'Weird Al' gets original at CFA

After a night of deep cuts and non-singles, “Weird Al” Yankovic gave the Center for the Arts a taste of what makes him so weird.

When Yankovic’s band opened its stripped-down version of “Eat It,” the audience didn’t make too much noise. But once Yankovic opened his mouth and sang the lyrics of his ‘80s parody classic, they erupted.

“Eat It” quickly transitioned into “I Lost at Jeopardy,” which became “Amish Paradise.” Yankovic quickly sped through seven of his most popular parody tracks, switching up genres from coffee house to lounge jazz, surprising members of the crowd every step of the way. During “White and Nerdy,” Yankovic used a wooden fish, and during “Like a Surgeon,” the parody singer walked around stage for the only time Tuesday night and showed off his falsetto.

Other than the medley, Yankovic rarely touched his parodies during his “Ill-Advised Vanity Tour” Tuesday night, advertised as an originals-only tour from one of comedy’s most prominent musicians. Yankovic sat on a stool the whole night and played with a four-piece band including a keyboardist, bassist, guitarist and drummer, while throwing in a bit of his own accordion talent.

“Weird Al” opened the show with “Craigslist,” a 2011 track he used to “take it back to 1967.” The track was stylistically similar to The Doors, and featured flower-like ‘60s lights. Yankovic twirled his head around and made Jim Morrison-esque faces and grunts.

“I’ll Sue Ya” was another well-received track from Tuesday night, and gave fans a taste of Al’s 2006 project “Straight Outta Lynwood.” Still, audience members bumped their heads to Al’s desire to sue massive corporations, Ben Affleck and even the state of Colorado.

Yankovic followed the track with an account of a meeting with Cathy Moriarty, star of 1980 film “Raging Bull.” A nine-month-early performance of “Christmas at Ground Zero” followed story-time. Red and green lights illuminated the stage as fans cheered at the unconventionally placed holiday parody.

At one point, Yankovic advised the audience they were in for something special and announced a spontaneous drum solo. The comedian’s backing drummer played a five-second solo and caused some of the night’s loudest laughter.

During “You Don’t Love Me Anymore,” the singer kept pretending to use a tambourine. Audience members cheered each time he picked it up and put it down out of indecisiveness.

“Weird Al” wasn’t the night’s only comedian. Opener Emo Philips won the audience over with his witty and comical one-liners.

Philips, who starred alongside Yankovic in 1989 film “UHF,” kept the crowd laughing with slow-paced breathy stand-up routine.

The highlight of his set came when Philips said he and Yankovic talked about Philips opening for Yankovic in the ‘80s. Yankovic said he’d agree to have Philips as an opening act when “Donald Trump is elected President,” according to Philips.

Brenton Blanchet is the senior arts editor and can be reached at Brenton.Blanchet@ubspectrum.com.

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