The subject of the song, Susanne, was a
PA at
Geffen Records when Weezer was first getting its music off the ground.
Rivers Cuomo was facing the emotional challenges of breaking into the
music business, so she would make baked goods, especially
brownies, as pick-me-ups for him, and gave him her spare winter
coat to use when he needed a
jacket, in addition to having heart-to-heart conversations via telephone with Cuomo, as is detailed in the first verse of the song. The line from the second verse, "Even
Izzy,
Slash, and
Axl Rose" was originally written with
Kurt Cobain's name but it was edited out (out of respect) after Cobain's death in 1994. Weezer's
Brian Bell has claimed it is his favorite of the group's songs. It is also part of the
set list on the 2008 US tour.