When word first came out about "Weird Al" Yankovic's career-spanning boxset, some details were yet to be confirmed, such as the content of the bonus disc entitled Medium Rarities.  But the wait is over, and the tracks that are included on that long-awaited disc have just been released!

Compiled by Yankovic himself, Medium Rarities includes 22 tracks that span the entirety of Al's whole career from his first commercial release ("Take Me Down" from a 1978 various artists compilation LP) to a recording made for a 2017 film (the new recording of his "Happy Birthday" for the movie How To Be A Latin Lover, due on April 28th).  In between you will find a demo ("Yoda"), alternate versions of songs (such as the instrumental version of "Dare To Be Stupid"), various songs appeared on CD singles (such as "Spy Hard") and other tracks which were available unofficially but have never been on a legitimate CD that fans have wanted for years (like "Pac-Man" - Al's parody of The Beatles' "Taxman" - you can preview the track now on Vevo).  One track, "The Brain Song," has never been heard outside of its appearance in the 3-D movie Al's Brain, made exclusively for the exhibit of the same name at the 2009 Orange County Fair.

Nearly a full third of the compilation comes from Al's various television appearances over the years.  The earliest of these is "Lousy Haircut," a parody of The Prodigy's "Firestarter" from 1997's The Weird Al Show.  Also included are songs from his guest stints on shows like The Simpsons, 30 Rock, Galavant and even My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic.  Two tracks are from very recent TV roles for Al: his version of the Comedy Bang! Bang! theme from when he was the band leader in its fifth and final season, and a song from Milo's Murphy Law where he voices the lead character.

Of course, with any set like this, there will be some omissions.  This was known from the start, as it would take several discs to include every non-album track Yankovic has made over the years.  There are some demos and other songs which have played on the Dr. Demento show in Al's early years and some alternate edits and versions of songs from singles.  You could probably fill nearly a disc with instrumental versions of songs released over the years.  The Weird Al Show has more musical content which has never been released on CD, but of course can be heard on its DVD set.  Arguably the two biggest omissions of released, extant songs were not included due to licensing issues.  It had been revealed previously that "You're Pitiful," Al's parody of James Blunts' "You're Beautiful" could not be included, but it has also been reported that "Polkamon," Al's contribution to the Pokemon: The Movie 2000 soundtrack, also could not be licensed.  But the disc does offer numerous treats for longtime fans and as Yankovic put it together himself, there is almost certainly nothing else missing that he would have liked to include.

The release date for the box is November 24th  It is available exclusively through Pledgemusic.com in several CD or LP bundles.  The site has been updated to say that you need to order by March 20 in order to guarantee that you receive the set.  Apparently, after that date, it could sell out at any time.  There has been no word on any other release of the box set.  When you preorder, you also get access to updates about the project which normally come in the form of videos, several of which have become available since the ordering period began.  Also, the remastered versions of the albums have already become available digitally on HDTracks.

Our original article and the newly, updated FULL tracklisting for the set appear below and you can head to Pledgemusic if you'd like to see what the various bundles are if you'd like to own the set yourself.

ORIGINAL ARTICLE OF JANUARY 12, 2017: Last June, word came out that this year would see the release of a box set containing all of "Weird Al" Yankovic's studio albums.  Over six months have gone by with not much more being revealed, but a few more details have just been announced today.

The appropriately-titled Squeeze Box: The Complete Works of "Weird Al" Yankovic will be released on November 24.  Produced by Legacy Recordings, it will be available via PledgeMusic.  CD, vinyl and digital versions will be released.  Both physical versions will be housed in a replica of Al's own accordion.  The set will contain all 14 of Yankovic's studio albums from 1983's "Weird Al" Yankovic to 2014's Mandatory Fun.  A 15th disc, entitled Medium Rarities will contain "non-album tracks from across [Yankovic's] remarkable career" and is being put together by Al himself.

Some of the new details to emerge reveal that all of the albums have been remastered by Grammy Award winner Mark Wilder and approved by Yankovic.  Six of the albums (from 1992's Off The Deep End to 2006's Straight Outta Lynwood) will be making their vinyl debut in the box.  A 100-page book will also be included, featuring "a trove of rare and unseen photos and memorabilia."  The tracklisting for the bonus disc has not been revealed, and according to a post from a couple of weeks ago on the Steve Hoffman Forum by Bermuda Schwartz, a longtime member of Al's band who is also working on the box, the exact contents were still being finalized.  However, PledgeMusic promises "demos and rarities."

