We Are All on Drugs
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"We Are All on Drugs" is a song by American
alternative rock Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from mainstream or commerci ...
band
Weezer Weezer is an American rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1992. Since 2001, the band has consisted of Rivers Cuomo (vocals, guitar, keyboards), Patrick Wilson (drums, backing vocals), Scott Shriner (bass guitar, keyboards, backing ...
. It was released as the second single from the band's 2005 album, ''
Make Believe Make believe, also known as pretend play, is a loosely structured form of play that generally includes role-play, object substitution and nonliteral behavior. What separates play from other daily activities is its fun and creative aspect rather t ...
''. "We Are All on Drugs" was released to radio on July 12, 2005. The song is not specifically about drugs. Rather,
Rivers Cuomo Rivers Cuomo ( ; born June 13, 1970) is an American musician. He is the lead vocalist, guitarist, pianist, and songwriter of the rock band Weezer. Cuomo was raised in a number of Buddhist communities in the Northeast U.S. until the age of 10, wh ...
has said that it is more generally about the over-stimulated society addicted to the internet, gambling, drugs and relationships.


Alternate lyrics

The song went into mixing with two lines in the bridge:, "I want to confiscate your drugs/ I don't think I can get enough", and was eventually released that way on early printings of the album, and on published sheet music. It was replaced on future printings (as well as on the CD single) with "I want to reach a higher
plane Plane(s) most often refers to: * Aero- or airplane, a powered, fixed-wing aircraft * Plane (geometry), a flat, 2-dimensional surface Plane or planes may also refer to: Biology * Plane (tree) or ''Platanus'', wetland native plant * ''Planes' ...
/ where things will never be the same." An edited version of the song for MTV "We Are All in Love", changed "on drugs" to "in love" in the chorus. Patrick Wilson suggested having the edit be "We Are All on Hugs", which Cuomo thought was too "quirky".
Brian Bell Brian Lane Bell (born December 9, 1968) is an American musician, singer, and songwriter. He is best known as the rhythm guitarist, keyboardist, backing vocalist, and occasional lead vocalist of the rock band Weezer, with whom he has recorded f ...
suggested the "in love" edit. Despite this edit the headline "WE ARE ALL ON DRUGS" still remains on the newspaper Cuomo reads at the barber shop in the music video.


Music video

The music video for the song features
Rivers Cuomo Rivers Cuomo ( ; born June 13, 1970) is an American musician. He is the lead vocalist, guitarist, pianist, and songwriter of the rock band Weezer. Cuomo was raised in a number of Buddhist communities in the Northeast U.S. until the age of 10, wh ...
wandering through a world where people appear to be on drugs (with many of the extras miming to the lyrics). The video was directed by Justin Francis. The video was the most complex shoot in Weezer history, spanning two days, having various actors, special effects and at one point according to
Brian Bell Brian Lane Bell (born December 9, 1968) is an American musician, singer, and songwriter. He is best known as the rhythm guitarist, keyboardist, backing vocalist, and occasional lead vocalist of the rock band Weezer, with whom he has recorded f ...
, nearly being shut down by the police.
Rick Rubin Frederick Jay Rubin (; born March 10, 1963) is an American record producer. He is the co-founder (alongside Russell Simmons) of Def Jam Recordings, founder of American Recordings, and former co-president of Columbia Records. Rubin helped popula ...
, the song's producer, makes a cameo as a firefighter towards the end.


Inspiration

Cuomo said about the song:
I was living in an apartment above the Sunset Strip, and every Friday and Saturday night I'd hear people cruising and partying, and hooting and hollering. And I went to sleep one night and I heard those sounds all through the night, in my dreams. I had this dream about a kid on the Metro bus, blasting hip hop into his brain through his headphones. And the music sounded so decadent and overstimulating, and I woke up in the midst of that dream, in a haze, and immediately said to myself, "Man, we're all on drugs!" And I instantly knew that would be a cool song.
In a May 9, 2005 interview with Y100, Cuomo talked about the song: "Don't take it literally...I'm singing more about the fact fhow addicted we all are to stimulating ourselves, and over-stimulating ourselves with music, or whatever it is in our lives. t'snot necessarily about drugs."


Reception

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...
writer Stephen Thomas Erlewine thought that "We Are All on Drugs" was one of the three highlights on the album.


Track listing

UK retail 7" (Pink vinyl) #"We Are All on Drugs" #"
Beverly Hills Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California. A notable and historic suburb of Greater Los Angeles, it is in a wealthy area immediately southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. ...
" (Urbanix Mix) UK retail CD #"We Are All on Drugs" #"Beverly Hills" (Urbanix Mix) #"Burndt Jamb" (Live) #"We Are All on Drugs" ( CD-ROM video) The video featured on the CD is the song playing over a re-edited version of Grim Reaper's 1985 video "Fear No Evil"


Personnel

*
Rivers Cuomo Rivers Cuomo ( ; born June 13, 1970) is an American musician. He is the lead vocalist, guitarist, pianist, and songwriter of the rock band Weezer. Cuomo was raised in a number of Buddhist communities in the Northeast U.S. until the age of 10, wh ...
– lead vocals, guitar *
Brian Bell Brian Lane Bell (born December 9, 1968) is an American musician, singer, and songwriter. He is best known as the rhythm guitarist, keyboardist, backing vocalist, and occasional lead vocalist of the rock band Weezer, with whom he has recorded f ...
– rhythm guitar *
Scott Shriner Scott Gardner Shriner (born July 11, 1965) is an American musician best known as a member of the rock band Weezer, with whom he has recorded twelve studio albums. Joining the band in 2001, Shriner is the band's longest serving bass guitarist. Pri ...
– bass guitar * Patrick Wilson – drums, percussion *
Rick Rubin Frederick Jay Rubin (; born March 10, 1963) is an American record producer. He is the co-founder (alongside Russell Simmons) of Def Jam Recordings, founder of American Recordings, and former co-president of Columbia Records. Rubin helped popula ...
production Production may refer to: Economics and business * Production (economics) * Production, the act of manufacturing goods * Production, in the outline of industrial organization, the act of making products (goods and services) * Production as a stati ...


Charts


References


External links


"We Are All in Love: Censorship Absurdity Reaches New Heights" by David Lawson
* {{DEFAULTSORT:We Are All On Drugs 2005 singles Weezer songs Songs about drugs Songs written by Rivers Cuomo Song recordings produced by Rick Rubin 2004 songs