Running with Scissors (album)

In June 1997, Yankovic entered the studio to begin the first of the Running with Scissors sessions, which Yankovic produced himself. Recording with Yankovic were Jon "Bermuda" Schwartz on drums, Steve Jay on bass, and Jim West on guitar.{{cite AV media notes |title=Running with Scissors |others="Weird Al" Yankovic |year=1999 |type=CD liner notes |publisher=Volcano Entertainment |id=61422 32118-2}} The album was recorded in six sessions. The first session started on June 29, 1997, in which Yankovic recorded the theme song to his television show, The Weird Al Show. The second session, which occurred on October 7, 1998, produced the original song "Germs", and eight days later, on October 15, Yankovic started the third session and recorded three more originals, "Albuquerque", "My Baby's in Love with Eddie Vedder", and "Truck Drivin' Song". The next day, the fourth session resulted in the song "Your Horoscope for Today". On April 19 of the following year, Yankovic recorded four parodies during the fifth session, "Pretty Fly for a Rabbi", "Jerry Springer", "It's All About the Pentiums", and "Grapefruit Diet". The album's sixth and final session occurred on April 20, and resulted in "The Saga Begins", and the album's polka medley, "Polka Power!"{{cite web |url=http://weirdal.com/archives/miscellaneous/recording-dates/ |title=Recording Dates |access-date=June 26, 2010 |last=Yankovic |first=Alfred M. |author-link="Weird Al" Yankovic |date=December 2007 |work=The Official "Weird Al" Yankovic Web Site}}

File:Trent Reznor Lollapalooza 1991.jpg' sound.]]

The album includes "The Weird Al Show Theme", which is the theme song to Yankovic's short-lived television series. "Germs" is a style parody of industrial rock band Nine Inch Nails that tells of the narrator's germophobia. "Your Horoscope for Today" is a style parody of third wave ska, which features Reel Big Fish members Tavis Werts on trumpet and Dan Regan on trombone, and has lyrics about ridiculous horoscopes. Yankovic attributes the lyrics' inspiration to the satirical newspaper The Onion, and similar comedic horoscopes performed by Gary Owens.{{cite news |title=Set List: 'Weird Al' Yankovic |first=Nathan |last=Rabin |author-link=Nathan Rabin |url=https://www.avclub.com/weird-al-yankovic-1798226810 |newspaper=The A.V. Club |publisher=The Onion, Inc |location=Chicago |date=June 29, 2011 |access-date=June 29, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110701100237/http://www.avclub.com/articles/weird-al-yankovic,58244/ |archive-date=July 1, 2011 |url-status=live |df=mdy}}{{cite video | url = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N199QWMqauA | title = Does Weird Al Know His Lyrics From His Biggest Songs? | date = June 23, 2025 | accessdate = June 23, 2025 | publisher = Variety | via = YouTube }} After Ophiuchus was touted by some papers as the "13th zodiac sign", Yankovic released new lyrics on his Twitter for the sign.{{cite web |last=Yankovic |first=Alfred M. |url=https://twitter.com/alyankovic/status/25949204199247872 |title=Ophiuchus |publisher=Twitter |access-date=May 6, 2013 |date=January 14, 2011}} In January 2023 an animated music video was released for the song to promote The Illustrated Al graphic novel.{{cite web |last1=Yankovic |first1=Alfred M. |title="Weird Al" Yankovic {{en dash}} Your Horoscope for Today (Official Music Video) |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sPvyrWYutDQ |publisher=YouTube |access-date=January 23, 2023 |date=January 19, 2023}}{{cite magazine |last1=Brathwaite |first1=Lester Fabian |title='Weird Al' Yankovic songs get animated in graphic novel The Illustrated Al: Watch new music video |url=https://ew.com/music/weird-al-yankovic-graphic-novel-the-illustrated-al-music-video/ |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |access-date=January 23, 2023 |date=January 19, 2023}}

