Weezer Mates Bury the Hatchet

Rivers Cuomo's estrangement from former Weezer bassist Matt Sharp officially ended on February 12th, when the pair shared the stage for the first time since 1997. Attendees of Sharp's California State Fullerton solo gig were stunned as they witnessed the Weezer frontman join Sharp for several numbers, including "Blue Album" classics "Undone (The Sweater Song)" and "Say It Ain't So," and a new tune, "Time Song," that the ex-bandmates recently wrote together.

The fence-mending came at the urging of Weezer guitarist Brian Bell, who brought Cuomo to Sharp's show in Los Angeles last autumn. "Since Rivers and I split into our separate directions, I've spent a lot of time searching for a way to fill a void that was left after losing a great friend," says Sharp, who settled a lawsuit over songwriting royalties against Weezer last year.

In addition to "Time Song," Sharp and Cuomo have been writing other songs together over the past several months. "We've decided to not to put a label on anything as of yet," Sharp says. "At this point, we're both being open to all possibilities creatively and just enjoying the process."

Despite the rekindled collaboration, Sharp has been busy with his own work since departing Weezer in 1998, before the band's commercial resurgence in 2001. He revived his band the Rentals to release 1999's Seven More Minutes and issued a solo EP, Puckett's Versus the Country Boy, last year. A self-titled full-length is due April 6th.

Despite being on his own professionally, Sharp is pleased with his resurrected friendships with his old band mates. "Rivers and I have been through more wars together standing side by side than we've fought against each other," says Sharp. "I guess there's been some turbulent waters under that bridge and I suppose we both have a few scars to show for it, but it's nothing the sun can't heal."

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Song Stories

“All Along the Watchtower”

The Jimi Hendrix Experience | 1968

Jimi Hendrix got hold of Bob Dylan's early John Wesley Harding tapes and in late 1967 recorded a version of "All Along the Watchtower" with the Experience in London. Dissatisfied with that first development, Hendrix brought those tapes with him to New York in early 1968 when he began work on Electric Ladyland. Eddie Kramer, Hendrix's engineer at the time, told Rolling Stone that Hendrix "was still looked upon by his basically white audience as the mammoth black guitar hero. There was a constant fight within him to expand himself." Hendrix's successful take on Dylan's work has long been recognized by the songwriter. "I liked Jimi Hendrix's record of this and ever since he died I've been doing it that way," Dylan wrote in the liner notes to his Biograph box set. "Strange how when I sing it, I always feel it's a tribute to him in some kind of way."

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