In 2003, Weird Al intended ' Couch Potato' to be the first single off his then-new album, Poodle Hat. Weird Al still plays bits and pieces of the parody song during his live performances, but he has yet to get permission from McCartney to record it. I don't want to condone the eating of animal flesh.'' But 'It wouldn't work with 'Tofu Pot Pie.'' 'He said, 'I would love for you to do this, but could you not make it about chicken because I'm a vegetarian.
'I wanted to do 'Chicken Pot Pie,' and Paul was a good sport,' Yankovic explained. Weird Al wanted to parody the Wings song 'Live and Let Die,' but Paul McCartney turned him down. Which means that he has gotten the occasional 'no,' as these examples prove. This story originally appeared on Mental Floss.įor more than 40 years, 'Weird Al' Yankovic has been making hit songs by putting his own, spoofy twist on chart-toppers like 'Eat It,' 'Like a Surgeon,' 'White & Nerdy,' and 'Amish Paradise.' While the First Amendment and fair use copyright laws mean that Yankovic doesn't have to get permission from the original recording artists to record a parody song, out of courtesy and respect he always does.