"Albuquerque", an eleven-minute "hard-driving rock narrative", is a style parody of the Rugburns, particularly the song "Dick's Automotive", and tells the fictional life of Yankovic and his various adventures in the town of Albuquerque, New Mexico.{{cite web |last=Yankovic |first=Alfred M. |title='Ask Al' Q&As for June 28, 2006 |url=http://weirdal.com/archives/miscellaneous/ask-al/#062806 |access-date=May 2, 2013 |work=The Official "Weird Al" Yankovic Web Site |date=June 28, 2006}} Yankovic originally wrote the song to "annoy people for 12 minutes". He felt that it would be an "odyssey" for fans to successfully sit through it, and so it was placed at the album's end. Instead, to Yankovic's surprise, the song has become a fan favorite. "My Baby's in Love with Eddie Vedder" is a style parody of zydeco about a man's frustration that his girlfriend is obsessed with Eddie Vedder, the lead singer for the grunge band Pearl Jam.{{Cite web |title=The Album |publisher=thepentiums.com |date=November 28, 1999 |url=http://www.thepentiums.com/album.html |access-date=January 1, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20000304194101/http://www.thepentiums.com/album.html |archive-date=March 4, 2000}} "Truck Drivin' Song", a detailed account of a truck driver working while simultaneously worrying about their clothing and makeup, is a style parody of truck-driving country. While writing the song, Yankovic listened to C.W. McCall for inspiration.

The first parody recorded for the album was "Pretty Fly for a Rabbi", a parody of the Offspring's 1998 single "Pretty Fly (For a White Guy)", about a hip rabbi." In order to accurately write the song, Yankovic consulted several of his Jewish friends as well as several English-to-Yiddish dictionaries. The song's opening line – "Veren zol fun dir a blintsa" – is a Yiddish curse that roughly means "May you turn into a blintz."{{cite web |url=http://weirdal.com/archives/miscellaneous/ask-al/#0999 |title='Ask Al' Q&As for September, 1999 |access-date=June 27, 2010 |last=Yankovic |first=Alfred M. |author-link="Weird Al" Yankovic |date=September 1999 |work=The Official "Weird Al" Yankovic Web Site}} Originally, Yankovic had wanted voice actress Mary Kay Bergman to sing the song as her South Park character Sheila Broflovski. However, due to legal restrictions, she was only able to say a few lines in the finished product. Yankovic then approached actress Fran Drescher to lend her voice to the song, but this was also unsuccessful. Finally, Yankovic was able to get actress Tress MacNeille – who had been featured in his 1983 parody "Ricky" – to appear in the song.{{cite web |url=http://weirdal.com/archives/miscellaneous/ask-al/#0899 |title='Ask Al' Q&As for August, 1999 |access-date=June 27, 2010 |last=Yankovic |first=Alfred M. |author-link="Weird Al" Yankovic |date=August 1999 |work=The Official "Weird Al" Yankovic Web Site}}

File:Yankovic-TheSagaBegins.jpg"]]

