In the fall of 1997, fans lucky enough to attend any of Rivers Cuomo’s solo Boston shows heard songs that were either never intended for Weezer, or intended for a future Weezer album that never was (it’s a paradox, just go with it).
One of those tracks was a song called ‘Hot Tub,’ written from the perspective of a deeply vulnerable guy who just wanted to party with a girl. At the time, Rivers casually told the crowd that ‘Hot Tub’ was a “joke song… so don’t take it too seriously.” Because it was a Rivers solo joint between Pinkerton and Green, most fans chalked it up as an interesting curiosity and moved on.
A few years later, Rivers shared his original 1993 demo with fans. Not only was it in much higher quality, but it featured a different bridge that made the narrator seem even more exposed. Unlike the live performances with his band, the studio demo boasted full instrumentation complete with organ-like keys alongside the electric guitars.
Along with the release, Rivers shared a surprising backstory: he wrote ‘Hot Tub’ for Tom Jones.
‘What’s New, Pussycat?’ Tom Jones.
The guy Marge Simpson had a crush on Tom Jones.
The amateur pilot who survived an alien invasion Tom Jones. (Well, not yet.)
Around 1993, someone in management had a connection to Jones’ team, who was actively soliciting tracks for his upcoming 1994 album, The Lead and How to Swing It. Listening back, you can actually hear it. The melody of ‘Hot Tub’s’ chorus and the drive of those organ keys genuinely sound like something tailored for a big, brassy Tom Jones delivery.
There was just one problem: it was the mid-’90s. Tom Jones was on album covers wearing mesh shirts, strutting through videos offering fans two tickets to the gun show.
Jones was leaning hard into his swaggering, hyper-masculine image. There was no universe where he was going to belt out lyrics like:
“Sometimes I’m so disappointed
I can’t be more of a man
Sometimes my life feels so empty
Not letting love play her hand.”
Rivers wrote ‘Hot Tub’ in 1993, just before Weezer headed to New York to record The Blue Album. Landing a placement on a Tom Jones record before their own debut was even out would have been a massive accomplishment for a young songwriter. But if Jones had taken it, we likely would have lost out on Rivers’ own home demo and those raw ’97 live performances.
In the end, it’s probably a good thing Tom Jones turned down that trip to Rivers’ hot tub.















