Weird Al Yankovic’s career is no joke

Weird Al Yankovic still has it, even though many of those he’s parodied are no longer around or are simply riding the nostalgia wave.

Yankovic has been cracking wise for 35 years, which, to put it in perspective, is as long as U2 has been around. And recent years have been good to the humorist. His 2014 album “Mandatory Fun” debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard charts and this year won a Grammy – his fourth overall – for best comedy album.

Fans still pack halls to catch Yankovic, who played before a capacity crowd in mid-June at the Bethlehem Sands Event Center in Pennsylvania. “Like a Surgeon,” a fan bellowed as Yankovic ran up the aisle while rendering “Wanna B Ur Lovr.”

His fans are a devoted lot. The crowd, which ranged from pre-pubescents to baby boomers, included aficionados wearing old tour shirts. Fans shouted for early hits such as “Eat It” and “Another One Rides the Bus.”

“It’s so cool how the fans go way back with me,” Yankovic said backstage. “They just keep coming back, which is awesome.”

Yankovic plays a sold-out show at the Orpheum on Wednesday. Part of his charm is that he’s not mean-spirited.

“I always thought that it took more effort to be a jerk than to be nice anyway,” he said.

Yankovic, 55, started working on parodies in his Southern California home after being influenced by the “Dr. Demento” radio show. His initial success, a parody of the Knack’s “My Sharona” (“My Bologna”) in 1979, kick-started his career.

“It’s been beyond my wildest dreams,” Yankovic said. “I never would have guessed anything like this could have happened. People have embraced the songs. I get to tour, and the feedback from the recording artists (he’s parodied) has been amazing.”

Dave Grohl told Rolling Stone magazine that he knew he had made it once Yankovic parodied Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit.” Joan Jett, Sting and other luminaries were proud of Yankovic’s offbeat takes on their songs. Donny Osmond, who stars in Yankovic’s hilarious “White and Nerdy” video, said he was thrilled to be part of a Weird Al clip.

“I remember being floored years ago when Paul McCartney actually knew who I was,” Yankovic said.

But not all recording artists have been cool with Yankovic’s work. Coolio was not pleased with Yankovic’s revamping of “Gangsta’s Paradise” to “Amish Paradise” in 1996.

“It was just one of those things, but fortunately most people really like what I do,” Yankovic said. Coolio later changed his tune and lauded the parody.

Yankovic’s latest album, “Mandatory Fun,” has inventive and funny parodies of Pharrell’s “Happy,” Imagine Dragon’s “Radioactive” and Iggy Azalea’s “Fancy.” Part of the success of the album is attributed to his release of eight music videos over eight days. The videos were viewed by millions on YouTube.

“Fortunately, I’m still inspired,” Yankovic said. “There’s always new songs out there, and I don’t see any reason to stop doing what I do.”

If Yankovic’s career was ever going to grind to a halt, it would have been because of the emergence of the Internet. A generation ago, he was pretty much the only musical parodist. But now there are a myriad amateurs, who upload their takes on songs via YouTube every day.

“They make me work even harder, which is a good thing,” Yankovic said. “There’s room for me and everyone else. It’s interesting how much the landscape has changed. I used to be the lone wolf out there, and now so many other people are making parodies. There’s room for everybody. If someone is having as much fun as me doing this, well, good for them.”

This story was originally published June 25, 2015 at 2:14 PM with the headline "Weird Al Yankovic’s career is no joke."