Song of the Day 11/15: Weezer, “Say It Ain’t So”
I’m not sure why this 30-year-old song popped into my head yesterday – maybe because it’s been such a common response from various quarters to various Trump cabinet picks.
Weezer frontman Rivers Cuomo wrote the song about his father’s alcoholism and his fear that his stepfather might follow the same path.
It’s such a complicated story, way too complex to write a song about. I should never have done it. I was really afraid of alcohol at the time. I didn’t drink till I was 21, not even a sip. I was petrified of alcohol. “Say It Ain’t So” was about when I was 16. I opened up the refrigerator, and I saw a can of beer. All of a sudden I made the connection that my step-father was leaving… because my father started drinking when he left my mother.
Released as the third single from the group’s 1994 debut LP, commonly known as the Blue Album, it didn’t match the chart success of its hit predecessors “Buddy Holly” and “Undone (The Sweater Song)” but did reach the top 10 of the Modern Rock chart.
Weezer was signed to Geffen Records on the strength of a cassette known as the Kitchen Tape. “Say It Ain’t So” was one of the standout tracks, featuring a rawer mix and a more impassioned delivery by Cuomo. It was released on the album’s 30th anniversary box set earlier this year.
