Hi guys and welcome to the first post of what I hope will be a very successful thread. I am hoping that this thread will be used for all thing Stand-Up Comedy. This includes reviews of concerts, people that you would consider to very rising stars and just general thoughts on stand up comedy.
Over the last few years I have felt my sense of humour change very quickly. I guess that this is normal, as you get older, you find different things funny. As part of this change, I took to watching so much stand-up comedy, it was unreal. More Until about 3 years ago, I never, ever watched people like Eddie Murphy or Steve Martin etc because for some reason, I always thought that the older the comedy show, the more dated the material. I guess, to some extent this is true but the strength of stand-up comedy is that if it is done well and with a combination of poise and timing, a joke will always be funny.
Some of the funniest people have started or ended up in stand-up comedy. It is the biggest test that someone will endure in their professional lives. Imagine, if you will, being a supposedly funny person. Being in movies, you would not have to deal with the actual critical reception of a crowd. With stand-up comedy however, you are at the mercy of the crowd. A good comedian will manage to have the crowd on the edge of their seats for the entirety of a concert. My personal favourite is Chris Rock. I think Rock is a very progressive comedian, especially for the Black population of America. I have quite a few favourites. Dane Cook is another personal favourite of mine, along with Eddie Murphy, Dave Chappelle, Russell Peters and, of course, the legendary, Richard Pryor.
Of course, everyone has their own favourites and everyones sense of humour is completely different. Recently, their has been an influx of good comedians that really match my style of comedy well. Frankie Boyle is one of my personal favourites tight now; his close to the knuckles style of comedy is absolutely amazing. Similarly, Michael McIntyre is another good comedian. Jimmy Carr is another great example of dead-pan comedy. All of which are worth a look.
Frankie Boyle:
[youtube]VKwDSz6jJ-Q[/youtube]
Michael McIntyre:
[youtube]Es2l4yUBY6M[/youtube]
[youtube]CLPyPJTwEC4[/youtube]
[youtube]_YsJ186p17U[/youtube]
Jimmy Carr:
[youtube]9ajB7luvjzg[/youtube]
Chris Rock Never Scared.
Venue: Constitution Hall, Washington DC, USA.
Language: English
Runtime: 80 minutes/ 91 minutes (DVD)
Tagline: Stand up has never been this dangerous
Areas Covered: Drugs, Relationships, Strippers, Rap, Affirmative Action
Chris Rock, as you may know, is one of the best stand up comedians in the world. Love him or hate him, the man is exceptionally talented and is blessed with the talents of comedic timing and skill. He has had 5 HBO specials, all of which have been some of my personal favourites. Rock, in this show is outstanding once more. In Never Scared, Rock again tackles some of the most divisive topics in the United States. Those include: relationships, married life, rap music, wealth, affirmative action and drugs. Rock has never been one to sugar the pill and Never Scared is probably the finest one of his works. All of the topics are covered in great detail by Rock, who manages to keep his routine funny whilst still driving the point that he is trying to make home, with great aplomb.
After leaving SNL in 1993, Rock began to concentrate on his stand up comedy and has since found great success with it. His first special, Bring The Pain, basically gave Rock the impotence to go on from there and make more controversial routines, which the main objectives always being achieved. That is, inspire discussion and make people laugh. Rock has been phenomenally successful since Bring The Pain, Time magazine even saying that Rock was the funniest man in America. This comment came after the Never Scared and Bigger and Blacker specials. Both of which being the most successful. Both have garnered a huge amount of critical acclaim since they were recorded. Never Scared won the Grammy Best Spoken Comedy Album. Bigger and Blacker even won Rock Funniest Male Performer in a TV Special award at the American Comedy Awards in 2000.
Never Scared is probably my favourite stand-up comedy routine of all time. Rock really impresses me every time I see it but I do have one complaint. That complaint is that, sometimes I do feel that Rock plays off the hostilities that sometimes exist between Black people and White people in the United States. However, this is also Chris Rocks biggest strength. Using his skills as stand-up comedian, Rock manages to make these issues funny. Many comedians would not even go near a topic so divisive. Rock though, as he has always done goes straight for the jugular. At some points in the routine, I was squirming with laughter. In particular, Rocks summary of rap music is absolutely hilarious. If you have not seen it, here it is.
[youtube]z9A2I-X7b-w[/youtube]
As per usual, Rock is actually making some very diligent and clever points in this clip. As is previously stated, Rock manages to make these points without making the routine sound like a lecture. Take for example Rocks views on dead rappers. Some of the things you hear are absolutely absurd but at the same time, Rock is telling us his thoughts on the issue and making us laugh at very real topic. Its true. No one has ever been arrested for some of these killings and it would seem that there is at least some derision in the United States Government aimed towards the rap industry. People may say that it is because of the lack of care for African Americans in the past. Rock, however, makes a topic like this, which can be very hateful, something to laugh at.
