10 Weirdest Rock Songs That Became Hits
2. Jerry Was a Race Car Driver - Primus
The entire concept behind Primus has always been a bit strange from the get go. Regardless of how much Les Claypool could slap the hell out of his bass, there was always some sort of off the wall undercurrent to every single thing that the band put out. And when they actually reached the charts, it's not like that side of him was going to go away or anything.
While most of Jerry Was a Race Car Driver just focuses on Les' amazing slap technique on the bass, his vocals are what really draw you in, sounding like some sort of sketchy salesman that you'd see on the street corner as he talks about Jerry's different escapades. Even when Larry LaLonde comes in with some electric guitar, the notes that he's playing are just looking to not get in the way of what Les is doing. If anything, they make the whole thing sound even stranger, being a lot more dissonant than the rest of the band and making you feel more and more uncomfortable.
No matter what kind of music they made though, these guys had chops like nobody else, going from the off kilter weirdness to switching to some punishing metallic riffs on a dime. Considering how much bat-sh*t insanity they incorporated into just one song, it makes total sense that these guys would eventually be the ones to write the theme song to South Park.