About the Weezer Favorites songbook series:
I’m a huge Weezer fan. What I love even more than listening to Weezer is arranging their songs for the piano in a way that stays true to the originals, but keeps them playable for intermediate level pianists. This has been a “heart songs” project and I’m sure there will eventually be more volumes. If you’re looking for Easy Weezer Favorites (arrangements for easy piano) I’ve got those too!
A couple of notes about this series:
I have omitted all of my arrangements of the songs from the Teal album. I love Teal, but wanted to stick to Weezer’s original stuff.
I tried to represent a bit of everything, the old, the new, the popular, the deeper cuts. These volumes are by no means exhaustive, but the series will undoubtedly continue to grow.
🎸 About Weezer
Weezer is an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1992, consisting of members Rivers Cuomo, Patrick Wilson, Scott Shriner, and Brian Bell. They have achieved significant success, selling over 10 million albums in the US and more than 35 million worldwide.
Their career includes notable albums such as the self-titled “Blue Album” in 1994, which was a multiplatinum success, and “Pinkerton” in 1996, which initially had mixed reviews but later gained critical acclaim. The band went on hiatus after “Pinkerton” and returned in 2001 with the “Green Album,” featuring a more pop sound and achieving commercial success. Bassist changes occurred during this period.
Weezer continued to release albums like “Maladroit” (2002) with a hard-rock sound and “Make Believe” (2005) with mixed reviews but a chart-topping single, “Beverly Hills.” In 2008, they released the “Red Album” with the hit single “Pork and Beans.” Subsequent albums, “Raditude” (2009) and “Hurley” (2010), had mixed reviews, but are valuable albums in the Weezer ouevre.
They returned to a rock style reminiscent of their 90s sound with “Everything Will Be Alright in the End” (2014) and the “White Album” (2016). “Pacific Daydream” (2017) featured a more mainstream pop sound, and in 2019, they released a covers album (the Teal Album) followed by the “Black Album.”
In 2021, Weezer released “OK Human,” featuring an orchestral pop sound, which received critical acclaim, and “Van Weezer,” inspired by hard rock. In 2022, they released a series of EPs based on the four seasons.
🎶 Weezer Favorites: Volume 2 Songbook
The following songs are included in the Weezer Favorites: Volume 2 songbook.
These are all available as separate singles, but you get the most value by purchasing the whole collection. All of these arrangements are appropriate for intermediates and up.
- 1 More Hit
- Across the Sea
- Da Vinci
- Dark Enough to See the Stars
- Island in the Sun
- Only in Dreams
- Piece of Cake
- Undone (The Sweater Song)
- Weekend Woman
- What Happens After You?
🎹 Watch a performance of the entire volume:
⭐ Featured Favorites
Let’s dive deeper with some more details about a few of my personal favorites from Weezer Favorites: Volume 2 songbook.
1. “Dark Enough to See the Stars” (2022)
I swear Rivers is aging backwards in front of our eyes:
“Dark Enough to See the Stars” is the fifth track on SZNZ: Winter and maybe as close to a Christmas song as Weezer will ever get. Can’t you totally imagine this mashed-up with a traditional holiday tune like “I Saw Three Ships?” Maybe, a good idea for a future project on my end.
The video was released with the Winter EP on December 21, 2022 but was actually debutted at a secret show in West Hollywood along with the other tracks from Winter on Sept. 19, 2022, months ahead of the official release.
🔎 Sheet music sneak peek:
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2. “Island in the Sun” (2001)
An evergreen favorite from the Green Album:
“Weezer’s hit song, “Island in the Sun,” has been a notable success, making appearances in various films, commercials, and television shows. Rivers Cuomo initially wrote and recorded a demo of the song in 1999, and the original demo has circulated on the internet for years.
Brian Bell discovered the song when visiting Cuomo’s home and was captivated by the title and the song itself. In fact, Bell expressed that it might be his favorite Weezer song.
During the recording sessions for “The Green Album,” “Island in the Sun” underwent several changes. It was initially more of an upbeat rocker, which can be heard in documentary footage of the album’s creation. Producer Ric Ocasek had the band practice the song’s chord progression extensively to achieve the right feel.
“Weezer performed “Island in the Sun” on Saturday Night Live in May 2001, along with “Hash Pipe.” Comedian Will Ferrell, a cast member at the time, joined the band on stage during the performance, adding maracas to the mix.”
🔎 Sheet music sneak peek:
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3. “Undone (The Sweater Song)” (1994)
“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.
— Rivers Cuomo press kit for Weezer (The Blue Album),
Rivers Cuomo shared insights into the inception of the song “Undone (The Sweater Song).” He mentioned that the idea for the song came during his college classes in typing, Psychology 101, and English 101. In an English class, he heard an analogy about an unraveling sweater, which illustrated the effectiveness of a focused thesis statement in an essay.
