Mandatory Fun

Mandatory Fun is the fourteenth studio album by American musician "Weird Al" Yankovic. Self-produced, the album was released by RCA Records in the United States on July 15, 2014. Yankovic had previously released Alpocalypse in 2011, and toured in support of it when he first spoke of his next record. When he began to work on what would become Mandatory Fun, Yankovic found himself listening to older acts, many of which he would stylistically spoof on the album.

Recorded at studios in Los Angeles and Massachusetts from 2012 to 2014, the album contains twelve songs, which include parodies of songs by Pharrell Williams, Robin Thicke, Iggy Azalea, Lorde and Imagine Dragons. It also features original songs in the form of pastiche, imitating the styles of the Pixies, Cat Stevens, Foo Fighters, Crosby, Stills & Nash and Southern Culture on the Skids. Yankovic composed the originals first, and wrote parodies last in order for them to be as timely as possible upon the album's release. Many artists reacted positively to being parodied; Williams remarked that he was "honored" to be spoofed by Yankovic, while Imagine Dragons advised Yankovic on how to replicate sounds in their original song.

Fun

Fun is the enjoyment of pleasure, particularly in leisure activities. Fun is an experience — short-term, often unexpected, informal, not cerebral and generally purposeless. It is an enjoyable distraction, diverting the mind and body from any serious task or contributing an extra dimension to it. Although particularly associated with recreation and play, fun may be encountered during work, social functions, and even seemingly mundane activities of daily living. It may often have little to no logical basis, and opinions on whether or not an activity is fun may differ. A distinction between enjoyment and fun is difficult but possible to articulate, fun being a more spontaneous, playful, or active event. There are psychological and physiological implications to the experience of fun.

Etymology and usage

The word is associated with sports, high merriment, and amusement. Although its etymology is uncertain, it may be derived from fonne (fool) and fonnen (the one fooling the other). Its meaning in 1727 was "cheat, trick, hoax", a meaning still retained in the phrase "to make fun of".

Fun?

Fun? is the second album from the British rock band The Candyskins. It contains their hit single "Wembley". It is the band's last release on a major label, being dropped by Geffen following two years of inactivity after its release. The disagreement with the label led to the arrest of Nick and Mark Cope, the band's lead singer and rhythm guitarist, for spray painting 'No Fun' on the wall of their former employer.

Track list

All songs written and composed by Nick Burton and Nick Cope, except where noted. 

Personnel

Reception

Dave Thompson wrote in his book Alternative Rock that the band with this release "emphasize the rock'n'pop with bigger sound, riddled with soaring leads, rougher riffs, [and] some genuinely meaty power chords". Tom Demalon of Allmusic says the "lyrics, mainly dealing with failed relationships, contrast the sweetness and lightweight feel of the music" and that the tracks highlight "the band's musical diversity".John M. Borack writes in Shake Some Action that album is "[h]ugely entertaining and vastly underrated".

Fun (disambiguation)

Fun generally refers to recreation or entertainment.

Fun may also refer to:

Music

Media

Transportation