"Hash Pipe" has one of the heavier riffs in the Weezer catalogue, and now frontman Rivers Cuomo has revealed that he almost gave the 2001 single to metal god Ozzy Osbourne.
Speaking with Guitar World, Cuomo said, "Once, I think it was in 2000, he [Osbourne] asked if I had any songs for him, and I just happened to have written 'Hash Pipe.' I sent it to him, but he didn't end up using it. In another reality, it might be interesting to hear him singing that song."
He's not wrong: "Hash Pipe" doesn't have an officially released lyric sheet, but it sounds an awful lot like Cuomo sings "I can't help my boogies, they get out of control" and "I've got my asswipe / You've got your big cheese." And who wouldn't want to hear the Prince of Darkness sing that?
Speaking of Weezer and Ozzy, Cuomo also shed some light on the Van Weezer track "Blue Dream," which borrows its guitar riff from "Crazy Train."
Cuomo said, "The song existed with another riff. The song was good, but the riff was… It was okay, but it wasn't the greatest guitar riff of all time, which I felt like it should be. Coincidentally, at the same time, our manager said, 'Hey, you guys should sample the Crazy Train riff in a song.' I know he was thinking: 'What's going to get people talking? What is going to confuse the internet?' He had no idea what I was making, but it just seemed like the perfect suggestion. So we tried it. The tempo fit, and it all just seemed to come together."
The songwriter credits on "Blue Dream" are shared with "Crazy Train" composers Ozzy, Randy Rhoads and Bob Daisley, who get royalties from it. Incidentally, it's arguably the worst song on the overall very strong Van Weezer.
Speaking with Guitar World, Cuomo said, "Once, I think it was in 2000, he [Osbourne] asked if I had any songs for him, and I just happened to have written 'Hash Pipe.' I sent it to him, but he didn't end up using it. In another reality, it might be interesting to hear him singing that song."
He's not wrong: "Hash Pipe" doesn't have an officially released lyric sheet, but it sounds an awful lot like Cuomo sings "I can't help my boogies, they get out of control" and "I've got my asswipe / You've got your big cheese." And who wouldn't want to hear the Prince of Darkness sing that?
Speaking of Weezer and Ozzy, Cuomo also shed some light on the Van Weezer track "Blue Dream," which borrows its guitar riff from "Crazy Train."
Cuomo said, "The song existed with another riff. The song was good, but the riff was… It was okay, but it wasn't the greatest guitar riff of all time, which I felt like it should be. Coincidentally, at the same time, our manager said, 'Hey, you guys should sample the Crazy Train riff in a song.' I know he was thinking: 'What's going to get people talking? What is going to confuse the internet?' He had no idea what I was making, but it just seemed like the perfect suggestion. So we tried it. The tempo fit, and it all just seemed to come together."
The songwriter credits on "Blue Dream" are shared with "Crazy Train" composers Ozzy, Randy Rhoads and Bob Daisley, who get royalties from it. Incidentally, it's arguably the worst song on the overall very strong Van Weezer.