The second parody recorded for the album was "Jerry Springer", a parody of Barenaked Ladies 1998 hit "One Week". The song is about The Jerry Springer Show, hosted by the eponymous Jerry Springer. In preparation for the song, Yankovic watched "a couple shows" until he understood the "basic formula" for how the episodes unfolded.{{cite web |url=http://weirdal.com/archives/miscellaneous/ask-al/#1099 |title='Ask Al' Q&As for October, 1999 |access-date=June 27, 2010 |last=Yankovic |first=Alfred M. |author-link="Weird Al" Yankovic |date=October 1999 |work=The Official "Weird Al" Yankovic Web Site}} Originally, there were plans to shoot a video, and Springer was asked if he wanted to be in it. Springer was initially interested, but after hearing the song, he declined because he believed it was too "negative" towards his show. The third parody recorded for the album was "It's All About the Pentiums", a parody of the rock remix of the track "It's All About the Benjamins" by Sean "Puff Daddy" Combs. Yankovic spoke to Combs personally on the phone to make sure that the parody would not emulate the 1996 Coolio incident.{{Cite web |title=Behind the Scenes |publisher=thepentiums.com |date=November 28, 1999 |url=http://www.thepentiums.com/behind.html |access-date=January 1, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20000229042458/http://www.thepentiums.com/behind.html |archive-date=February 29, 2000}} Due to time constraints, Yankovic was forced to write the song a few days before the entire album was slated to be mastered, as Yankovic had still been waiting for Combs' approval. By the time Combs responded to him, Yankovic was recording the last session for the album. To give him time to write the lyrics, Yankovic's band recorded the music first. Yankovic noted that "we were mixing the last few songs on the album by the time I finished writing the lyrics to 'Pentiums', and I wound up recording the lead vocals just a couple days before the album had to be mastered."{{cite web |url=http://weirdal.com/archives/miscellaneous/ask-al/#111505 |title='Ask Al' Q&As for August, 1999 |access-date=November 15, 2005 |last=Yankovic |first=Alfred M. |author-link="Weird Al" Yankovic |date=November 15, 2005 |work=The Official "Weird Al" Yankovic Web Site}} The fourth parody recorded for the album was "Grapefruit Diet", a pastiche of "Zoot Suit Riot" by the Cherry Poppin' Daddies about an obese man going on such a diet. The song's writer, Steve Perry, called the opportunity to be parodied "an honor" but noted that "Why Weird Al is such an icon is a mystery to me though".{{cite web |last=Junior |first=Chris |title=Back in the Flow |url=http://www.medleyville.us/2008/06/back_in_the_flow.html |publisher=Medleyville |access-date=May 5, 2013 |date=June 9, 2008 |archive-date=January 10, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220110204052/https://medleyville.us/2008/06/back_in_the_flow.html |url-status=dead }}

The final parody recorded for the album was "The Saga Begins", which recounts the plot of Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace from the point of view of Obi-Wan Kenobi to the tune of the 1971 single "American Pie" by Don McLean. Yankovic, who often bases his albums around significant moments in pop culture, felt that the album should have a song centered on the release of The Phantom Menace. Yankovic first considered writing his parody of "Pretty Fly (For a White Guy)" about the film and calling it "Pretty Fly for a Jedi", but he quickly dismissed this idea; he wanted to parody a classic song to commemorate how important the new movie was considered.{{cite web |last=vanHorn |first=Teri |title='Weird Al' Yankovic Throws 'Pie' At New 'Star Wars' Film On New LP |url=http://www.vh1.com/artists/news/515506/06251999/yankovic_weird_al.jhtml |work=VH1 |publisher=Viacom |access-date=May 5, 2013 |date=June 25, 1999 |url-status=unfit |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120205004933/http://www.vh1.com/artists/news/515506/06251999/yankovic_weird_al.jhtml |archive-date=February 5, 2012}} Yankovic then chose to write a parody of "American Pie" about the film. Because Yankovic wanted the song to be topical, he began writing the lyrics in December 1998, many months before the film was released, gleaning all of the information about the movie's plot entirely from Internet spoilers. The song was completed two months before The Phantom Menace was released to theaters; Yankovic had approached Lucasfilm about the prospect of an advanced screening to ensure that his lyrics were accurate, but the company declined. However, Yankovic later went to a charity screening, whose tickets cost US$500 each. As a result, Yankovic only had to change one line; "He's probably gonna marry her someday" was originally "I hear he's gonna marry her someday". A video which Yankovic later jokingly dubbed "Star Wars Unplugged" was filmed for the song, after The Phantom Menace premiered in theaters.{{cite web |title=Interview with 'Weird Al' Yankovic – Parody Artist and Star Wars Super-Fan |url=http://www.theforce.net/jedicouncil/interview/weirdal.asp |publisher=TheForce.net |access-date=May 4, 2013}}

Much like Yankovic's previous albums, Running with Scissors features a polka medley of then-current hit songs called "Polka Power!". The song was later released as a promotional single in Germany, where Yankovic's recording label felt a polka song might have more success.{{cite web |title=Polka Power! |url=http://www.weirdal.com/rare79.htm|work=The Official "Weird Al" Yankovic Web Site |access-date=May 5, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120214062117/http://www.weirdal.com/rare79.htm |archive-date=February 14, 2012}} This was the second time that one of Yankovic's polka medleys was released as a single; in 1985, Scotti Brothers Records released "Hooked on Polkas", from the album Dare to Be Stupid, in Japan.{{cite web |title=Hooked On Polkas |url=http://www.weirdal.com/rare8.htm |work=The Official "Weird Al" Yankovic Web Site |access-date=May 5, 2013 |archive-date=June 20, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090620053231/http://www.weirdal.com/rare8.htm |url-status=dead}}

