Weezer :: Say It Ain’t So
One of my favorite dudes in the universe is my seven year old cousin. The middle son of my mother’s youngest brother, B is hopelessly enthralled with High School Musical and 90s alternative rock (thanks to Guitar Hero). Every time I go out west to visit family, I spend some time at my uncle’s house in what I can only describe as “the room of awesome.” It’s pretty much just a regular living room, but with an excellent sound system and a huge flat screen of perpetual Wii, karaoke and cartoons. Also in this room, my oldest cousin J (age 15, super into prog, color me proud), B’s brother, is pretty handy on the old family computer machine as most kids are today, and creates music playlists for his brothers including the littlest one, N (5 years old, into metal).
The last time I visited, I was greeted at the door by B yelling, “Kelly! Kelly! Come listen to my favorite song!” He dragged me to the computer and played Say it Ain’t So. I was all, “whaaaa? How do you know this song?! This is my favorite song!” to which he replied, “how do you know this song?!” My explanation and the concept of me being alive in 1994 or ever being 14 totally blew his mind. He played me some of his other favorite songs (most of which were from the 90s), and we were both pretty impressed with each other.
That simple little exchange made me think a lot about nature vs. nurture: how much I have in common with my uncle (age 47, into Talking Heads and Elvis Costello) and cousins, musically and otherwise, even though I’ve spent very little actual time with them. Do the bonds of blood transfer to musical taste? Is a predilection for certain sounds written into our DNA? B just liked the music, he didn’t know I used to listen to Say it Ain’t So as a young teenager, lamenting the past and lamenting my own future as a potential alcoholic. When the Blue Album came out, my father had indeed “cleaned up, found Jesus,” so I was immediately drawn to this song and its literal connection to my own life. I almost hoped that my step-father at the time would become an alcoholic so I could identify with the song even more. I’m the son! I’m drowning in the flood! This song is meeeee! Ah, youth, angsty alienated youth. I even tried beer (not just because of the song) to see if I’d fall in love with it. When I didn’t and hid the bottle in my closet after a few sips, I was relieved and perhaps slightly disappointed.
I’ve met plenty of people who consider Say it Ain’t So a favorite. Barring any literal or emotional connections with the song, I think its basic appeal lies in the sound and earnestness of the lyrics and their delivery. It’s a shame that Weezer turned into a hit-making machine, but it’s really pleasant to find that Rivers’ old brand of earnestness can still be recognized and appreciated, even by a seven year old.
Say It Ain’t So (5MB MP3)
Weezer (homepage, video)
also my favorite song. my dad didn’t exactly find jesus, but recently he found this cross with a blue gem in it and likes to point it out to us while singing the Who’s “Behind Blue Eyes”. god help me…i can relate to the song’s “earnestness” and fist-balling appeal to feeling. will our parents please grow up??!?