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Album Information

  Name Make Believe
  Type studio
  Artist Weezer
  Cover MakeBelievejpg
  Released May 10 2005
  Recorded December 2003 – February 2005
  Genre Alternative <br> Indie Rock
  Length 45:09
  Label DGC , Geffen <small>(US)<br />B0004520-01 ( LP )<br />B0004520-12 ( CD )</small>
  Producer Rick Rubin
  Last Album '' The Lion And The Witch ''<br />(2002)
  This Album '''''Make Believe'''''<br />(2005)
  Next Album '' Winter Weezerland EP ''<br />(2005)
  Misc {{Singles
  Name Make Believe
  Type studio
  Single 1 Beverly Hills
  Single 1 Date 2005
  Single 2 We Are All On Drugs
  Single 2 Date 2005
  Single 3 Perfect Situation
  Single 3 Date 2005
  Single 4 This Is Such a Pity
  Single 4 Date 2006




''Make Believe'' is the fifth studio Album by Weezer , released on May 10 , 2005 , the eleventh anniversary of the release of The Blue Album . Bolstered by the Top 10 hit single "Beverly Hills", it gave Weezer their biggest chart album peak yet, hitting #11 in the UK, #1 in Canada, and #2 in the U.S., where it went gold quickly, and eventually platinum. The song also earned the band their first Grammy nomination for Best Rock Song. Despite this, ''Make Believe'' has received mixed reviews from some critics and fans, though it has remained a consistent seller.

As of March 2006, ''Make Believe'' has sold 1,103,757 units in the U.S. alone.

''Make Believe'' features the band's first two songs to top the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart, the aforementioned "Beverly Hills" and "Perfect Situation."


TRACK LISTING

All songs by Rivers Cuomo .

#" Beverly Hills " – 3:16
#" Perfect Situation " – 4:15
#" This Is Such A Pity " – 3:24
#"Hold Me" – 4:22
#"Peace" – 3:53
#" We Are All On Drugs " – 3:35
#"The Damage in Your Heart" – 4:02
#"Pardon Me" – 4:15
#" My Best Friend " – 2:47
#"The Other Way" – 3:16
#"Freak Me Out" – 3:26
#"Haunt You Every Day" – 4:37


WRITING AND RECORDING PROCESS

As early as spring 2002, and at random points in late '02 and early 2003, demos for possible use on Weezer's fifth album would be uploaded to Weezer.com's audio/visual page. After some time, the band decided to start from scratch with a fresh group of songs. 28 songs were uploaded in all on the website (and can still be found on various fan sites) yet only one ("Hold Me") made the actual album. This batch of songs is commonly referred to as "The A5 Demos" or "'''Album 4.5,'''" or, among some fan groups.

Rivers Cuomo 's discovery of meditation in the three years between this and their previous release, '' Maladroit '' had a great influence on the content of the album. Mainly on "Pardon Me," which was written after a ten day guided meditation course, in which he learned the ancient techniques of Vipassana (Insight Meditation) and Metta (Lovingkindness) which encourages those who practice to "seek pardon from all those who I have hurt in action speech or thought."1 He also claimed the title of the album came to him while meditating.

Producer Rick Rubin told Rivers Cuomo to "write a Billy Joel or Elton John type of song." The result of Rubin's request was "Haunt You Every Day" which is not the first Weezer song to feature piano, but is the first that Rivers wrote entirely on piano. According to Cuomo, Rubin told Tom Petty the same thing and he wrote "It’s Good To Be King."4

As the band was working on the album, they struck a deal to have "My Best Friend" be included in the film Shrek 2 yet this deal was scrapped when the makers of the film didn't think it fit to the timings of the visuals. The Counting Crows song "Accidentally in Love" took the place of "My Best Friend."5

Hundreds of songs were demoed during the three year period of making of the album . Despite the abundance of release-able material, to the dismay of many fans, this is the first Weezer album not to feature any B-side releases. Of the notable unreleased material, "You're The One" and "Love is the Answer" can be heard on the "Making of ''Make Believe''" special feature on the disc's Enhanced CD feature. A cover of Toni Braxton 's "Unbreak my Heart" was in consideration for the album.
6

While deciding on the name of the album, one of the title suggestions given by Patrick Wilson was ''One Thousand Soviet Children Marching Towards The Sun''.7 Another early suggestion was ''Either Way I'm Fine'' (something Cuomo said often during the sessions when discussing changing elements of a song or sound).8 Ultimately the title of ''Make Believe'' won over his suggestion.

While most Weezer albums are quite short, with a time span around 30 minutes, ''Make Believe'' is the longest album they have released to date, clocking in at 45 minutes.


CRITICAL RECEPTION

Opinion towards Weezer's fifth album was mixed, receiving both accolades and derision from the music press. Its Metacritic score reflects this, where the album is currently listed at 52 (out of 100).9 Thus, some publications like the All Music Guide and Rolling Stone gave it high remarks, like comparing the album to the band's earlier release '' Pinkerton '' in terms of its songwriting, sound, and initial critical reaction.
10 Other reviewers panned the album, like Pitchfork Media 's stark 0.4 (out of 10), where reviewer Rob Mitchum notoriously stated, "Sometimes an album is just awful. Make Believe is one of those albums."11


MUSIC SAMPLE



PERSONNEL



MISCELLANEA

  • "Freak Me Out" is one of two songs that Weezer have never played live in concert, the other being "Possibilities".


  • The liner notes feature a monologue from William Shakespeare 's play The Tempest . The monologue is taken from Act 5, Scene 1 of the play in which Prospero gives up his magic. This had prompted many fans to speculate that "Make Believe" would be the band's final album. Recent news concerning a sixth album due in 2008 casts doubt upon this interpretation. The monologue is as follows: