Michael Jackson parody Fat, borrowing heavily from MJ’s hit single Bad. The related video opens with Weird Al getting harassed by a group of fat gangsters. The song has a good beat and vocal performance. This introduction gives a successful overview of the overall vibe of the album focusing on kitschy pop anthems turned on their heads with food based quips. 

The next track, Lasagna is a parody of Ritchie Valens’ La Bamba. It opens with stereotypical ethnic music before opening with Weird Al’s ridiculous vocal performance. The song features a fantastic accordion solo as well as acoustic performance. It is an overall good track. 

Weird Al has shown on this album that he is afraid to switch genres, throwing back to the ‘80s with Addicted To Spud, a parody of Robert Palmer’s Addicted to Love It features a nice ‘80s vibe but deals with the main character’s addiction to potatoes. 

The vibe of this cut is followed by I Love Rocky Road, a parody to We Love Rock and Roll, originally performed by Joan Jett & the Blackhearts. Weird Al once again returns to the accordion shredding. 

My least favorite song was Spam, a parody of R.E.M.’s hit Stand. The rhythm was decent but I found the guitar solo rather too wacky even for my taste. 

The track that follows Spam is easily my favorite off this compilation. Going back to Michael Jackson, Eat It is a hilarious spoof of MJ’s Beat It. The track is all about forcing someone to eat their food and features the classic beat to the song.

The White Stuff is a complete abuse of You Got (The Right Stuff) by New Kids on the Block. Weird Al’s version is a ballad about Oreo addiction and its self-destructive sugary effects. This is easily the most polka-oriented song with accordion and acoustic melodies throughout. 

Taco Grande is the second to last song on the compilation. Weird Al tears down Mexican food on this album and any dignity left in Rico Suave, Gerardo’s original song. The heavy Latin tone sets the mood, and Weird Al’s deep voice screeched to a yip, it caught me off guard and admittedly made me burst into laughter. 

We wrap up this album up with Rye of the Kaiser, which takes the theme from Rocky, Eye of the Tiger by Survivor and tears it down to make a song about bread with other quips about ordering food and throwing away his gloves and eggs. 

I’ll admit, I have never been a huge Weird Al fan, but researching views from hardcore fans, this is easily the best start to getting into his music. The Food album stands the test of time with songs that managed to get a chuckle out of me.