The Funniest American Stand-Up Comedy

Gad Elmaleh: American Dream
      2018 | USA | Laughs: 4.2 | imdb: 7.2
      

With a few tweaks, this is essentially the same material as that from Gad Part En Live from a year earlier, but in English. I watched the two shows back-to-back, and in my view the English version goes down a little smoother, not just because Gad ironed out a few kinks, but also because that New York stage felt like it was the right context for that show.

As a "student" of the various brands of humor around the world and in different eras, I find it very special that Gad is able to perform stand-up comedy successfully in various languages (apart from French and English, he has also performed in Arabic and Hebrew). Comedy-wise, this is not an outstanding show, but anyone with an appetite for cross-cultural differences should find something they like.

One missed opportunity, in my view, is that apart from a few isolated words, Gad doesn't show off his Arabic. Given the fears and stereotypes of our times, he could do that to great effect. (Last viewed: August 2018)

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George Carlin: Complaints and Grievances
      2001 | USA | Laughs: 4.2 (Laugh and Smile) | imdb: 8.5
      wikipedia

Recorded two months after 9/11, this show is the last before George Carlin gets (understandably) upset with US policy and makes the American way of life the focus of his sets.

I see on my notes that there were "disgusting bits" in the earlier part, but the overall impression I was left with was one of awe at George's outstanding command of the language. I laughed once, chuckled a few times and smiled a lot.

Themes included 9/11 clichés, farts, hit-and-runs, scabs, people who ought to be killed and the ten commandments. (Last viewed: September 2018)

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Kathleen Madigan: In Other Words
      2006 | USA | Laughs: 4.2 | imdb: 7.0
      

It took me a while after watching Kathleen's Gone Madigan to find the motivation to watch another of her sets. As it turns out, this earlier set is far better, though it took me a few sittings to finish it as the boring parts kept putting me to sleep. That lethargy, mind you, was not induced because the material was brain-taxing in any way. (I would never watch a show by one of my favorite stand-up comedians—such as Eddie Izzard—unless I'm able to focus: they're too smart and I'm too slow…) Indeed, the material is generally about as low-grade and harmless as a light beer.

The set opens promisingly, but often slides into mediocre territory, where minor personalities of yore, whose names mean nothing to me, are discussed. But there are enough funny bits to make the set worth watching on a slow day, and the show did leave me with greater appreciation for Madigan. (Last viewed: August 2013)

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Aries Spears: Hollywood, Look I'm Smiling
      2011 | USA | Laughs: 4.0 | imdb: 7.1
      

This show was my first time seeing Aries Spears. I found his demeanor likeable and hoped for some high-octane material.

I'm a sucker for accents, so I enjoyed the large segment in the second half when Aries showed off a wild array of voices from English tourist to Italian-American bartender, from Robert De Niro to Chewbacca.

Apart from that the show had funny moments, but for me too much of it hinged on the black—white thing, which at this stage in our evolution strikes me as trite and bores me fast. Granted, maybe there was something in the comparison of corporal punishment across skin shades.

Neither am I a fan of bedroom jokes. Not only did Aries spend a lot of time there, he felt the need to bring midgets into that dusty refuge for uninspired comedy.

This is someone who has already traveled much of the road to Ali G, and my overall impression was that Aries was capable of much smarter material than he used in this set. His public seemed to relish him, but my sense is that if he didn't take the easy road he could reach a far wider audience. (Last viewed: May 2019)

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Bill Burr: Live at Red Rocks
      2022 | USA | Laughs: 4.0 | imdb: 7.7
      

Another entry in the sequence of sets demonstrating Bill's relentless decay. Not too trashy, some good moments. Fast food. Go watch Stewart Lee.

(Last viewed: October 2022)

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Chris Rock: Bigger and Blacker
      1999 | USA | Laughs: 4.0 (Watch Once) | imdb: 8.0
      wikipedia

Watch once for research if you want to know who Chris Rock is, although you'll get a better measure of his talent in 2 Days in New York, where he acts opposite Julie Delpy. I like Chris, he just doesn't make me laugh very much. I first saw him in Michael Moore's Bowling for Columbine, in the segment about five thousand dollar bullets, excerpted from this show—perhaps its best piece. Themes include crazy white boys, family, medicine, relationships. I smiled a lot and may have laughed once or twice, but I don't love Rock's strident voice and wound up delivery, nor the amount of time he spends on hard-core adult themes. (Last viewed: September 2010)

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Dwayne Perkins:Take Note
      2016 | USA | Laughs: 4.0 | imdb: 7.2
      

This set was our first encounter with Dwayne. I can't say that I laughed, but we both smiled a lot as we found him funny. If this show is an indication, Dwayne doesn't do humor below the belt, providing a nice break from all the foul language and crude themes that seems to be the bread-and-butter of many of the high-profile contemporary acts. Don't get me wrong, I do love Jim Jefferies, but I'm not always in the mood to get splattered in sewer juice. That being said, you can be funnier than Dwayne was while remaining polite—the show could have packed more punch and spent less time on the black-white theme, which I find about as trite as jokes about what goes on below the belt. Overall, I did like Dwayne a lot and will be excited to watch what he produces next. (Last viewed: June 2017)

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Jay Larson: Comedy Central Presents
      2011 | USA | Laughs: 4.0 (Don't Bother) | imdb: 5.8
      

During this short set without adult themes, I found Jay pleasant and often on the verge of making me chuckle—without ever quite getting there. Not a big waste of time, and I would give Jay another try to see if his comedy improves with age, which sometimes happens, as with Louis CK for instance. (Last viewed: January 2013)

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Tom Segura: Disgraceful
      2018 | USA | Laughs: 4.0 (Chuckle) | imdb: 7.5
      

I don't know if this show would be funny to someone who sees Tom for the first time, but I like his demeanor, so I enjoyed the show even though it never got past the chuckle point. Looking back, I'm not sure that any particular theme stood out, though the high of the set for me may have been the point when he talks about people with "foreign accent syndrome".

