Hash Pipe
| "Hash Pipe" | ||||||||||
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| Single by Weezer | ||||||||||
| from the album Weezer | ||||||||||
| B-side |
"I Do" "Starlight" "Teenage Victory Song" | |||||||||
| Released | June 18, 2001 | |||||||||
| Format | CD, Vinyl | |||||||||
| Recorded | December 2000 at Cello Studios, Los Angeles | |||||||||
| Genre | Alternative rock, pop punk | |||||||||
| Length | 3:06 | |||||||||
| Label | Geffen | |||||||||
| Writer(s) | Rivers Cuomo | |||||||||
| Producer(s) | Ric Ocasek | |||||||||
| Weezer singles chronology | ||||||||||
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"Hash Pipe" is a song by American alternative rock band Weezer. Released in 2001, it was the first single off the band's long-awaited third album, Weezer (The Green Album), and the only one of the SS2K The Summer Sessions songs to make it onto the album, although "Dope Nose" and "Slob" were released on Maladroit. According to an interview with Weezer front man Rivers Cuomo, "Hash Pipe" was written on the same night as the hit song "Dope Nose" off Maladroit. The story goes that Rivers took "a bunch of Ritalin and had like three shots of tequila," paced around for a while, then wrote both songs.[1] The song was inspired by a male transvestite prostitute known for rambling to people in Santa Monica, California.[2] Weezer drummer Patrick Wilson is featured on the cover of the song's CD single[3] holding a pack of Natural American Spirit cigarettes that has been blurred out. Since late 2001, the band has played the song live with a reworked guitar solo that no longer follows the verse melody. The primary melody of the song has similarities to both Fantasy by Aldo Nova and Kiss Me Deadly by Lita Ford.
Music video
The video for the song was directed by Marcos Siega, the first of many Weezer videos that Siega would direct. In the video, Weezer is playing while a group of sumo wrestlers are standing in the background.[4] Sometimes they will show two sumo wrestlers wrestling and at one point in the song, the wrestlers actually appear to play and sing. In the video, guitarist Brian Bell does a move in which he bends backwards, taking the guitar with him, then thrusts his legs in the way he's bending. This is known among Weezer fans as "the impossible bend." According to the mini book that accompanies the Video Capture Device DVD, Siega was asked to avoid referring to the lyrics of the song for the video, due to its themes of homosexual prostitution and drug references.
Tracklist
Radio Station Promo
- "Hash Pipe" - 3:06
US CD Retail CD/US Retail 7" Single (Black Vinyl)
- "Hash Pipe" -3:06
- "I Do" - 2:10
UK Retail CD
- "Hash Pipe" - 2:51
- "Starlight" - 3:35
- "Hash Pipe" (Jimmy Pop Remix)
- "Hash Pipe" (CD-ROM Video)
UK Retail 7" Single (Green Vinyl)
- "Hash Pipe" - 2:52
- "Teenage Victory Song" - 3:11
US Promo Remix 12" Single (Black Vinyl)
- "Hash Pipe" (Jimmy Pop Remix)
- "Hash Pipe" (Chris Vrenna's Kick Me Remix)
- "Hash Pipe" (Chris Vrenna's Under Glass Remix) - 4:13
Censorship
"Hash Pipe" was banned from UK airplay due to bosses at Radio One taking a stance against the drug taking culture implied in the title (hashish), although the station did play it once (possibly the only time) when it featured in the UK Top 40. The song title is sometimes displayed as "H*** Pipe" on some channels, perhaps most notably on MTV; the exact reason for the inconsistency of the censored song title is unclear. When the band performed this song on Top of the Pops, the title and lyric had to be changed to "Half Pipe", which caused confusion as OPM had released their single "Heaven Is a Half Pipe" at the same time (OPM had performed their song on the same showing, before Weezer took to the stage). When Weezer performed the song on T4 one Sunday afternoon, the title was read out as "Half Pipe", despite the fact that the word "hash" was still heard. Geffen Records originally did not want "Hash Pipe" to be the lead single off the album, citing the song's lurid content (a transvestite prostitute) as inappropriate. They suggested that the lead single should be "Don't Let Go."
Awards and success
"Hash Pipe" is one of the band's biggest hits, best remembered for its driving guitar melody, offbeat lyrical content, Cuomo's falsetto vocals and the gang backup vocals of "whoa-oh-oh." The song peaked at #2 on Billboard's Alternative Songs chart, #24 on Billboard's Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart and #16 on the Canadian Hot 100. It was nominated for the Kerrang! Award for Best Single. The video for the song was nominated for Best Rock Video at the 2001 MTV Video Music Awards as well as being nominated for High Times magazine's "Pot Song of the Year" in 2001.
Covers and remixes
Two remixes of the song were released as B-sides on official releases of the song. Chris Vrenna's "Kick Me" remix was released on the "Hash Pipe" 12" single (which was Weezer's first 12" single) and Jimmy Pop's remix of the song appears on that release as well as international releases of the "Hash Pipe" single and the international "Island in the Sun" single. The song has also been covered by Phantom Planet in concert and by Richard Cheese and Lounge Against the Machine at one of their live shows.
References
- ↑ Eliscu, Jenny. "Rivers Cuomo's Encyclopedia of Pop". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2007-10-02.
- ↑ "Weezer's Cracked Genius". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2008-03-24.
- ↑ weezer.com tunes page - page 3
- ↑ Luerssen D., John. Rivers' Edge: The Weezer Story. ECW Press, 2004, ISBN 1-55022-619-3 p. 335
External links
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