The bad news is that Allan Sherman hasn't received the credit and praise he deserves. The good news is that his gifts and genius are manifest in abundance on this best of package. The word-playing godfather of the modern parody, Sherman's songs are definitely rooted in his Jewish culture. However, his humanity is so strong and universal that ...
Tom Lehrer recorded rather sporadically starting in the 1950s then abruptly retired in the mid-'60s from his unique solo musical comedy act. He's a competent pianist with a voice that is perfect for his original material. This compilation combines both of his records that were originally pressed and sold privately on the Lehrer label, which he ...
"Greatest Hits," as Seeger himself wryly wrote in his liner notes, is a misnomer considering that he never had hit singles or huge-selling albums as a solo artist, though actually "Little Boxes" (included here) made the lower reaches of the charts. In reality this 1967 compilation (since reissued on CD) collects the most popular tracks of his 1962 ...
Tom Lehrer's work always had a biting, satirical edge to it, but never was this more obvious than on this album, a collection of songs regarding events of the year 1965. Very little was sacred from Lehrer's sharp wit, from racism to the Catholic Church, and, while much of his subject matter has become outdated, his shrewd comic talents are beyond ...
Rhino's Halloween Hits delivers everything anyone could want from a collection of spooky, campy rock & roll novelty songs about ghouls, ghosts, goblins, and monsters -- namely, "The Monster Mash." Just kidding, folks -- it has much more than that, including Jumpin' Gene Simmons' "Haunted House," the Five Blobs' "The Blob," Ray Parker, Jr.'s ...
If you like your Christmas tidings with a dollop of good humor, then this batch of holiday tunes is right up your alley. The lineup ranges from cute and innocuous (the Chipmunks, the Singing Dogs, and Spike Jones) to satirical (Stan Freberg and Allan Sherman) and just plain weird (Elmo and Patsy's "Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer" and Tom ...
Shel Silverstein is a hard guy to pin down, which is part of not only his charm, but his genius. He's best known as a children's author, but also was a Playboy cartoonist who couldn't resist a dirty joke. He penned novelty songs, but also could write songs as heart-wrenching as "Silvia's Mother" and "Once More With Feeling." He was also a terrific ...
1984's perfect, side-splitting rock documentary spoof This Is Spinal Tap wouldn't have succeeded if Spinal Tap's "original" music didn't properly mimic what it poked fun at. But not only does the music have the exact traits of hard rock and heavy metal, the lyrics are a scream. The soundtrack features the howlingly funny songs used in director Rob ...
It's a testament to Bob Newhart's considerable talents that his TV shows, particularly his '70s classic The Bob Newhart Show, overshadowed his comedy records which were trailblazers in their own accord. His first album, The Button Down Mind of Bob Newhart, became the first comedy album to ever reach the top of the charts, and it did so in 1960, ...
Dr. Demento 20th Anniversary Collection: The Greatest Novelty Records of All Time gathers two discs' worth of highlights from the five-volume Dr. Demento Presents series, as well as some of the good doctor's other favorite novelty singles. Anyone familiar with Demento's show will instantly recognize the Firm's "Star Trekkin'," Barnes & Barnes' ...
Like many of Weird Al's 1990s albums, Running With Scissors is something of a mixed bag, although devoted fans will definitely find enough of interest to add it to their collections. As usual, the highlights tend to be song parodies: "The Saga Begins" is a retelling of Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace from Obi-Wan Kenobi's point of view set ...
Those who only know Bill Cosby as an '80s television star and product pitchman don't know how truly funny and edgy he used to be when he first started out. Bill Cosby Is a Very Funny Fellow is his first album, and it's as good a place to start as any, with the "Noah" trilogy included. A story about the free entertainment on New York subways, a ...
Crackin' Up! is exactly what you'll be doing the minute this Ray Stevens gem comes on -- instant classics like "Would Jesus Wear a Rolex," "I'm My Own Grandpaw" and "Three Legged Man" don't just make you laugh, they make you think, too. God bless you, Ray Stevens! ~ Chuck Donkers, All Music Guide
While conventional wisdom has it that Texas is a hotbed of conservative thought and social conformity, the Lone Star State also has a long and rich tradition of creative eccentrics, from Willie Nelson and Doug Sahm to Roky Erickson and the Butthole Surfers, and it says a lot that predominantly Christian Texas would spawn (and eagerly embrace) one ...
By sidestepping racial humor and the "sick" comedy of Lenny Bruce, Bill Cosby was able to reach a wide audience through keen and endearing portraits of his Philadelphia childhood. And even though he mostly bypassed civil rights issues in the '60s, Cosby, in many ways, was still able to de-stigmatize black culture by presenting his story without ...
Though not the first standup comedian to release a live recording, Bob Newhart was probably the first to really capture the public's attention, thanks to this debut. Of the six pieces included on this album, five of them are set up as part of a conversation (usually by phone), something that became Newhart's trademark. The material here would have ...
When he landed a sitcom on ABC in 2004, Rodney Carrington quickly lifted himself out of the world of guest appearances on morning zoo radio and small-time comedy clubs. In other words, he went from Tim Wilson to Jeff Foxworthy and sanitized his act accordingly for prime-time TV. The two seasons of Rodney had a bit of an edge, but the truly trashy ...
Go is a revolutionary achievement for a band that has spent the better part of two decades carving out a niche for dance-oriented contemporary Christian rock. The pioneers of pulse present a new set of high-production beats with glossy guitars and synth work. The collection was inspired by the band's concerts in Europe, Morocco, and Tiberius, ...
Three years between Weird Al Yankovic albums has been the norm since the '90s, but a lot happened to the parody king between 2003's Poodle Hat and his 2006 release, Straight Outta Lynwood. First off, Poodle Hat stalled after one single. Then while on tour promoting the album, Yankovic's parents were both killed in their home from carbon monoxide ...
Combining Tom Lehrer with Spike Jones (would that make Tom Jones?) and Nichols and May with Joe Friday (a May weekend perhaps?), musical comedian Stan Freberg skewers everyone from Walt Disney to Cole Porter. Mumbling through "Sh-Boom," Freberg drags "The Great Pretender" snarling to "The Heartbreak Hotel," snares "The Yellow Rose of Texas," and ...
On Tom Lehrer's second studio album, he got a little more daring and biting, particularly on "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park," "The Masochism Tango," and "We Will All Go Together When We Go." Six years, after all, had elapsed since his 1953 debut, and social mores had loosened, if only a little. There's also one of his most well-known pieces, "It ...
You Might Be a Redneck If... encapsulates the humor of Jeff Foxworthy on a single disc. Essentially variations on the title phrase "You Might Be a Redneck If...," Foxworthy's jokes and simple but never crude. Like any comedy album, it appeals to a specific taste. If you find Foxworthy's repetitive jokes hilarious, you might be a fan. If you don't ...
Great White North is the hit comedy album from Bob & Doug McKenzie, better known as SCTV veterans Rick Moranis and Dave Thomas, respectively. There's one serious problem, though. It's not very funny as a whole. The shtick is that the McKenzie brothers are lazy, beer-swilling dimwits who focus on Canadian culture and rely heavily on slang ...
Firesign Theatre's previous work had already proved that the troupe wasn't particularly interested in releasing conventional comedy albums. While earlier albums had longer pieces, Don't Crush That Dwarf is the first time they dedicated an entire album to a single theme. Although initially it sounds like a loose collection of semi-related items, it ...
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