For nearly 20 years, Yankovic had been known for his hairdo, glasses, and moustache. However, in early 1998, Yankovic grew out his hair, shaved his moustache and underwent LASIK eye surgery to correct his vision, thus making glasses no longer necessary. As such, Running with Scissors was his first album to feature his new look.{{cite news |last=Anderson |first=Jamie |title=Yankovic Has A New Look But He's Still Weird Al |url=https://www.orlandosentinel.com/1999/11/12/yankovic-has-a-new-look-but-hes-still-weird-al/ |newspaper=Orlando Sentinel |publisher=Tribune Company |access-date=May 8, 2013 |date=November 12, 1999}} On the cover, he is shown running on the track at Santa Monica City College, holding a pair of scissors in each hand—a literal depiction of the album's title. The CD booklet contains the complete lyrics to all but one of the album's songs; due to the length of the closing song "Albuquerque", not all of its lyrics fit on the final page of the booklet. Instead of continuing with the "Albuquerque" lyrics, the end of the booklet breaks off mid-sentence and concludes with an apology from Yankovic, in which he states that there was no way he could have fit the rest of the song's lyrics on the existing booklet and that he "should have used a smaller font or a bigger piece of paper or something"; the reproduced lyrics correspond to less than 30 seconds of the song's 11-minute runtime. Yankovic later released the complete lyrics on the "Ask Al" feature on his website,{{cite web |url=http://weirdal.com/archives/miscellaneous/ask-al/#0400 |title='Ask Al' Q&As for April, 2000 |access-date=June 27, 2010 |last=Yankovic |first=Alfred M. |author-link="Weird Al" Yankovic |date=April 1999 |work=The Official "Weird Al" Yankovic Web Site}} and had them printed in Weird Al: The Book (2012).{{cite book |title=Weird Al: The Book |last1=Rabin |first1=Nathan |last2=Yankovic |first2=Al |date=October 2012 |author-link1=Nathan Rabin |author-link2="Weird Al" Yankovic |publisher=Abrams Books |location=New York City |pages=166–167 |isbn=978-1419704352}}

Running with Scissors is also the first of "Weird Al" Yankovic's albums to feature multimedia content. After placing the CD in a CD-ROM drive, one can browse through the files and play a QuickTime movie file containing fourteen minutes of footage from the Disney Channel concert special "Weird Al" Yankovic: (There's No) Going Home.{{cite AV media |people="Weird Al" Yankovic |title=Running with Scissors |medium=Enhanced CD |publisher=Volcano Entertainment |year=1999 |location=Los Angeles, California |id=61422 32118-2}}

Following the release of Running with Scissors, Yankovic undertook a two-year-long tour called "Touring with Scissors".{{cite web |title=Set Lists |url=http://weirdal.com/archives/miscellaneous/set-lists/ |work=The Official "Weird Al" Yankovic Web Site |access-date=February 11, 2015}} Starting on July 19, 1999, Yankovic played over 200 shows across the United States and Canada.{{cite web |title='Weird Al' Yankovic: Tour with Scissors |url=http://www.weirdal.com/rwstour.htm |work=The Official "Weird Al" Yankovic Web Site |access-date=May 8, 2013 |archive-date=October 4, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131004220344/http://www.weirdal.com/rwstour.htm |url-status=dead }} A live video recording of one of the shows, called "Weird Al" Yankovic Live! was released later in the year.{{cite AV media notes |title="Weird Al" Yankovic Live! |title-link="Weird Al" Yankovic Live! |others="Weird Al" Yankovic |year=1999 |type=DVD/VHS |publisher=Volcano Entertainment}} To promote the album, two promotional websites were launched for the singles "It's All About the Pentiums" and "The Saga Begins": "thepentiums.com" and "sagabegins.com", respectively. Each site featured the respective song's music video, as well as additional information, such as behind-the-scenes notes and lyrics.{{cite web |title=Weird Al 'It's All About the Pentiums' Official Video Site |url=http://www.thepentiums.com/index.html |publisher=thepentiums.com |access-date=May 8, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20000229121518/http://www.thepentiums.com/index.html |archive-date=February 29, 2000 |year=1999}}

