“Weird Al” Covers of Tom Petty Songs
Not parodies, but sincere covers — and they’re pretty darned good!
“Weird Al” Yankovic is famous for his parody songs, including one we talked about here before — his parody of “Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around” called “Stop Draggin’ My Car Around.”
But Yankovic has also performed sincere covers of Tom Petty songs, and they’re pretty darned good. He introduces the songs as a “request for requests,” asking the audience to shout out their requests, then pretending to hear in the din the exact song title he planned to play all along.
Here are two for your viewing pleasure — “Refugee” and “Breakdown.” The audience goes nuts each time.
It also brings to mind how impossible it would be to create a “Weird Al” tribute band. The guy has range, and his band has serious chops across all styles of music.
Enjoy!