Song #95: "Weird Al" Yankovic - "King of Suede"

Song #95: "Weird Al" Yankovic - "King of Suede" (1984)

 "Weird Al" Yankovic In 3-D

"Thirty years in the same location I have stayed, there I am right next door to Willie's Fun Arcade. I got tough competition, but I'm not afraid. 'Cause it's my destiny to be the King of Suede." 

I wouldn't be surprised if die-hard "Weird Al" Yankovic fans wouldn't recognize this song. In order to have heard "King of Suede," you would have to be a "Weird Al" completionist or just be curious as to what sat next to some of his biggest hits like "Eat It" and "I Lost on Jeopardy" on his sophomore album "Weird Al" Yankovic In 3-D. Since hearing the track when I was that rare "Weird Al" die-hard fan around 2007, "King of Suede" stuck out to me as a unique track for Al, not only for its benign subject matter (more benign than usual) but his vocals and the quietly haunting melody that came with a song about a man who runs a successful designer clothes shop.

But that's not enough for this man; he has remained in the same location for thirty years, next door to a dive called "Willie's Fun Arcade," and his destiny is to be "The King of Suede." While some of the song sounds rather genial, the end takes something of a darker tone, silently indicating monotony in our narrator's life and the lack of fun and adventure outside of "the same old sale as yesterday." 

"King of Suede" is a fascinating gem of a song because its lyrics are fascinating in their weirdness, its melody and instrumentation are addicting, and the track is unique for Al because of its darker roots. The song is a parody of "King of Pain" by The Police, which, I confess, I've never heard, so I cannot judge on whether or not the song parodies the lyrics successfully or stays true to its melody. What I can say, however, is even after listening to all "Weird Al's" albums, I still find "King of Suede" to be one of my favorite songs by him.

Give "King of Suede" a listen, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QFJNxuVmCoo