Notable quotes
I love all the rap today but its hard to defend this shit. Its hard to defend I got hos in different area codes. On an intellectual level, Its hard to defend move, bitch, get out the way! Im tired of defending it.
Every year, Tupac comes back from the dead, records a new album with clues in it. Every record had a clue in it, if you listen real hard, It was the rigger in the red who shot me dead. Right there! Track 4. Pac is trying to tell us something.
You mean to tell me that they can find Saddam Hussein in a fucking hole but you cant tell me who shot Tupac!? They found Saddam Hussein in fucking Iraq. Tupac got shot in Vegas! The motherfucker got shot on The Strip, in front of Circus, Circus.
Rocks summary of Affirmative Action is also a prime example of how he can take such a divisive subject and make it hilarious. Some say that it is the job of a comedian, to say all of the things that needed to be said without feeling intimidated. Rock does this often but none more so than the issue of Black people in America, the example of Affirmative Action being the best one to illustrate my point. This is the video of said routine:
[youtube]fGuXm9tug5s[/youtube]
This is one of the best parts of the show and some of the most memorable moments of the show happened during this part of the routine.
Notable Quotes
When you see footage of the 60s and you see black people getting sprayed down and hosed down and dogs getting set on us Thats just white people being nice. Nicer than they was in the 50s, 30s and 40s. Theres black people who died in the 50s, 40s and 30s, looking down from heaven on the 60s saying damn then ****** got it good.
Black people dominate every physical sport in the United States of America, Okay. Were only 10% of the population but were 90% of the final four Basketball, baseball, football, boxing, track, even golf and tennis. As soon as they make a heated hockey rink, W e gonna take that shit too. Wait until you see LeBron on some skates He aint even gonna have a stick, Hes gonna smack the puck with his dick. Pow!
Overall, this is the finest piece of comedy I have seen from Chris Rock. After this routine, he had two more specials thus far and counting. All of the specials are great in their own way but if you are looking for the pinnacle of Chris Rocks stand up talents, then this show is it. Dont get me wrong, the other ones are great but Rock is on top of his game in Never Scared. There is so much that I have missed because firstly, I dont want to spoil it all for you. And secondly, it is quite a vast show and I dont wanna type all of that out. Of course if you want, you can youtube some of the other material from the show. It is definitely worth a look if you have not seen it. A great show from a great performer.
Rating 5/5
Over the last few years I have felt my sense of humour change very quickly. I guess that this is normal, as you get older, you find different things funny. As part of this change, I took to watching so much stand-up comedy, it was unreal. More Until about 3 years ago, I never, ever watched people like Eddie Murphy or Steve Martin etc because for some reason, I always thought that the older the comedy show, the more dated the material. I guess, to some extent this is true but the strength of stand-up comedy is that if it is done well and with a combination of poise and timing, a joke will always be funny.
Some of the funniest people have started or ended up in stand-up comedy. It is the biggest test that someone will endure in their professional lives. Imagine, if you will, being a supposedly funny person. Being in movies, you would not have to deal with the actual critical reception of a crowd. With stand-up comedy however, you are at the mercy of the crowd. A good comedian will manage to have the crowd on the edge of their seats for the entirety of a concert. My personal favourite is Chris Rock. I think Rock is a very progressive comedian, especially for the Black population of America. I have quite a few favourites. Dane Cook is another personal favourite of mine, along with Eddie Murphy, Dave Chappelle, Russell Peters and, of course, the legendary, Richard Pryor.
Of course, everyone has their own favourites and everyones sense of humour is completely different. Recently, their has been an influx of good comedians that really match my style of comedy well. Frankie Boyle is one of my personal favourites tight now; his close to the knuckles style of comedy is absolutely amazing. Similarly, Michael McIntyre is another good comedian. Jimmy Carr is another great example of dead-pan comedy. All of which are worth a look.
Frankie Boyle:
[youtube]VKwDSz6jJ-Q[/youtube]
Michael McIntyre:
[youtube]Es2l4yUBY6M[/youtube]
[youtube]CLPyPJTwEC4[/youtube]
[youtube]_YsJ186p17U[/youtube]
Jimmy Carr:
[youtube]9ajB7luvjzg[/youtube]
Chris Rock Never Scared.
Venue: Constitution Hall, Washington DC, USA.