{{Music ratings

|rev1 = AllMusic

|rev1score = {{Rating|2.5|5}}{{Cite web |url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/running-with-scissors-mw0000240924/awards|last=Huey|first=Steve|access-date=May 3, 2013|title=Running with Scissors|publisher=Rovi|work=Allmusic}}

|rev2 = Entertainment Weekly

|rev2score = B{{cite magazine |url=http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,272456,00.html |author=J.D. Considine |author-link=J.D. Considine |title=Running with Scissors Review |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |date=June 23, 1999 |access-date=April 1, 2012 |archive-date=June 16, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120616080154/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,272456,00.html |url-status=dead}}

|rev3 = Richmond Times-Dispatch

|rev3score = B+{{cite news |last=Ruggieri |first=Melissa |title=Weird Al's Sharp Wit Shines on 'Scissors' |url=http://docs.newsbank.com.www2.lib.ku.edu:2048/openurl?ctx_ver=z39.88-2004&rft_id=info:sid/iw.newsbank.com:NewsBank:RTDB&rft_val_format=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:ctx&rft_dat=0ED7BA94232A1154&svc_dat=InfoWeb:aggregated5&req_dat=0F8479522BD09CA1 |newspaper=Richmond Times-Dispatch |publisher=Berkshire Hathaway |access-date=May 9, 2013 |date=August 19, 1999}} {{subscription required}}

| rev4 = Pitchfork

| rev4Score = 7.2/10{{cite web |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/weird-al-yankovic-squeeze-box-the-complete-works-of-weird-al-yankovic/ |title="Weird Al" Yankovic - Squeeze Box: The Complete Works of "Weird Al" Yankovic |publisher=Pitchfork Media |access-date=December 7, 2017 |last=Thomas Erlewine |first=Stephen |date=7 December 2017 |author-link=Stephen Thomas Erlewine}}

|rev5 = Anchorage Daily News

|rev5score = positive

|rev6 = San Antonio Express-News

|rev6score = {{Rating|1.5|5}}

|rev7 = Rolling Stone

|rev7score = {{Rating|3.5|5}}{{cite book |last1=Brackett |first1=Nathan |last2=Hoard |first2=Christian |author-link1=Nathan Brackett |author-link2=Christian Hoard |title=The Rolling Stone Album Guide |publisher=Simon & Schuster |year=2004 |location=New York City, New York |page=893 |isbn=0-7432-0169-8 |url=https://archive.org/details/newrollingstonea00brac/page/n906 |url-access=registration}}

}}

The album was met with mostly positive reviews from critics. J.D. Considine of Entertainment Weekly gave the album a "B" rating and felt that, while many comedians are unable to translate jokes onto CD, "Yankovic's jokes are eminently listenable." He concluded that "compared with most comedy recordings these days, Running with Scissors is a cut above." Melissa Ruggieri of the Richmond Times-Dispatch graded the album a "B+", writing, "Now on his 10th album, the weird and wacky Al tackles gems such as Don McLean's 'American Pie', The Offspring's 'Pretty Fly (For a White Guy)' and Barenaked Ladies' 'One Week'. Most of the results are priceless." Warren Rhodes of the Anchorage Daily News named the album the fifth best release of 1999, writing that, "Leaving his long-time label [Scotti Brothers] has inspired the parody king; even his originals are pretty good this time." He also wrote that "the intellect's still there, and his wide-ranging chameleon band has no equal."{{cite news |last=Rhodes |first=Warren |title=Best of 1999 |url=http://docs.newsbank.com.www2.lib.ku.edu:2048/openurl?ctx_ver=z39.88-2004&rft_id=info:sid/iw.newsbank.com:NewsBank:ADNB&rft_val_format=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:ctx&rft_dat=0EAFE8FDD080F352&svc_dat=InfoWeb:aggregated5&req_dat=0F8479522BD09CA1 |newspaper=Anchorage Daily News |publisher=The McClatchy Company |access-date=May 9, 2013 |date=December 31, 1999}} {{subscription required}} In The Rolling Stone Album Guide, Running with Scissors was given 3.5 stars out of 5, which denoted that the album averaged between good and excellent. The book wrote that Yankovic's "nasal whine has never been put to more appropriate use than [on] 'Pretty Fly for a Rabbi'."

