Weezer Looks Back on 25 Years of ‘The Blue Album’

2019-05-23

Weezer frontman Rivers Cuomo – Story by Charles Ken, photo by Anne Erickson

Weezer’s groundbreaking “The Blue Album” just passed its 25th anniversary

Weezer’s self-titled breakout and debut album, referred to as The Blue Album, arrived May 10, 1994, meaning the album recently passed the 25 year mark. In honor of the milestone, the alternative rock band shared some thoughts about the record and and its story, penned archivist and longtime friend, Karl Koch.

In the message, posted on Weezer’s official Facebook page, Koch tells a story about the guy taking guesses at how many copies of “The Blue Album” they would sell in its first week.

“We counted up everyone we knew, friends and family, who we thought would likely buy the album in its first week as a show of support. Moms, brothers, etc,” Koch states. “The number of solid sales we could count on came to…45.”

“Why would anyone else buy the thing?” he adds. “It wasn’t on radio, and there was no video, so who would buy it unless they knew the band?”

So, how many copies did sell that first week? After the tally was counted, “The Blue Album” sold a whopping 90 copies, which is obviously much lower than the album would go on to sell. But, at the time, that was a huge win for Weezer.

“‘Who the hell are these OTHER 45 people?’ we asked in disbelief,” Koch writes. “That meant across the country, 45 people just saw the Blue Album sitting there, and apropos of nothing, just bought it. 90. It was a start. Whoever you 45 mystery people were, thanks.”

Since that first week, “The Blue Album” has pushed more than three million in sale and, subsequently, has been certified three-times platinum by the RIAA. It’s also Weezer’s top-selling record. The album features the hit Weezer tracks “The Sweater Song,” “Buddy Holly” and “Say It Ain’t So.”

Charles Ken
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Posted by Charles Ken | Alternative, Music, Rock News

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