Weezer B-Sides & Rarities

Burning Sun is a demo, listed in the Catalog of Riffs as having been written in 2000, as entry #258 (placing it sometime after O Girlfriend, and immediately prior to Knock-Down Drag-Out, for context). The song was unheard by fans until an .mp3 file titled “las_dos.mp3” was released onto Riverscuomo.com. The file contained an incomplete recording of Burning Sun as fragments interspersed throughout a recording of Cuomo covering End of the World by Skeeter Davis. Fans would later separate the two songs into two .mp3 files, but the full song would remain unheard.

On July 4th, 2014, however, a user on the image board 4chan.org uploaded an .mp3 of the full recording, alleging that Rivers Cuomo had sent the file to them over AOL Instant Messenger twelve years prior.

Lyrics: I died for you Why can’t you be the one To set my mind at ease? I tried for you  But now the burning sun Is setting on the seas Ain’t nothing we can do I gave my strength to you But if my dream came true I’d hold you every night 

I'd fall for you And get down on my knees If that would make you smile

How Long? is a song demoed by Weezer numerous times during the sessions that would eventually result in the band’s fourth album, 2002’s Maladroit. It would not see an official release. The recording here is from a live session on Ustream before a show in British Columbia, Canada

Lyrics: Two plus two Me and you Strolling down the avenue I never thought that this was meant to be

Holding on to a song I guess it’s time we moved it on 'Cause one of us keeps changing every day

And all the times we told each other little lies I did it again I did it again I did it for you

367 is a demo, of which three versions currently circulate, recorded in April of 2002 as part of the collection referred to as the Album 5 Demos, demos for the intended fifth Weezer album, that would follow 2002’s Maladroit. None of these tracks would ever see release on an album, however, and Weezer would not release a fifth album until three years later, with 2005’s Make Believe.

The song never received any proper title, instead being identified only as 367, corresponding to its number in the Catalog of Riffs, a document listing songs and riffs written by Rivers Cuomo, who maintained it up until the recording of Weezer’s fifth album, Make Believe, in 2005, with Beverly Hills listed as the 669th entry.

Lyrics: Now that I love you so much And it’s right there for all to see Why don’t you let me hold you And dream of the things that should not be? A-ha, a-ha You’re so damn intelligent, I can’t stand the way it hurts ‘Cause I’ll never be worth quite what you’re worth I studied the words you wrote down And picked them apart to check your style And as I was doing all this You never forget to flash your smile A-ha, a-ha  It all comes crashing down When my secret flies Back to loneliness Why?

Acapulco (previously demoed under the title Puerto Vallarta) is a song recorded as part of the collection referred to as the Album 5 Demos, demos for the intended fifth Weezer album, that would follow 2002’s Maladroit. None of these tracks would ever see release on an album, however, and Weezer would not release a fifth album until three years later, with 2005’s Make Believe. The song was demoed by Weezer at various points in 2002, initially at Monster Island Studios in Washington, D.C., and later during the sessions for Maladroit before being demoed for the band's fifth album.

This version of the song was recorded on July 2nd of 2002 and features musician Ryan “Shmedley” Maynes on keyboards.

Lyrics: Beautiful girl What are you doin'?

Peace and Quiet is a song written in 2000, belonging to the collection of songs known to fans as the Summer Songs 2000 (SS2K). This live soundboard recording of unknown origin was recorded in the summer or fall of 2000 and traded among fans.

Lyrics: Can I get some peace and quiet here? I just want to drink an ice-cold beer When I'm feeling any kind of fear Of what you're gonna say Nestled in the hate Waiting for someone to trip and fall

Can I get someone to pay my rent? Turkey drippings are just heaven-sent When you're living in an O2 tent With no sign of hope Drinking shots of Scope® Waiting for someone to trip and fall

I Can Love is a song written demoed by Weezer in 2003 in contention for Weezer’s eventual fifth album, and is part of a set of recordings known as the Office Demos, a set of acoustic demos recorded from June until November of 2003 in a business office the band rented. The song did not see release until this recording of it was distributed as an iTunes bonus track with pre-orders of Weezer's Red Album on June 3, 2008.