Not all reviews were positive. Steve Huey of AllMusic gave the album two and a half stars out of five and called it "a mixed bag". Huey felt that both "The Saga Begins" and "Jerry Springer" were clever parodies, whereas "Pretty Fly for a Rabbi" and "It's All About the Pentiums" were not "quite up to his usual standards." Robert Johnson of the San Antonio Express-News was critical of the album, giving it one-and-a-half stars, noting that "in his haste to stay up to the minute, [Yankovic] forgot to make ['The Saga Begins'] funny." He wrote that the album "features recycled ideas (fat jokes, alt-rock hits redone as polkas), tunes that sound better than they play ('Pretty Fly for a Rabbi') and weirdness for its own sake (the 11-minute 'Albuquerque')."{{cite web |last=Johnson |first=Robert |title=QuickSpins |url=http://docs.newsbank.com.www2.lib.ku.edu:2048/openurl?ctx_ver=z39.88-2004&rft_id=info:sid/iw.newsbank.com:NewsBank:SANB&rft_val_format=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:ctx&rft_dat=0EAFE8C94B705753&svc_dat=InfoWeb:aggregated5&req_dat=0F8479522BD09CA1 |work=San Antonio Express-News |publisher=Hearst Corporation |access-date=May 15, 2013 |date=July 14, 1999}}

Running with Scissors was released on June 29, 1999. The album entered the Billboard 200 chart at number 35 on July 17, and went up to its peak position of 16 the following week.{{cite magazine |title=Billboard 200 |magazine=Billboard |date=July 17, 1999 |volume=111 |issue=29 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kAgEAAAAMBAJ&q=weird%20al%20billboard%20july%201999&pg=PA114 |page=114 |access-date=May 3, 2013}}{{cite magazine |title=Billboard 200 |magazine=Billboard |date=July 24, 1999 |volume=111 |issue=30 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kggEAAAAMBAJ&q=weird%20al%20running%20with%20scissors%20billboard&pg=PA90 |page=90 |access-date=May 3, 2013}} The album also charted on the Top Internet Albums, a first for Yankovic, entering at number 7, and eventually peaking at number 3.{{cite magazine |title=Top Internet Album Sales |magazine=Billboard |date=July 24, 1999 |volume=111 |issue=30 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kggEAAAAMBAJ&q=weird%20al%20running%20with%20scissors%20billboard&pg=PA66 |page=66 |access-date=May 3, 2013}}{{cite magazine |title=Top Internet Album Sales |magazine=Billboard |date=July 31, 1999 |volume=111 |issue=31 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lQgEAAAAMBAJ&q=weird%20al%20running%20with%20scissors%20billboard%20top%20internet&pg=PA80 |page=80 |access-date=May 3, 2013}} The album was consecutively certified both Gold and Platinum by Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for shipments of over 1,000,000 copies in the United States.{{Cite web |title=Gold & Platinum – Search Results: "Weird Al" Yankovic |publisher=Recording Industry Association of America |url=http://riaa.com/goldandplatinumdata.php?resultpage=1&table=SEARCH_RESULTS&action=&title=&artist=%22Weird%20Al%22%20Yankovic&format=&debutLP=&category=&sex=&releaseDate=&requestNo=&type=&level=&label=&company=&certificationDate=&awardDescription=&catalogNo=&aSex=&rec_id=&charField=&gold=&platinum=&multiPlat=&level2=&certDate=&album=&id=&after=&before=&startMonth=1&endMonth=1&startYear=1958&endYear=2009&sort=Artist&perPage=25 |access-date=June 26, 2010}} {{As of|2014}}, sales in the United States have exceeded 1,182,000 copies, according to Nielsen SoundScan.{{cite web |url=http://thecomicscomic.com/2014/05/19/comedy-wins-none-of-the-2014-billboard-music-awards-but-all-of-the-focus-of-this-weeks-magazine-issue/ |title=Comedy Wins None of the 2014 Billboard Music Awards But All of the Focus of this Week's Magazine Issue |last=McCarthy |first=Sean |date=May 19, 2014 |access-date=August 31, 2017 |work=The Comic's Comic}}

