Weird Paul
Thunderbird Cafe
Monday October 11, 2010
Larryville
Criminally, I have only seen
Weird Paul perform
once. He does have the distinction to be the very first musician I ever photographed with my SLR camera, so he has that going for him. He has been a constant music presence in the city for many years and has a solo spot tomorrow supporting
Joe Jack Talcum of
The Dead Milkmen fame. I am really excited that he took the time to participate in this special Sunday edition of
First/Last.
The first album you ever bought?
The first album I remember buying was “Weird Al” Yankovic's "Dare to be
Stupid" when I was 14. That was the first music that really
"spoke" to me, made me want to write songs. I'd always wanted to be a
comedian but couldn't figure out how to go about it. I think “Weird Al” showed
me the way. I listened to very little "popular" music before I was
13, other than my parents' Beatles records (and they didn't own anything from
Rubber Soul on!)
Your last album bought?
About a week ago, I bought "The Marx Brothers: The Original Voice Tracks
from Their Greatest Movies". I think I first starting watching the Marx
Brothers when I was around 9. They were always on TV. I watched a lot of Abbott
and Costello, Laurel
& Hardy, Jerry Lewis & Dean Martin and Bob Hope. But the Marx
Brothers were my favorite, because their humor was so fast paced and absurd. My
favorite parts were when there'd be total chaos on the screen. Definitely a
huge influence on me.
Favorite album of all time?
Having to think about this, I realized I don't really still listen to a lot of
music that I used to listen to all the time. But the albums that I used to
constantly listen to over and over and that I could still listen to now would
be the first Devo album and the first Ramones album. I would actually go as far
as to say I learned to play the guitar to that Ramones' album, I was already
playing guitar before I got it, but once I bought it, I would play along to the
whole thing every day. I'm self-taught and that was my "practice".
Least favorite/most disappointing album?
The one that immediately comes to mind is "Total Devo". That came out
in 1988 and I had everything they put out up to then and loved it all. I was so
psyched to get that, got it the week it came out. There wasn't a single song on
there that I liked. I tried to like it, because I wanted to and after all, I'd
bought it. But it wasn't the same kind of music as before. There was very
little that was interesting about it! I just got their new album
"Something for Everyone", most of which is very enjoyable and fun to
listen to.
First concert attended?
My dad took me to see “Weird Al” Yankovic in 1985. It was the Dare to Be Stupid
Tour and I had a front row seat. It was the only concert I attended up until
1988 when I saw Henry Rollins and then a few months later, The Ramones. After
that, I started seeing lots of stuff, as I started performing myself.
Last concert?
The last concert that I went to (where I was not performing) was a few weeks
ago when I saw Shonen Knife at the 31st
Street Pub. I was really excited because they've
been one of my favorite bands for over 20 years and I never had the chance to
see them before. I didn't think I would ever see them live actually, so it was
really special. Made me feel like a teenager again.
Favorite concert ever?
I would have to go with Mark Mallman. I opened for him twice, amazing performer
and fantastic songwriter. He's actually attempting a world's record this very
weekend, playing an original composition live that lasts for 78 hours!
Least favorite concert?
I try to find something to enjoy about every band I see. Sometimes it's not
easy! I think the worst thing I ever saw was Jane's Addiction in 1988. They
were opening for The Ramones and I had never heard of them. I thought they were
awful. The audience hated them too, especially when they started a grueling
cover of "L.A. Woman". They actually got booed off the stage. I have
never liked anything I've heard from that band.
Favorite thoughts, experiences about Pittsburgh?
I've been performing here for 22 years now. I've seen a lot of bands come and
go, some of which I wish I could have seen more of. I think my favorite times
were around 1990 and 2001. So many great bands playing all the time, great bands
coming to Pittsburgh
to play. Now it seems a lot of national touring acts skip Pittsburgh, which is understandable. I've
never felt really "in" with the Pittsburgh
scene, I've felt like an outsider most of the time. But I've been called an
"outsider artist", so I guess that makes sense. I just keep doing
what I do, I'm not really interested in what is "cool" right now!
Thanks WP. That
Mark Mallman marathon is so interesting. Also, let me be honest in saying please keep doing your thing your way. In fact, what you do trancends 'cool'.
