Tuesday Tribute: Ween

Welcome to a new segment on my blog: Tuesday Tribute. The purpose of this segment is to praise a band that has been around for a while that you may or may not know. I will give some background and perspective on the band and then go digging through Youtube and see what gems I can come up with. If you have any tribute suggestions, please feel free to place a comment in the comment section or contact me another way.

For the first official Tuesday Tribute, I would like to venerate the only band that makes me feel like more of a nerd when I talk about them than Phish does: Ween. Formed in 1984 by Gene Ween and Dean Ween (Aaron Freeman and Mickey Melchiondo respectively), Ween has remained at the top of the college rock scene since the release of their 1992 breakout album Pure Guava which contained the single "Push th' Little Daisies." Lying somewhere between Weird Al Yankovic and Pearl Jam, it is tough to categorize Ween's music, but it is very clear that Ween fans "get it." Often obscene and retarded in their humor, Ween's music has the ability to shift from incredibly zany lyrics and vocals one song, to a more poignant, indie rock tune the next song. Seeing Ween merely for their humor, many overlook the unbelievable musicians that make up the band. Sure, there are the often ridiculous tones of lead singer Gener, but Deaner ranks up there with today's best and most experimental guitar players. There is a reason why these two are supported by rhythm guitar master Dave Dreiwitz and Glenn McClellan. Also rounding out the lineup is drummer Claude Coleman Jr. who unfortunately suffered a devastating car crash in 2002 which hospitalized him for 35 days and erased many of his basic motor skills. Luckily, after years of rehabilitation, Coleman is back with the band and better than ever. Ween has been covered by many of of today's top bands including (you guessed it), Phish. If you ever have the opportunity to see Ween, it may be one of the weirder experiences you ever have, but if nothing else, it will definitely make you smile.

The first video is of Ween performing "Exactly Where I'm At" on the Late Show with David Letterman. From 2000's White Pepper, this track is a bit more deep than some of their whackier well-known tunes, but features some great distorted guitar work from Deaner towards the end.



Grab a pint, because the next song is Ween's popular Irish drinking song "The Blarney Stone." Known to be a popular encore, this tune's graphic lyrics and accordion keyboard-effects make the Ween crowd go nuts and sway in happiness. This particular take is off of Ween's "Live in Chicago" DVD.



The next tune, "Transdermal Celebration" was featured on the 2003 album Quebec. This video was filmed live at this year's Outside Lands Festival in San Fransisco which took place just a few weeks ago. While Gener looks a bit out of shape, his weird stage presence and unique voice still hold strong.



Lastly, I bring you what was perhaps Ween's greatest hit: "Roses Are Free." Off of 1994's Chocolate & Cheese, it's dark chord progression is masked beautifully by the weird keyboard effects and zany vocals. My favorite line still lies in the third verse with, "Throw a pumpkin at the tree, unless you think that pumpkin holds your destiny." This version was performed live at the 2000 Bizarre Festival



http://ween.com/