During the recording of their debut album, "Weezer" (aka "The Blue Album") in 1993, Cropper learned that Amy Wellner, his girlfriend in Los Angeles, was pregnant. The ramifications of this news started affecting Cropper's personality and disrupting the band's working environment. When Wellner showed up unannounced in New York with no place to stay, Cuomo considered it the final straw and informed Cropper that he had to leave the band. Weezer collaborator Karl Koch said: "He wasn't handling it well ... he always said he was fine, and then 20 minutes later he'd be up on the roof of Electric Lady screaming or something." According to Cropper, lead singer Rivers Cuomo told him he could not allow him to jeopardize the band's work and asked him to leave. He was replaced by guitarist Brian Bell.