Cuomo later acknowledged that “Undone (The Sweater Song)” was influenced by Metallica’s “Welcome Home (Sanitarium).” He initially aimed to create a Velvet Underground-style song but came up with the iconic guitar riff. Despite its similarity to Metallica’s track, Cuomo found the riff classic and quintessentially Weezer.
The song’s dialogue sections were originally intended to feature a sound collage created by Karl Koch, a longtime friend of the band. However, Geffen Records raised concerns about the cost of licensing the samples, leading to the use of spoken dialogue recorded by bassist Matt Sharp and Koch. When performed live, the band improvised banter during these sections, but in later years, they played a recording of the album version’s dialogue.
When “Undone (The Sweater Song)” was chosen as the lead single for “The Blue Album,” the record label requested a shortened version for radio play. The band agreed to some edits but requested the removal of a shortened guitar solo. The final radio edit had a run-time of 3:58, which was later extended to 4:10 with the full guitar solo.
The distinct guitar tone for the song’s intro emerged during a dedicated guitar recording session between Cuomo and original guitarist Jason Cropper.
The music video for “Undone (The Sweater Song)” was Weezer’s first, directed by Spike Jonze. Despite the band’s reluctance to include sweaters in the video, Geffen received multiple treatments involving sweaters. The video was shot in one unbroken take using a steadicam and features the band playing to a sped-up version of the song, creating the illusion of slow motion when played at a normal speed. The video humorously captures the frustration of repetitive takes and unexpected events, like a dog defecating on Patrick Wilson’s bass drum pedal. Despite the challenges, the video became a hit on MTV.
🔎 Sheet music sneak peek:
4. “What Happens After You?” (2022)
The unofficial single from SZNZ: Autumn:
“What Happens After You?” had its origins in 2015 when it was initially crafted during a songwriting camp organized by songwriter Desmond Child for musician Anthony De La Torre. Collaborators on the song included Eric Bazilian and Rob Wells. In 2022, Rob Wells mentioned that the songs “My Songs Know What You Did in the Dark (Light Em Up)” by Fall Out Boy and “Love Me Again” by John Newman influenced the track’s creation. Although a demo featuring De La Torre’s vocals was recorded and produced at the time, the song remained unused.
Several years later, Desmond Child submitted a collection of songs, including “What Happens After You?”, to Rivers Cuomo for potential inclusion in a future project. Cuomo was particularly drawn to the chorus and took on the task of crafting his own verses and pre-choruses for the song.
The song was introduced to fans on September 25, 2021, through Rivers Cuomo’s personal website and has become the unofficial “single” for SZNZ: Autumn. A brief snippet of the song was shared on Cuomo’s TikTok account on April 21, 2022. Furthermore, a portion of the song was revealed as a reward for solving a puzzle in Cuomo’s web game, Weezle, on September 16.
The live debut of “What Happens After You?” took place at a secret show under the Goat Punishment moniker in West Hollywood on September 19, 2022, leading up to its performance on Jimmy Kimmel Live! on the 21st of the same month.
Weezer released an official music video for the song, featuring Rivers Cuomo in his home studio, on November 29. Additionally, a demo version of “What Happens After You?” surfaced online in December 2022.
🔎 Sheet music sneak peek:
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5. “Across the Sea” (1996)
Saving the best for last. So fragile, so refined.
“Across the Sea” is a highly emotionally charged song within Weezer’s body of work. Rivers Cuomo wrote the song during his time at Harvard University, and it played a pivotal role in his decision to pursue the concept of “Pinkerton” instead of “Songs From the Black Hole.”
The inspiration for “Across the Sea” came from a fan letter Cuomo received from Japan. The letter was penned by a young girl who asked various questions about his life during a challenging winter at Harvard in 1995. Cuomo expressed that he fell in love with the letter and felt a deep connection to the girl, despite his doubts about ever meeting her. He reflected on his loneliness and depression during that period. In subsequent years, Cuomo mentioned that he had never contacted the girl and knew little about her.
The song’s opening verse closely mirrors the content of the fan letter. Initially, Cuomo claimed that the anonymous Japanese fan received royalties for the song, but more recent statements from him have cast doubt on this claim. The lyrics also touch on Cuomo’s adolescent thoughts of becoming a monk to win the favor of older women and the idea that his mother may be responsible for his romantic difficulties.
The song features distinctive elements such as the sounds of a door opening, drummer Pat Wilson laughing, and random notes played on a nylon guitar during the piano introduction. The piano segment is said to symbolize Cuomo’s depression at Harvard. The guitar solo is noteworthy for its complex chord progression, with a modulation from G major to E major and a return to G major for the final verse and chorus.
Weezer’s fans have widely regarded “Across the Sea” as one of the band’s best songs. It has received high praise on platforms like the Weezer songblog, Teenage Victory Songs, where it was categorized as “The Very Best” in Weezer’s discography. In fan rankings, the song has received exceptionally high scores, making it one of the most beloved tracks in Weezer’s catalog.
🔎 Sheet music sneak peek:
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