View source for The Black Sessions (Weezer)

{{DISPLAYTITLE:''The Black Sessions'' (Weezer)}}
{{Sources|January 2022}}
{{Infobox album
| name         = The Black Sessions
| type         = Unofficial bootleg
| artist       = [[Weezer]]
| cover        = The Black Sessions 2004 Cover.jpg
| alt          =
| released     = various
| format       =
| recorded     = [[February 21]], [[1995]]<ref name="rechist">[[Karl Koch|Koch, Karl]]. "Radio station performance, 2/21/95 - Paris, France "The Black Session" show.". ''Recording History''. Archived from the original on Weezerpedia at [[Recording History - Page 8#Radio station performance, 2/21/95 - Paris, France "The Black Session" show.|Recording History - Page 8]].</ref>
| studio       =
| genre        =
| length       = 25:09
| label        = Sangatte Records <small>(bootleg)</small>
| producer     =
| reviews      =
| metascore    =
| song_reviews =
| prev_title   =
| prev_year    =
| next_title   =
| next_year    =
}}

'''''The Black Sessions''''' is the title of {{PN|Weezer}} [[Weezer concert: 02/21/1995|February 21, 1995 performance]] on the French radio show ''C'est Lenoir''. It was bootlegged and circulated on cassette in the '90s, at one point gaining the title '''''Live in Paris & Boston''''' from [[Karl Koch]]. The performance is believed to have been pressed officially as a promotional CD and sent in limited quantities to radio stations for re-broadcasting, though proof of these promos is tenuous. Since the early '00s (and into the '10s), the bootleg label Sangatte Records has sold CD-Rs of the recording in fake promotional sleeves.

==Overview==
''The Black Sessions'' was a regular series of live performances on the French radio show ''C'est Lenoir'', airing on [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/France_Inter France Inter]. On [[February 21]], [[1995]], at Studio 105 of Maison de la Radio in Paris, France, Weezer played an opening set for [[Radiohead]]. They performed six songs from ''[[Weezer (The Blue Album)]]'', with fans often considering this show to contain more "raw" recordings of the tracks than their album counterparts.{{Citation needed}} "[[Undone - The Sweater Song]]" is performed with unique spoken segments (as it often is when performed live); notably, [[Rivers Cuomo]] sings in French in the first verse, and [[Matt Sharp]] sings the chorus of the Radiohead song "Creep" in the second. Weezer's portion of the show was filmed by Karl Koch.<ref name="rechist" />

According to Koch, recordings of this performance were later made into a very limited set of promotional CDs for the purpose of re-broadcast.<ref>[[Karl Koch|Koch, Karl]]. "page 1: Blue Album era releases (1992-1995) (+ re-releases)". ''Collectors Discography''. Archived from the original on Weezerpedia at [[Collectors Discography - Page 1]].</ref> In the [[Collectors Discography]], a digital catalog of physical Weezer releases which was first created by Koch in [[2001]], it is claimed that there exists official promo pressings from [[1995]] which are nearly identical to later bootleg pressings. Later, on the [[Weezerpedia]] Discord server, Koch suggested that a copy of an original promo is owned by Matt Sharp or [[Brian Bell]].<ref>[[Karl Koch|Koch, Karl]] (as Karlophone). (March 22, 2022). Discord message. Archived from the original on Weezerpedia at [[Weezerpedia Discord Q&A with Karl Koch - March 2022]].</ref> While it is possible that an official archival or promotional version of the performance was pressed in 1995, evidence of this has never surfaced. It can be assumed that an official release which shares the sleeve design of later bootlegs does not exist (despite Koch's claim), as all existing ''Black Sessions'' CDs which utilize the same art (including those of other bands' performances—of which there are many<ref>"Sangatte Records". Discogs. Archived from the original at https://web.archive.org/web/20220717160233/https://www.discogs.com/label/65782-Sangatte-Records.</ref>) are verifiably bootlegs created after 2000. It is likely that Koch simply mistook a bootleg "promo" as having been authentic, or otherwise lost information in translation when speaking to the French radio station's staff.

The bootleg label Sangatte Records is the main progenitor of these fake promotional discs. The label burns CD-Rs of different shows which have aired on France Inter, most notably ''Black Sessions'' and ''Les Inrocks'', and sells the discs online claiming they are rare promotional or limited edition copies. The known years of release of Weezer ''Black Sessions'' bootleg releases include [[2004]], [[2008]], [[2009]], and [[2012]], however the exact number of unique versions is not known. Different iterations of the bootlegs have minor differences in design and packaging. Sangatte additionally released bootlegs for [[The Black Sessions (The Rentals)|the Rentals' ''Black Sessions'' performance]] and [[Weezer concert: 08/18/1996|Weezer's 1996 performance at La route du Rock]].

The earliest known bootlegs of the show existed on cassette, rather than CD-R. In the [[Weezine Issue 5 - Winter 1996|Winter 1996 issue]] of ''[[Weezine]]'', the quarterly [[Weezer Fan Club]] zine, Koch reports having received information about a bootleg cassette tape which features, on one side, the ''Black Sessions'' radio performance, and on the other, a fan recording of the band's [[Weezer concert: 08/02/1995|August 2, 1995 show in Mansfield, MA]]. In the following [[Weezine Issue 7 - Summer 1996|Summer 1996 issue]], the tape is listed amongst other notable bootlegs (such as ''[[Geezer]]'' and ''[[Rock Candy]]'') in Koch's "Discography Q&A/News" section of [[Karl's Corner]], and given the unofficial title ''Live in Paris & Boston''. By the next issue, the release would be removed from Koch's list of bootlegs, as there was too great a number of individual, traded cassette recordings of shows to be plausibly tracked.<ref>[[Karl Koch|Koch, Karl]]. (1996). "Discography Update". ''[[Weezine Issue 7 - Summer 1996|Weezine Issue #7 - Summer 1996]]'' (pg. 10).</ref>

==Tracklist== 
{{Track listing
| total_length    = 25:09
| title1          = [[Buddy Holly]]
| length1         = 3:04
| title2          = [[No One Else]]
| length2         = 3:52
| title3          = [[The World Has Turned and Left Me Here]]
| length3         = 3:53
| title4          = [[Say It Ain't So]]
| length4         = 5:08
| title5          = [[Undone - The Sweater Song]]
| length5         = 5:10
| title6          = [[Surf Wax America]]
| length6         = 4:02
}}
==Gallery==
====Bootleg releases====
<gallery>
Image:The Black Sessions 2004 Cover.jpg|Cover of the [[2004]] release
Image:The Black Sessions 2004 Back.jpg|Back Cover of the [[2004]] release
Image:The Black Sessiosn 2004 Disc.jpg|Disc of the [[2004]] release
Image:Black Sessions 2008 Cover.png|Cover of the [[2008]] release
Image:Black Sessions 2009 Cover.png|Cover of the [[2009]] release
Image:Black Sessions 2012 Cover.png|Cover of the [[2012]] release
Image:Black Sessions 2012 Back.png|Back Cover of the [[2012]] release
Image:Black Sessions 2012 Disc.png|Disc of the [[2012]] release
</gallery>

==Audio==
<youtube>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YHBFi459Sh8</youtube>

==See also==
*[[Weezer concert: 02/21/1995]]
*[[Black Sessions (disambiguation)]]
*[[List of unofficial bootlegs (physical)]]

==References==
<references />

[[Category: Weezer albums]]
[[Category: Studio performance]]
[[Category:Promotional release]]