In late 2013, Yankovic sued his label, Volcano, and its parent company Sony for unpaid publishing royalties from several of his albums and singles, including Running with Scissors. Yankovic claimed that{{emdash}}despite the album's success{{emdash}}he never earned royalties from the record. The initial lawsuit was for $5 million; Yankovic won the lawsuit and was awarded an undisclosed sum of money from Sony.{{cite web |last=Eakin |first=Marah |title='Weird Al' Yankovic Just Cashed in on a Major Lawsuit Against His Record Label |url=http://www.avclub.com/article/weird-al-just-cashed-in-on-a-major-lawsuit-against-106595 |website=The A.V. Club |publisher=The Onion |access-date=January 13, 2017 |date=December 18, 2013}}

{{Track listing

| collapsed =

| extra_column = Parody of

| title_width = 25%

| writing_width = 45%

| extra_width = 30%

| title1 = The Saga Begins

| writer1 = Donald McLean III, Alfred Yankovic

| extra1 = "American Pie" by Don McLean

| length1 = 5:27

| title2 = My Baby's in Love with Eddie Vedder

| writer2 = Yankovic

| extra2 = Style parody of the Zydeco genre{{cite web |url=http://weirdal.com/archives/miscellaneous/ask-al/#0198 |title='Ask Al' Q&As for January/February, 1998 |access-date=June 30, 2010 |last=Yankovic |first=Alfred M. |author-link="Weird Al" Yankovic |date=February 1998 |work=The Official "Weird Al" Yankovic Web Site}}

| length2 = 3:25

| title3 = Pretty Fly for a Rabbi

| writer3 = Bryan Holland, Yankovic

| extra3 = "Pretty Fly (for a White Guy)" by the Offspring

| length3 = 3:02

| title4 = The Weird Al Show Theme

| writer4 = Yankovic

| extra4 = Original

| length4 = 1:14

| title5 = Jerry Springer

| writer5 = Ed Robertson, Yankovic

| extra5 = "One Week" by Barenaked Ladies

| length5 = 2:46

| title6 = Germs

| writer6 = Yankovic

| extra6 = Style parody of Nine Inch Nails{{cite web |url=http://weirdal.com/archives/miscellaneous/ask-al/#0100 |title='Ask Al' Q&As for January, 2000 |access-date=June 30, 2010 |last=Yankovic |first=Alfred M. |author-link="Weird Al" Yankovic |date=January 2000 |work=The Official "Weird Al" Yankovic Web Site}}

| length6 = 4:38

| title7 = Polka Power!

| writer7 = Various

| extra7 = {{Collapsible list|title=A polka medley including:|titlestyle=font-weight:normal;background:transparent;text-align:left|

• "Wannabe" by the Spice Girls
• "Flagpole Sitta" by Harvey Danger
• "Ghetto Supastar (That Is What You Are)" by Pras, Ol' Dirty Bastard and Mýa
• "Everybody (Backstreet's Back)" by the Backstreet Boys
• "Walkin' on the Sun" by Smash Mouth
• "Intergalactic" by the Beastie Boys
• "Tubthumping" by Chumbawamba
• "Ray of Light" by Madonna
• "Push" by Matchbox Twenty
• "Semi-Charmed Life" by Third Eye Blind
• "The Dope Show" by Marilyn Manson
• "MMMBop" by Hanson
• "Sex and Candy" by Marcy Playground
• "Closing Time" by Semisonic
• "W.A.Y. Moby Polka" by "Weird Al" Yankovic}}

