Fake Smiles and Nervous Laughter

"Fake Smiles and Nervous Laughter"
Single by Weezer
Album	The White Album (Deluxe)
Released	October 7, 2016
Format	Vinyl, Digital
Length	3:26
Label	Crush Music/Atlantic Records
Writer(s)	Rivers Cuomo
Producer(s)	Jake Sinclair
Status	officially released
Stream	Spotify
	Apple Music
Weezer singles chronology
"I Love the USA" (2016) "Fake Smiles and Nervous Laughter" (2016) "The Last Days of Summer" (2016)
The White Album (Deluxe) track listing
"Friend of a Friend" (13) "Fake Smiles and Nervous Laughter" (14)
Album art
The White Album (Deluxe) Art

"Fake Smiles and Nervous Laughter" is a single by Weezer. It was released as a vinyl single and as the 14th track on the deluxe version of The White Album.

Overview

Rivers Cuomo tweeting the title in 2011[1]

"Fake Smiles and Nervous Laughter" was first listed as the name of a b-side of The White Album by Rivers Cuomo on the fan club Facebook page. The title of the song had previously been tweeted by Cuomo years earlier, on May 29, 2011, though it is not known the degree to which the final song existed at this point.

On September 9th of 2016, Karl Koch announced that a new song would be released as a 7" vinyl, separate from the yearly fan club single. The song was revealed soon after as "Fake Smiles and Nervous Laughter", with the b-side being a cover of "You Gave Your Love to Me Softly" by the band Wavves. 2,000 copies were produced, with half being black and half being translucent blue. The item went on presale on September 12, 2016 and was shipped out in December of that year. Due to poor packaging, some fans reported that they received an empty box in the mail.

B-side art

The song was heard for the first time on Zane Lowe's Beats 1 radio show on October 5, 2016.

The song was included as the final track on the digital White Album deluxe version, which released online on October 7th.

The artwork, drawn by Nicholas Gazin, is a callback to the Pinkerton art. The incorrect font for "Weezer" is used, using Century Gothic.

Tracklist

1. Side A: "Fake Smiles and Nervous Laughter" - 3:26
2. Side B: "You Gave Your Love to Me Softly" (Wavves cover) – 1:51

Lyrics

Grungey girls and punk rock boys
Can't be heard above the noise
Awkward handshakes, bumps, and hugs, oh-oh
It's not the way you thought it was

I would rather hear you curse me out
Than give me fake smiles and all that nervous laughter
When you say what you hate
Makes me feel kind of great
You have authority

Taxi drivers sell their weed
My Ani DiFranco scream
Gold high tops with no socks on
Go ahead and move along

I would rather hear you curse me out
Than give me fake smiles and all that nervous laughter
When you say what you hate
Makes me feel kind of great
You have authority

I would rather see you flip me off
Than give me fake smiles and all that nervous laughter
When you say what you hate
Makes me feel kind of great
It's beautiful to me

It's hard to be real
With all the temptations
And all the flying daggers
It's hard to be true
When honesty kills you
Can anybody hear me?

I'm breaking down, y'know
Give me a chance to let you know
It's hard to be true
When honesty kills you
Can anybody hear me?

I would rather hear you curse me out
Than give me fake smiles and all that nervous laughter
When you say what you hate
Makes me feel kind of great
You have authority

I would rather see you flip me off
Than give me fake smiles and all that nervous laughter
When you say what you hate
Makes me feel kind of great
It's beautiful to me

See also

• List of Weezer songs