Maggie Vaughn/ Shepherd Express
I want you to picture a young boy, in the 3rd or 4th grade. It is the mid 1990’s. He is sitting on the floor with a VHS tape of “Weird Al” Yankovic music videos, and he is losing his mind. At one point during the “Fat” video, he rolls uncontrollably with piggish laughter. I was that clueless young boy, and this 4th of July I was able to see my childhood hero perform live at Summerfest.
If you missed last week's column, to say that I was full on amped for the show is an understatement.
I arrived at Summerfest a few hours early, determined to not become annoyed. I wandered around the grounds, disdainful of the majority of the other people there. As I walked past the rocks where the Goth kids used to sit a young idiot said, “Here ya go, dad,” and tried to put a balloon hat on my head. Now this is totally unrelated, but I don’t look like a dad, and I found the accusation obnoxious and hurtful… not hurtful enough that I cried, but still.
This kid was a microcosm of my social nightmare, but I was willing to deal with the obnoxious crowd to see “Weird Al” Yankovic, a performer who I have adored for decades.
As the concert started and the projections began, everything that had been frustrating me melted away. I was 9 years old again, listening to “Off the Deep End”, and everything was fun. Yankovic, his band, and his road crew put on the absolute best show that I have ever seen.
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From the beginning to the end, the thought that must have gone into this spectacle is astounding. The set-list bounced back and fourth between new songs and classics. Between most of the songs, there was video that either contained Al-TV segments or sections of popular television shows and movies in which Yankovic has appeared.
Not only is Yankovic’s show fantastic, but his audience is perhaps the widest, and most diverse audience I have ever seen. It was a pleasure to see so many people, from so many walks of life all enjoying the show. “Weird Al” Yankovic is a pleasure to see live, and I hope to see him again.
If I could leave my life behind and tour with him like a Dead Head, I totally would.