| length7 = 4:20

| title8 = Your Horoscope for Today

| writer8 = Yankovic

| extra8 = Style parody of Reel Big Fish and other 1990s third-wave ska{{cite web |last=Yankovic |first=Alfred M. |title='Ask Al' Q&As for February, 2000 |url=http://weirdal.com/archives/miscellaneous/ask-al/#0200 |access-date=May 2, 2013 |work=The Official "Weird Al" Yankovic Web Site |date=February 2000}}

| length8 = 4:00

| title9 = It's All About the Pentiums

| writer9 = Sean Combs, Sean Jacobs, Jason Phillips, David Styles, Christopher Wallace, Kimberly Jones, Deric Angelettie, Yankovic

| extra9 = "It's All About the Benjamins" (Rock Remix) by Puff Daddy

| length9 = 3:34

| title10 = Truck Drivin' Song

| writer10 = Yankovic

| extra10 = Style parody of truck-driving country{{cite web |url=http://weirdal.com/archives/miscellaneous/ask-al/#0899 |title='Ask Al' Q&As for August, 1999 |access-date=June 30, 2010 |last=Yankovic |first=Alfred M. |author-link="Weird Al" Yankovic |date=August 1999 |work=The Official "Weird Al" Yankovic Web Site}}

| length10 = 2:27

| title11 = Grapefruit Diet

| writer11 = Stephen Perry, Yankovic

| extra11 = "Zoot Suit Riot" by Cherry Poppin' Daddies

| length11 = 3:30

| title12 = Albuquerque

| writer12 = Yankovic

| extra12 = Style parody of the Rugburns, George Thorogood, and Mojo Nixon{{cite web|url=https://www.avclub.com/weird-al-yankovic-1798226810|access-date=May 9, 2024|title='Weird Al' Yankovic|work=The A. V. Club|date=June 29, 2011}}{{cite web |last=Yankovic |first=Alfred M. |title='Ask Al' Q&As for June 28, 2006 |url=http://weirdal.com/archives/miscellaneous/ask-al/#062806 |access-date=May 2, 2013 |work=The Official "Weird Al" Yankovic Web Site |date=June 28, 2006}}

| length12 = 11:22

| total_length = 49:44

}}

Credits adapted from CD liner notes, except where noted.

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Band members

• "Weird Al" Yankovic – lead and background vocals, keyboards, accordion
• Jim West – guitars, banjo, background vocals
• Steve Jay – bass guitar, background vocals
• Jon "Bermuda" Schwartz – drums, percussion, background vocals

Additional musicians

• Rubén Valtierra – keyboards (tracks 1, 4, 5, 11)
• Kim Bullard – keyboards (track 6)
• Warren Luening – trumpet (tracks 4, 7)
• Joel Peskin – clarinet (tracks 3, 7)
• Thomas "Snake" Johnson – tuba (track 7)
• Bill Reichenbach Jr. – trombone (track 4)
• Lee Thornburg¹{{cite web |url=https://www.weirdal.com/archives/miscellaneous/players/ |title=Players |website="Weird Al" Yankovic |access-date=January 22, 2023}} – trumpet, trombone (tracks 8, 11)
• Tavis Werts – trumpet (track 8)
• Dan Regan – trombone (track 8)
• Tom Evans – saxophone (tracks 8, 11)
• Marty Rifkin – pedal steel guitar (track 10)
• Tom Sauber – fiddle (track 2)
• Pat Sauber – banjo (track 10)
• Mary Kay Bergman – female vocal (track 3)
• Tress MacNeille – female vocal (tracks 3, 5)

Technical

• "Weird Al" Yankovic – producer
• Tony Papa – engineer, mixing (tracks 1–3, 5–12)
• Richie Wise – engineer, mixing (track 4)
• Jeff Moses – assistant engineer
• Fredrik Sarhagen – assistant engineer
• Bernie Grundman – mastering

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NOTES

• ¹Misspelled as "Thornberg" in liner notes.

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Works cited

• {{cite book|last=Rabin|first=Nathan|title=Weird Al: The Book|publisher=Abrams Image|isbn=9781419704352|author2=Yankovic, Alfred M. |date=September 25, 2012}}

{{"Weird Al" Yankovic}}

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Category:"Weird Al" Yankovic albums

Category:1999 albums

Category:Volcano Entertainment albums