Lyrics I didn't hope for much I was used to how things were Even though I was not sure You'd say I was throwing it all away And I never learned to heal

I can't believe what I see After all this time, it is meant to be Help me believe, believe, believe That I can love, I can love

I guess it goes to show that you never should give up Even when you're out of love, you might Find an angel in your sight Who turns everything around

Holiday is the ninth track from Weezer's eponymous debut album (The Blue Album). This demo by Rivers Cuomo was released online sometime in the 2000s. The song is notable for alluding to many of Cuomo's influences during the time of writing. In a 2006 fan-interview, Cuomo cited Jack Kerouac as one of his favorite philosophers (though the reference to Kerouac is not yet present in this demo). Also, the first lyric in the song is likely a reference to the Beach Boys song "Let's Go Away for a While" from the album Pet Sounds, which Cuomo has also cited as an important influence.

Lyrics: Let's go away for a while, you and I To a strange and distant land Where they speak no word of truth But we don't understand anyway

Holiday, far away Let's go today, on a holiday Far away Let's go today, in a heartbeat

Heartbeat, heartbeat

Don't bother to pack your bags, or your map We won't need them where we're going We're going where the wind is blowing Not knowing where we're gonna stay

Weezer - O Holy Night 2008, Christmas with Weezer

Black Sessions are performances of live music broadcast on the French radio station France Inter. Weezer played the show live to air, and the recordings were later made into a very limited set of promo only CDs, for purposes of re-broadcast. These were not offered for sale and are difficult to find in the secondary/collectors market.

Surf Wax America is the sixth track from Weezer’s eponymous debut album (The Blue Album).

According to Karl Koch, when submitting a song-by-song explanation of each song to Geffen Records, Rivers Cuomo initially described the song simply as “a song about beer”, later expanding it to “a total sarcastic call to hedonism, to sing along, drink and be merry”. Ironically, much of Weezer’s audience would not recognize the sarcasm. Cuomo has explained that the song title comes from the band Wax, the members of which were friends of the members of Weezer, elaborating:

"When they got a record deal and started to take off, that’s what inspired us to form Weezer."

This particular recording is part of a set known as The Black Sessions, recorded in front of a live audience for the French radio station France Inter on February 21, 1995, where the band opened for Radiohead.

Lyrics: The sea is foamin’ like a bottle of beer The wave is comin’ but I ain’t got no fear I’m waxin’ down so that I’ll go real fast I’m waxin’ down because it’s really a blast I’m goin’ surfin cuz I don’t like your face I’m bailin’ out because I hate the race Of rats that run round and round in a maze I’m goin’ surfin’ I’m goin’ surfin’ You take your car to work I’ll take my board And when you’re out of fuel I’m still afloat My buddies and their honeys all come along They seem invincible as they surf along The sea is rolling like a thousand pound keg We’re goin’ surfin’, we’re goin’ surfin! You take your car to work I’ll take my board And when you’re out of fuel I’m still afloat You take your car to work I’ll take my board And when you’re out of fuel I’m still afloat All along the undertow is strengthening its hold I never thought it’d come to this  Now I can never go home

You take your car to work I’ll take my board And when you’re out of fuel I’m still afloat You take your car to work (All along the undertow is strengthening its hold) I’ll take my board (I never thought it’d come to this) And when you’re out of fuel I’m still afloat (Now I can never go home)

You take your car to work I’ll take my board And when you’re out of fuel I’m still afloat You take your car I’ll take my board You take your car I’ll take my board

Undone - The Sweater Song is the fifth track from Weezer’s self-titled debut album, and the band’s first single ever released. It is one of the band’s most popular songs. Rivers Cuomo has described the song as such:

'Undone' is the feeling you get when the train stops and the little guy comes knockin' on your door. It was supposed to be a sad song, but everyone thinks it’s hilarious." He went on to explain,"I took typing, Psych 101, and English 101 that semester. It was in my English class that I heard the analogy of the unraveling sweater. Dr. Eisenstein used the image to demonstrate the effectiveness of focused thesis statement in an essay. “All I have to do is hold a single thread in your sweater and it will unravel as you walk away.

This particular recording is part of a set known as The Black Sessions, recorded in front of a live audience for the French radio station France Inter on February 21, 1995, where the band opened for Radiohead.