In a career stretching for nearly 40 years, Yankovic has become the preeminent musical comedian/song parodist in the world.  He has parodied dozens of the biggest acts in the industry and his career has lasted much longer than some of his comedic targets.  He is the recipient of several Grammy Awards and his last album, Mandatory Fun, actually topped the Billboard charts, the first comedy album in over 50 years to reach the peak.  Yankovic also remained busy in 2016 as he wrapped up a 2-year tour in support of Fun and completed a gig as the co-host for the fifth season of IFC's Comedy Bang! Bang!.  He currently voices the lead character in DisneyXD's cartoon Milo Murphy's Law.

The Squeeze Box is available for preorder here on PledgeMusic.  Once you join the site and pre-order the set, you will receive an AccessPass, which will give you "exclusive artist updates, bonus content, and more."  There are also several bundles with extra content (T-shirts, art prints) you may purchase.  It is unknown at this time if the box will become available through any other outlet, but it is not expected to reach general retail.

When the full tracklisting for the box is revealed or any more details emerge, we will of course keep you updated.

"Weird Al" Yankovic, Squeeze Box: The Complete Works of "Weird Al" Yankovic (Legacy Recordings, 2017)

Disc 1 - "Weird Al" Yankovic (Rock 'N' Roll Records LP BFZ 38679, 1983)

1. Ricky
2. Gotta Boogie
3. I Love Rocky Road
4. Buckingham Blues
5. Happy Birthday
6. Stop Draggin' My Car Around
7. My Bologna
8. The Check's In The Mail
9. Another One Rides The Bus
10. I'll Be Mellow When I'm Dead
11. Such A Groovy Guy
12. Mr. Frump in the Iron Lung

Disc 2 - "Weird Al" Yankovic In 3-D (Rock 'N' Roll Records LP BFZ 39221, 1984)

1. Eat It
2. Midnight Star
3. The Brady Bunch
4. Buy Me A Condo
5. I Lost on Jeopardy
6. Polkas on 45
7. Mr. Popeil
8. King of Suede
9. That Boy Could Dance
10. Theme from Rocky XVIII
11. Nature Trail To Hell

Disc 3 - Dare To Be Stupid (Rock 'N' Roll Records LP FZ 40033, 1985)

1. Like A Surgeon
2. Dare To Be Stupid
3. I Want A New Duck
4. One More Minute
5. Yoda
6. George of the Jungle
7. Slime Creatures from Outer Space
8. Girls Just Want to Have Lunch
9. This Is the Life
10. Cable TV
11. Hooked on Polkas

Disc 4 - Polka Party! (Rock 'N' Roll Records LP Z 40520, 1986)

1. Living With a Hernia
2. Dog Eat Dog
3. Addicted to Spuds
4. One of Those Days
5. Polka Party!
6. Here's Johnny
7. Don't Wear Those Shoes
8. Toothless People
9. Good Enough For Now
10. Christmas At Ground Zero

Disc 5 - Even Worse (Rock 'N' Roll Records LP FZ 44149, 1988)

1. Fat
2. Stuck In Closet With Vanna White
3. (This Song's Just) Six Words Long
4. You Make Me
5. I Think I'm Clone Now
6. Lasagna
7. Melanie
8. Alimony
9. Velvet Elvis
10. Twister
11. Good Old Days

Disc 6 - UHF - Original Motion Picture Soundtrack and Other Stuff (Rock 'N' Roll Records LP Z 45265, 1989)

1. Money For Nothing/Beverly Hillbillies
2. Gandhi II
3. Attack of the Radioactive Hamsters from a Planet Near Mars
4. Isle Thing
5. The Hot Rocks Polka
6. UHF
7. Let Me Be Your Hog
8. She Drives Like Crazy
9. Generic Blues
10. Spatula City
11. Fun Zone
12. Spam
13. The Biggest Ball of Twine in Minnesota

Disc 7 - Off The Deep End (Scotti Bros. Records CD 72392 75256-2, 1992)

1. Smells Like Nirvana
2. Trigger Happy
3. I Can't Watch This
4. Polka Your Eyes Out
5. I Was Only Kidding
6. The White Stuff
7. When I Was Your Age
8. Taco Grande
9. Airline Amy
10. The Plumbing Song
11. You Don't Love Me Anymore

Disc 8 - Alapalooza (Scotti Bros. Records CD 72392 75415-2, 1993)

1. Jurassic Park
2. Young, Dumb & Ugly
3. Bedrock Anthem
4. Frank's 2000" TV
5. Achy Breaky Song
6. Traffic Jam
7. Talk Soup
8. Livin' in the Fridge
9. She Never Told Me She Was a Mime
10. Harvey The Wonder Hamster
11. Waffle King
12. Bohemian Polka

Disc 9 - Bad Hair Day (Scotti Bros. Records CD 72392 75500-2, 1996)

