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TL;DR:

  • “Weird Al” Yankovic loves The Beatles’ songs and George Harrison’s songs.
  • He said two Fab Four tracks are like novelty songs.
  • He compared those tracks to Styx’s “Plexiglass Toilet.”
Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, and John Lennon on a billboard promoting The Beatles' 'Abbey Road'
The Beatles’ Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, and John Lennon walking | Robert Landau / Contributor via Getty Images

“Weird Al” Yankovic said he’s a massive fan of The Beatles’ songs and George Harrison‘s solo material. In addition, he said two of the Fab Four’s songs veer into novelty territory. Notably, one of the songs he named was the B-side to The Beatles’ “Let It Be.”

Why ‘Weird Al’ Yankovic covered 1 of George Harrison’s songs

Yankovic performed “What Is Life” at George Fest, a tribute to George. During a 2016 interview with Den of Geek, he discussed his relationship to George’s music and The Beatles’ music. “I’ve never played ‘What Is Life’ other than at George Fest, but that was a lot of fun.

“I’ve always been a huge George Harrison fan and a big Beatles fan,” Yankovic added. “It was a real thrill to be asked to be part of that. Dhani Harrison put it together. He’s a wonderful guy and I think he put together an amazing tribute to his father. Just to be asked to be included in that celebration was an amazing thing for me.”

‘Weird Al’ Yankovic felt Styx and The Beatles produced novelty songs

Subsequently, Yankovic named his favorite humorous songs from serious artists. “There are a lot of them,” he said. “A lot of what you consider ‘straight rock artists’ sometimes come up with a novelty song, like Styx had a song called ‘Plexiglass Toilet,’ which was a little outside their norm.

“The Beatles had a number of what would be considered novelty songs: ‘You Know My Name (Look Up the Number),’ even ‘Maxwell’s Silver Hammer‘ verges into novelty territory,” Yankovic added. “There are quite a few that would probably fit that description.”

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How The Beatles’ ‘You Know My Name (Look Up the Number)’ and ‘Maxwell’s Silver Hammer’ performed commercially

The Beatles released “You Know My Name (Look Up the Number)” as the B-side to “Let It Be.” That song topped the Billboard Hot 100 for two weeks and stayed on the chart for 14 weeks in total. “You Know My Name (Look Up the Number)” didn’t appear on the album Let It Be.

On the other hand, The Beatles released “Maxwell’s Silver Hammer” on the album Abbey Road. Abbey Road reached No. 1 on the Billboard 200 for 11 weeks. It stayed on the chart for 465 weeks in total.

“You Know My Name (Look Up the Number)” and “Maxwell’s Silver Hammer” aren’t among The Beatles’ most famous songs. Despite this, Yankovic felt they had a unique place in the Fab Four’s discography.

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