Been Gi
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| "Been Gi" | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Cover of The Yeastmaster cassette tape
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| Demo by Rivers Cuomo | |||||
| Album | Alone V: Before Weezer | ||||
| Released | November 22, 2020 | ||||
| Recorded | Summer 1991 | ||||
| Length | 2:08 | ||||
| Writer(s) | Rivers Cuomo | ||||
| RC# | 80 | ||||
| Status | Demo circulating | ||||
| Live debut | November 29, 1991 in Petaluma, CA | ||||
| Last played | July 18, 1992 in Los Angeles, CA | ||||
| Rivers Cuomo song chronology | |||||
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"Been Gi" (pronounced like "Ben Gay" and sometimes rendered as such, also known as "Somebody Told Me Ben Gay Doesn't Work") is a song written by Rivers Cuomo and performed by 60 Wrong Sausages in 1991. The song was performed by Weezer on one occasion in 1992.
Appearances
- Alone V: Before Weezer (2020)
Overview
The song was first demoed to 8-track by Cuomo for the band 60 Wrong Sausages on July 6, 1991 under the title "Somebody Told Me Ben Gay Doesn't Work".[1] Cuomo named the song for his friend and Kyokushin classmate Takashi Hasegawa, who once mistakenly believed that Bengay (the analgesic heat rub) was meant for use on bruises.[2] The title is meant as a triple entendre: Bengay, the product; the facetious statement "been gay;" and gi, a uniform used in Japanese martial arts.[2]
The song, described as "utterly hilarious and catchy" by Karl Koch, was recorded as a band throughout September and October for the band's Cholesterol EP and while practicing the song throughout October and November.[1] 60 Wrong Sausages then dissolved shortly after their first and only concert at the end of November 1991. "Been Gi" was later performed by Weezer at an acoustic concert at the 8121 Club in Los Angeles on July 18, 1992, with Pat Finn (previously of 60 Wrong Sausages) appearing as a guest bassist and back-up vocalist.[3]
The song was included on Cuomo's 1992 demo tape Yeastmaster Pt. 1, and first released to fans on the digital demo compilation Alone V: Before Weezer in 2020.
Lyrics
 | I write these stupid words The lyrics for this song are incomplete or missing. Can you help us fill them in? If so, we encourage you to make a move! |
Even if you're walking on tiptoes in Burbank
Telly Savalas will find you and hurt you;
Often times its not so pugnacious, elacious
The German-y crickets are rubbing their legs so
Exercise your right of caution, exhaustion
Prenuptial agreements, arguments, mistake-mints
True terra[???] find a delightful, bon appétit
Pugilism starts above mount down from sound hounds
You have to wait until you're older
Oh (woo-hoo)
You have to wait until you're older
No way
Yeah
Somebody told me that Ben Gay doesn't work
A lesson in entomology doesn't really hurt
If you know where the sprouts from deep inside the earth
Double macaroni on the side is phony, you jerk
You have to wait until you're older
You have to wait until you're older
Yeah
Karl's Corner verse
A loosely-recalled excerpt from the first stanza of lyrics was hidden in the alt text of the Karl's Corner logo on weezer.com during the earliest months of the website's existence.[4]
Even if you're walking on tiptoe, through Burbank,
Telly Savales will find you and hurt you; Often times
pugnacious, elacious bon appetit; prenuptial agreements
arguments, mistake-mints.
Known recordings
| Performer(s) | Title | Filename | Date of recording | Recording location | Length | Appeared on | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rivers Cuomo | Ben Gay | 15 Ben Gay.mp3 | July 6, 1991 | 2:08 | Alone V: Before Weezer | ||
| 60 Wrong Sausages | Been Gi | September—October 1991 | 2914 Urban Ave., Santa Monica, CA | Recorded for Cholesterol EP | |||
| 60 Wrong Sausages | Been Gi | October 20, 1991 | Practice #1 | ||||
| 60 Wrong Sausages | Been Gi | October 20, 1991 | Practice #1 | ||||
| 60 Wrong Sausages | Been Gi | October 28, 1991 | Practice #3 | ||||
| 60 Wrong Sausages | Been Gi | October 28, 1991 | Practice #3, take 2 | ||||
| Weezer | Been Gi | July 17, 1992 | 8121 Club, West Hollywood, CA | Live performance, bootlegged by Karl Koch |