1. Amish Paradise
2. Everything You Know Is Wrong
3. Cavity Search
4. Callin' In Sick
5. The Alternative Polka
6. Since You've Been Gone
7. Gump
8. I'm So Sick Of You
9. Syndicated, Inc.
10. I Remember Larry
11. Phony Calls
12. The Night Santa Went Crazy

Disc 10 - Running with Scissors (Volcano/Way Moby CD 61422 32118-2, 1999)

1. The Saga Begins
2. My Baby's In Love With Eddie Vedder
3. Pretty Fly For a Rabbi
4. The Weird Al Show Theme
5. Jerry Springer
6. Germs
7. Polka Power!
8. Your Horoscope For Today
9. It's All About the Pentiums
10. Truck Drivin' Song
11. Grapefruit Diet
12. Albuquerque

Disc 11 - Poodle Hat (Volcano/Way Moby CD 61422-32194-2, 2003)

1. Couch Potato
2. Hardware Store
3. Trash Day
4. Party At the Leper Colony
5. Angry White Boy Polka
6. Wanna B Ur Lovr
7. A Complicated Song
8. Why Does This Always Happen To Me?
9. Ode To a Superhero
10. Bob
11. eBay
12. Genius In France

Disc 12 - Straight Outta Lynwood (Volcano/Way Moby/Zomba CD 82876-89951-2, 2006)

1. White & Nerdy
2. Pancreas
3. Canadian Idiot
4. I'll Sue Ya
5. Polkarama!
6. Virus Alert
7. Confessions Part III
8. Weasel Stomping Day
9. Close But No Cigar
10. Do I Creep You Out
11. Trapped in the Drive-Thru
12. Don't Download This Song

Disc 13 - Alpocalypse (Volcano/Way Moby/Jive CD 88697-89326-2, 2011)

1. Perform This Way
2. CNR
3. TMZ
4. Skipper Dan
5. Polka Face
6. Craigslist
7. Party in the CIA
8. Ringtone
9. Another Tattoo
10. If That Isn't Love
11. Whatever You Like
12. Stop Forwarding That Crap To Me

Disc 14 - Mandatory Fun (RCA/Way Moby CD 88843-09375-2, 2014)

1. Handy
2. Lame Claim to Fame
3. Foil
4. Sports Song
5. Word Crimes
6. My Own Eyes
7. Now That's What I Call Polka!
8. Mission Statement
9. Inactive
10. First World Problems
11. Tacky
12. Jackson Park Express

Disc 15 - Medium Rarities (Bonus Disc)

1. Take Me Down
2. My Bologna (Single Version)
3. Yoda (Demo)
4. Dr. Demento Jingle
5. Pac-Man
6. Dare to Be Stupid (Instrumental)
7. Jurashiku Park
8. Headline News
9. Since You've Been Gone (Karaoke Version)
10. The Night Santa Went Crazy (Extra Gory Version)
11. Spy Hard
12. Lousy Haircut (from The Weird Al Show)
13. Homer and Marge (from The Simpsons)
14. The Brain Song
15. 30 Rock Theme Parody
16. Super Duper Party Pony (from My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic)
17. Sir Isaac Newton vs. Bill Nye (from Epic Rap Battles of History)
18. Let the Pun Fit the Crime (from Wander Over Yonder)
19. Hey, Hey We're the Monks (from Galavant)
20. Comedy Bang! Bang!Theme
21. It's My World (and We're All Living In It) (from Milo Murphy's Law)
22. Happy Birthday (New Version)

Disc 15, Track 1 from Slo Grown, San Luis Records LP, 1978
Disc 15, Track 2 from Capitol Records Single 4816, 1979
Disc 15, Tracks 3 - 5, 12, 14, 15, 17, 18, 20, 22 Previously Unreleased
Disc 15, Tracks 6, 10 from "Amish Paradise" CD Single, Scotti Bros. Records/Rock 'N' Roll Records 72392 78061-2, 1996
Disc 15, Track 7 from Alapalooza (Japanese Edition), Scotti Bros. Records CD PCCY-00489, 1993
Disc 15, Track 8 from Permanent Record: Al in the Box, Scotti Bros. Records/Rock 'N' Roll Records CD 72392 75451-2, 1994
Disc 15, Tracks 9, 11 from "Gump" CD Single, Scotti Bros. Records/Rock 'N' Roll Records 72392 78074-2, 1996
Disc 15, Track 13 from Testify, Shout! Factory CD 826663-10537, 2007
Disc 15, Track 16 from Friendship Is Magic: Pinkie Pie's Party Playlist, Legacy Recordings Digital Album Release, 2016
Disc 15, Track 19 from Galavant - Original Soundtrack, Disney Records/Hollywood Records Digital, CD-R Album Release, 2015
Disc 15, Track 21 from "It's My World (And We're All Living In It)" Walt Disney Records Digital Single Release, 2016