Lyrics: I’m me, me be Goddamn, I am I can, sing and Here me, know me If you want to destroy my sweater Hold this thread as I walk away

The World Has Turned and Left Me Here is the third track from Weezer’s eponymous debut album (The Blue Album). Cuomo has described the lyrical content of the preceeding song, No One Else, as “the jealous-obsessive asshole in [him] freaking out on [his] girlfriend”, describing this song as “the same asshole wondering why she’s gone”.

This particular recording is part of a set known as The Black Sessions, recorded in front of a live audience for the French radio station France Inter on February 21, 1995, where the band opened for Radiohead.

Buddy Holly is a song written by Rivers Cuomo in 1993, right after Weezer was signed to Geffen Records, it was the second single released from the band’s eponymous debut album (The Blue Album). According to the liner for Alone: The Home Recordings of Rivers Cuomo, Cuomo was inspired the song after borrowing a Korg Keyboard from one of his Santa Monica College choirmates. As he details:

Inspired by its goofy synth sounds, I decided to write some new-wave influenced songs.

The chorus melody, though, I came up with as I was walking the lawns of the campus. The melody was in time to my steps: “ooo-we-ooo I look just like Buddy Holly.” The lyrics I struggled with, trying to find the right reference point. An early version read, “ooo-we-ooo you look just like Ginger Rogers. Oh-oh I move just like Fred Astaire.”

The life-situation that inpsired the lyric was an incident in which the Weezer guys were making fun of my friend Kyung He (also in the Santa Monica College Choir). They were the “homies dissin’ my girl”.

The song remains one of Weezer’s most famous and popular songs, made even more popular for its Spike Jonze-directed music video, which features footage of the band spliced with footage from the television series Happy Days.

This particular recording is part of a set known as The Black Sessions, recorded in front of a live audience for the French radio station France Inter on February 21, 1995, where the band opened for Radiohead.

Lyrics: What’s with these homies dissin’ my girl? Why do they gotta front? What did we ever do to these guys That made them so violent? Woo-hoo, but you know I’m yours Woo-hoo, and I know you’re mine Woo-hoo, and that’s for all of time Ooo-ee-ooo I look just like Buddy Holly Oh-oh, and you’re Mary Tyler Moore I don’t care what they say about us anyway I don’t care ‘bout that Don’t you ever fear, I’m always near I know that you need help Your tongue is twisted, your eyes are slit You need a guardian Woo-hoo, and you know I’m yours Woo-hoo, and I know you’re mine Woo-hoo, and that’s for all of time Bang! Bang! Knock on the door Another big bang, get down on the floor Oh No! What do we do? Don’t look now, but I lost my shoe I can’t run and I can’t kick What’s-a-matter babe, are you feelin’ sick? What’s-a-matter, what’s a matter, what’s a matter you? What’s-a-matter babe, are you feelin’ blue? Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh!

1. Polynesia* 2. The Good Life 3. Space Rock 4. Only In Dreams 5. Don't Let Go 6. Yellow Camaro 7. Fall Together 8. Say It Ain't So 9. Hash Pipe 10. Happy Together 11. Death and Destruction 12. No One Else 13. Glorious Day 14. Why Bother? 15. Dope Nose* 16. Surf Wax America 17. Simple Pages

18. El Scorcho (Encore)

Say It Ain’t So is the 7th track and the 3rd single from Weezer’s self-titled debut album. Upon conceiving the title of the song and the music, Cuomo linked the phrase with an experience he had when he was younger, finding a bottle of beer in the refrigerator belonging to his stepfather, and mistakenly linking alcoholism with the divorce of his biological parents.

Lyrics: Somebody’s Heine’ is crowdin’ my icebox Somebody’s cold one is givin’ me chills Guess I’ll just close my eyes

Oh yeah Alright Feels good Inside

Flip on the tele’ Wrestle with Jimmy Something is bubbling Behind my back The bottle is ready to blow

Say it ain’t so Your drug is a heartbreaker Say it ain’t so My love is a lifetaker

I can’t confront you I never could do That which might hurt you So try and be cool When I say This way is a waterslide away from me that takes you further every day So be cool

Say it ain’t so Your drug is a heartbreaker Say it ain’t so My love is a lifetaker

Dear Daddy, I write you in spite of years of silence. You’ve cleaned up, found Jesus, things are good or so I hear. This bottle of Steven’s awakens ancient feelings. Like father, stepfather, the son is drowning in the flood

Yeah, yeah yeah, yeah yeah.