This makes no sense? Just go watch it, I don't think you'll be sad. (Last viewed: August 2018)

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Brian Regan: I Walked on the Moon
      2004 | USA | Laughs: 3.8 (Chuckle) | imdb: 8.5
      

I hadn't heard of Brian until 2011. Discovering him was a surprise and a treat. This set made me laugh harder than I had in a long time. Feeding my stand-up comedy addiction, I get tired of watching people who must cram three expletives in every sentence and spend half their time discussing reproductive functions. So I love that Brian Regan has a clean mouth and keeps it above the belt. Does that make him boring? On the contrary. His humor finds themes outside the beaten track, and new angles to themes one might have thought overworked, such as air travel. Moreover, one is left with the impression of having listened to a genuinely nice person. I'll be looking for Brian's other DVDs.

Edit: More than seven years later, I thought I'd treat myself to something that was sure to make me laugh, as my original rating for the show had been an 8.5. I was therefore surprised not to find myself laughing even once. Have I become hopelessly depressed, or have I changed so much that what used to be funny no longer is? I enjoyed some of the bits, perhaps most of all the one at the end when Brian speaks about people who seem to have a low level of emotional intelligence. But many moments were loud to my ears—loud in the sense that Brian started shouting. Still a very watchable show, just not one for the museum of best-ever stand-up comedy. (Last viewed: Apr 2011 September 2018)

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George Carlin: It's Bad for Ya!
      2008 | USA | Laughs: 3.7 (Chuckle) | imdb: 8.6
      wikipedia

During this set, George looks and sounds physically uncomfortable. He's stopped smoking, he's gained weight, and he dies four months later of a heart attack. He was only 71 years old, but I'd guess that he had already said everything he had to say. Once you've expressed your disgust for people's overwhelming lack of critical thinking, it doesn't matter that things get worse and that a bush gets chased by a trump, you have nowhere else to go.

The delivery is not quite as fluid as on the previous sets, but the show is entertaining. Up to his last set, George was a funnier comedian than most of his younger colleagues. If you're a fan, you won't want to miss this set, not just as a touching goodbye to someone who'd been making people laugh since his handsome looks burned the video tape, but simply because it's good.

Fittingly, death is very present in the show. The themes include friends who die, what people do in heaven, trite sayings such as 'every child is special' or 'children are our future', having to listen to rubbish stories, the lack of critical thinking, the saying 'god bless America', swearing on the Bible, and rights. (Last viewed: September 2018)

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Joe Rogan: Live
      2006 | USA | Laughs: 3.5 (Chuckle) | imdb: 7.3
      

After trying Joe's awful 2001 tape Live from the Belly of the Beast, this show was a good surprise, even though I almost gave up in the first ten minutes owing to the vile start centered on female anatomy.

Apart from the excessive amount of humor focused on reproductive functions, this is probably the best set of Joe's that I watched so far, including his later 2016 set Triggered and the 2018 special Strange Times.

I particularly appreciated seeing that Joe had woken up to the fact that there was a moron in charge of the country, a fact that seemed to have eluded him five years earlier, when the same guy was already in charge.

(Last viewed: December 2019)

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Doug Stanhope: Before Turning the Gun on Himself
      2012 | USA | Laughs: 3.5 (Watch Once) | imdb: 8.1
      

If you've enjoyed one of Doug Stanhope's older sets, then you may want to watch this show, not so much for the laughs (which are not that frequent or intense) than in the same spirit you'd visit an old friend with whom you'd like to catch up, a friend who has moved on a bit. (Last viewed: December 2012)

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Joe Rogan: Strange Times
      2018 | USA | Laughs: 3.5 (Smirk) | imdb: 7.4
      

I'm new to Joe Rogan: I first learned about him by watching a show where he lets the producer of the documentary The Game Changers defend his film — and actually lets him speak. Joe's relative level-headedness impressed me and made me want to check out his stand-up.

I went into the show with low expectations but was pleasantly surprised. Although I didn't enjoy Joe's delivery (what seemed to me like an endless scream) and thought he pandered a little too much to the gross-out crowd, he made some good points and had me smiling throughout the set.

Will probably be looking for some of his earlier material.

(Last viewed: December 2019)

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Joe Rogan: Triggered
      2016 | USA | Laughs: 3.5 (Smirk) | imdb: 7.4
      

This was the second show by Joe Rogan that I watched, and I found about as entertaining as the first: lots of smiles, no laughs. I appreciated the lower level of "gross-out" material, but the ending was weaker.

Religion, parenting… I already forgot most of the themes, but I doubt they included any that you haven't already seen developed somewhere in a funnier way, which doesn't preclude this set from being likeable.

One thing that would really improve Joe's sets for me is if he wouldn't yell.

(Last viewed: December 2019)

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