Language: English
Runtime: 80 minutes/ 91 minutes (DVD)
Tagline: Stand up has never been this dangerous
Areas Covered: Drugs, Relationships, Strippers, Rap, Affirmative Action
Chris Rock, as you may know, is one of the best stand up comedians in the world. Love him or hate him, the man is exceptionally talented and is blessed with the talents of comedic timing and skill. He has had 5 HBO specials, all of which have been some of my personal favourites. Rock, in this show is outstanding once more. In Never Scared, Rock again tackles some of the most divisive topics in the United States. Those include: relationships, married life, rap music, wealth, affirmative action and drugs. Rock has never been one to sugar the pill and Never Scared is probably the finest one of his works. All of the topics are covered in great detail by Rock, who manages to keep his routine funny whilst still driving the point that he is trying to make home, with great aplomb.
After leaving SNL in 1993, Rock began to concentrate on his stand up comedy and has since found great success with it. His first special, Bring The Pain, basically gave Rock the impotence to go on from there and make more controversial routines, which the main objectives always being achieved. That is, inspire discussion and make people laugh. Rock has been phenomenally successful since Bring The Pain, Time magazine even saying that Rock was the funniest man in America. This comment came after the Never Scared and Bigger and Blacker specials. Both of which being the most successful. Both have garnered a huge amount of critical acclaim since they were recorded. Never Scared won the Grammy Best Spoken Comedy Album. Bigger and Blacker even won Rock Funniest Male Performer in a TV Special award at the American Comedy Awards in 2000.
Never Scared is probably my favourite stand-up comedy routine of all time. Rock really impresses me every time I see it but I do have one complaint. That complaint is that, sometimes I do feel that Rock plays off the hostilities that sometimes exist between Black people and White people in the United States. However, this is also Chris Rocks biggest strength. Using his skills as stand-up comedian, Rock manages to make these issues funny. Many comedians would not even go near a topic so divisive. Rock though, as he has always done goes straight for the jugular. At some points in the routine, I was squirming with laughter. In particular, Rocks summary of rap music is absolutely hilarious. If you have not seen it, here it is.
[youtube]z9A2I-X7b-w[/youtube]
As per usual, Rock is actually making some very diligent and clever points in this clip. As is previously stated, Rock manages to make these points without making the routine sound like a lecture. Take for example Rocks views on dead rappers. Some of the things you hear are absolutely absurd but at the same time, Rock is telling us his thoughts on the issue and making us laugh at very real topic. Its true. No one has ever been arrested for some of these killings and it would seem that there is at least some derision in the United States Government aimed towards the rap industry. People may say that it is because of the lack of care for African Americans in the past. Rock, however, makes a topic like this, which can be very hateful, something to laugh at.
Notable quotes
I love all the rap today but its hard to defend this shit. Its hard to defend I got hos in different area codes. On an intellectual level, Its hard to defend move, bitch, get out the way! Im tired of defending it.
Every year, Tupac comes back from the dead, records a new album with clues in it. Every record had a clue in it, if you listen real hard, It was the rigger in the red who shot me dead. Right there! Track 4. Pac is trying to tell us something.
You mean to tell me that they can find Saddam Hussein in a fucking hole but you cant tell me who shot Tupac!? They found Saddam Hussein in fucking Iraq. Tupac got shot in Vegas! The motherfucker got shot on The Strip, in front of Circus, Circus.
Rocks summary of Affirmative Action is also a prime example of how he can take such a divisive subject and make it hilarious. Some say that it is the job of a comedian, to say all of the things that needed to be said without feeling intimidated. Rock does this often but none more so than the issue of Black people in America, the example of Affirmative Action being the best one to illustrate my point. This is the video of said routine:
[youtube]fGuXm9tug5s[/youtube]
This is one of the best parts of the show and some of the most memorable moments of the show happened during this part of the routine.
Notable Quotes
When you see footage of the 60s and you see black people getting sprayed down and hosed down and dogs getting set on us Thats just white people being nice. Nicer than they was in the 50s, 30s and 40s. Theres black people who died in the 50s, 40s and 30s, looking down from heaven on the 60s saying damn then ****** got it good.
Black people dominate every physical sport in the United States of America, Okay. Were only 10% of the population but were 90% of the final four Basketball, baseball, football, boxing, track, even golf and tennis. As soon as they make a heated hockey rink, W e gonna take that shit too. Wait until you see LeBron on some skates He aint even gonna have a stick, Hes gonna smack the puck with his dick. Pow!
Overall, this is the finest piece of comedy I have seen from Chris Rock. After this routine, he had two more specials thus far and counting. All of the specials are great in their own way but if you are looking for the pinnacle of Chris Rocks stand up talents, then this show is it. Dont get me wrong, the other ones are great but Rock is on top of his game in Never Scared. There is so much that I have missed because firstly, I dont want to spoil it all for you. And secondly, it is quite a vast show and I dont wanna type all of that out. Of course if you want, you can youtube some of the other material from the show. It is definitely worth a look if you have not seen it. A great show from a great performer.
Rating 5/5
