Lewis Black Albums (5)
'Luther Burbank Performing Arts Center Blues'
Release Date 1/25/2005
Tracks 12
Label Comedy Central
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
The year 2004 provided plenty of reasons for nearly any thinking person to go off on an angry rant, which is good news if you happen to be a fan of comedian Lewis Black, who has raised the venomous screed to the level of high art. Recorded in the summer of 2004, Luther Burbank Performing Arts Center Blues documents Black hilariously going off on such phenomena as Janet Jackson's infamous appearance at the Super Bowl, the controversy over gay marriage, Arnold Schwarzenegger's ascent to the California governor's mansion, and the ongoing disaster of America's presence in Iraq. If you're at all familiar with Black's glowering, eruptive style (which suggests he could go into cardiac arrest at any moment), you probably know what to expect from this stuff, but that's no criticism of the material here -- Black has a distinctive style that he's honed to a fine point, and on this set that point draws blood just as often as it prompts laughter (which is often). Black is one of the best working comedians in America, not to mention one of the least compromised, and Luther Burbank Performing Arts Center Blues shows that his material and delivery remain remarkably strong -- this is darkly funny stuff that's smart and fearless, and a superb antidote to the insanity of our new millennium. ~ Mark Deming, All Music Guide
'Rules of Enragement'
Release Date 9/23/2003
Tracks 13
Label Comedy Central
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
It's hard to get the full effect of Lewis Black's gloriously bitter comedy if you're only listening to him -- watching the man work himself up into a lather with jowls shaking, beads of spittle flying from his lips, and his eyes bulging from his sockets as if his head is about to burst open from sheer pent-up rage adds immeasurably to the effect of his barbed, pungent wit. But at the same time, the intelligence and reason behind his wrath often projects better through repeated listening on CD than it does by watching the man threatening to erupt on-stage, and 2003's Rules of Enragement captures Black at the height of his powers both as a high-pressured comic and as a incisive political satirist. While Black's rants about winter in Minnesota, the evils of soymilk, and how the Irish brought alcohol and Catholicism together are reasonably standard stuff, they're also smart and exceptionally funny, and Black's unceasing barrage of bad karma gives even his most mainstream material a fierce edge. It's when he moves on to deeper matters -- America's failure to keep its water supply clean ("We buy bottles of water from Pepsi and Coke, because if ANYBODY knows water, it's Pepsi and Coke!"), political and corporate corruption ("If big oil gave anybody in this room 31 million bucks, you'd be THRILLED to be big oil's bitch"), and various varieties of post-September 11 malaise ("How do we bring democracy to Iraq? What do we do, give 'em our civics books? 'Read this, it's crackerjack material!'") -- that Black proves he can be every bit as funny while dipping his toes into provocative material that sadly few contemporary comics would have the courage to touch. While not the full-on flamethrower of David Cross' epochal Shut Up, You Fucking Baby!, Rules of Enragement is a similarly powerful bit of no-holds-barred standup comedy that proves the furious provocation of Lenny Bruce, Bill Hicks, and Richard Pryor is thankfully still alive in American humor. Or at least it's still alive until Black gives himself a stroke. ~ Mark Deming, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Funnyman Lewis Black works through a series of hilarious skits that apply a sarcastic, sometimes angry look at just how crazy American culture really is. Topics include Bill Clinton's oral sex shenanigans, how idiotic the Heaven's Gate cult was, and his experiences auditioning as himself for a television pilot. Rather than simply reveling in vulgarity, Black makes his humor highly palatable with his constant emphasis on national affairs. His points are relevant and full of irony. ~ Jason Birchmeier, All Music Guide
