Nuggets
I will attend the Grammy’s when they give Ween the lifetime achievement award. Ween is about the coolest, most versatile, funniest band to hit the music scene in a long long time.
Ween is the creation of two brothers Dean and Gene Ween (and I thought my parents went over the top with Rod, Fred, and Ted). I first heard about Ween when The Gotham Gal’s brother or sister (not sure which of them) worked on the music video for Push Th’ Little Daisys. That is a classic pop song off the Guava record and I loved it instantly. The video was pretty cool too.
But Ween’s best record, the one I never ever get tired of, is called Chocolate and Cheese. I wimped out and did not post the cover of the record in an attempt to keep AVC at least PG rated.
Chocolate and Cheese is not PG rated but neither was George Carlin. They are both hilarious and politically incorrect as hell. What other record could have songs about Spinal Meningitis, HIV, and finish off with a song called Don’t Shit Where You Eat?
This record rocks right from the start with the classic Take Me Away, and you are taken away to Ween land for a really fun hour of great music.
The masterpiece on Chocolate and Cheese is called Tears for Eddie. This song showcases the brilliance of Dean Ween’s guitar playing skills. It is a great guitar solo in the style of Funkadelic’s Maggot Brain or Jeff Beck.
Other standouts on Chocolate and Cheese include Drifter In The Dark, Voodo Lady, Joppa Road, the mexican folk song Buenas Tardes Amigo (sung by Tuco?), and What Deaner Was Talking About.
There is no style of music on this record. It contains almost every style imaginable and then some. The closest thing is probably Frank Zappa, but this record is way more accessible than anything Frank ever did.
It may take a few listens to get the genius of Ween and Chocolate and Cheese, but give them a chance. You’ll be rewarded if you do.