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Caloroga Shark Media. Hello, I’m Johnny Mack with your Daily Comedy News. Earlier in December, Vulture put out their article the Best Comedy Specials of twenty twenty three, So that doesn’t include Trevor Noah, won’t include Ricky Gervas, and won’t include Chapelle. As for me, I’m planning on putting out my list towards the end of next week. I want to get on the other side of Ricky Gervas.
I won’t include Chappelle because it doesn’t come out to New Year’s Eve, so I wouldn’t be able to do it in twenty twenty three unless Netflix hooks me up with a screener, which they have not as of yet. If you are a new listener. When I do these article episodes, I don’t look in advance because I like to react as I go along. So I’m hitting click here from Vulture, The Best Comedy Specials of twenty twenty three. This was published on December sixth.
They have number ten Saser Zamada’s The First Woman. I haven’t heard any buzz whatsoever on that, and I haven’t seen it, so maybe it is awesome, but no buzz you’ll find it on YouTube. Vulture tells us the specials title comes from a joke at the end of a long and pointed joke about the history of female aviators. That’s part you’re wrong about episode, part feminist screed, and part that thing when you’re a hilarious friend can’t help but tell you about this fascinating Wikipedia rabbit hole that they fell down last night. Number nine is John Early is Now more Than Ever.
That is on my list towards the back half, part sketch, parts stand up, part concert documentary of a fake cover band, John Early is Now more than Ever gleefully puts its tongue in several nested layers of cheek. Yeah, I enjoyed it because it was quite different. I think that’s the thing I like about it. Vulture wrote. The whole thing is absurd.
It’s almost certain there are one or possibly a dozen too many ideas in here, all shoehorned into the concert documentary conceit then undermined by the cynicism of the entire production. You’ll find that on Max. Next one up, Mike bur Bigley as the old man on the pool I’ve mentioned on this podcast. I think you would really like it. The comedy snob in me kicked in and I was watching it.
Mike was telling a story about wrestling, and I didn’t believe the premise of the story. I just didn’t believe the story ever actually happened. I may be incorrect, but I didn’t believe the story, so I punched down on it. I think you guys, not being comedy snobs, will enjoy Mike Broviigley as the old man on the pool. Vulture has it at number eight.
You’ll find that on Netflix. At seven. They have Zanab Johnson’s His Jobs Off. I have seen buzz about this one, haven’t gotten to it yet. Vulture writes.
Johnson’s not interested in waiting or in storing gowing material for some later point in her career. This is her debut special. Now is the time to talk about the hard stuff, to embrace it as part of who she is from the gymp, and to establish the kind of comedian who can do it with grace. That one’s on Amazon Maria Bamford’s local act. Haven’t seen this one, haven’t purchased it.
This one not free streaming anywhere, and by free streaming, you know what I mean, Like you know you give Netflix seventeen dollars a month or whatever it is, and they give you stuff. This year, you’ll have to actually go purchase. There’s been a lot of buzz on Maria in the back half of the year, and apparently this special is pretty good. Next one, Gary Goleman’s Born on Third Base. So we’re doing some time traveling here.
Apparently Vulture saw this early in December. The special came out two days ago on Max. I’m recording this on December fourteenth, so I haven’t seen Gary Goleman yet. I suspect it’ll make my end of the year list because I like Gary A. Lott and his previous work is fantastic.
So with that time traveling in mind, I’m not sure how I can review it, so I’ll tell you. Vulture said, Born on Third Base is a comedy special about income inequality and the fraying social fabric that creates lasting poverty in America, a topic that feels like a dubious framework for an hour of laughs. But Goldman’s so good at negotiating that tension and weaving material about his childhood together with more general ideas about culture and class. That one is on Max number four Sam Jay’s Salute Me or Shoot Me? Wow.
That one’s also on Max. I think I started to watch it and just wasn’t into it. Vulture says, Salute Me or Shoot Me is all about Sam’s ability to move in and out of jokes, that swagger and jokes that approach with delicacy and grease. Every other comedian wants to stand on a stage and say bad words to get people who all up desperately wishes they had what Sam Jay has. Good review there, huh.
Joe Parra is slow and steady. I struggled with this one because the audience was kind of out in front of Joe. I know, Hedberg ran into that late in life, so I think the audience kind of screwed up his special. But Vulture says, the rhythm of Joe para joke can feel like water dripping from a faucet. Yeah, I don’t know if you’re familiar with Joe works very deliberately.
That’s a big way of saying slow. The punchline will come at the same beat as everything else, and yet when you’re waiting for it, the gap between the last line and the next one can feel like time slowing down and just hovering for a moment. Number two Vulture has Beth stellings if you didn’t want me, then I started to watch that one and just wasn’t feeling it and punched out of it. Vultra says her comedic persona, which ticks between cool disaffection and full throated weirdness, is especially effective in this special. It’s full of recollections on her childhood, and Stelling comes at those stories about her youth with both fondness and a sense of absurdity.
And their number one special of the year, Wow, I love this guy. I’ve been on a kick about this guy, and yet I did not like this special and didn’t make it to the end of it. That’s how much I didn’t like it. And I’m really into this guy. I’m a big fan of this guy.
I’m hoping to get to talk to this guy. Number one on Vulture’s list, Mark Maren’s from Bleak to Dark. You’ll find that one on Max. Wow. All right, they have some honorable mentions.
Shane Torris is the blue eyed Mexican Dina Hasham’s Dark Little Whispers. I gotta get to that one. Chris Fleming’s Hell That’s on my list I like that one a lot. You’ll find that one on Peacock, Ali Sadiq’z The Domino Effect. That one is on let me scroll down here YouTube.
Didn’t like that one. John Mulani’s Baby Jay. I know we’re all supposed to fall and over that one. It’s not on my list Netflix. Monique’s My name is Monique.
I check that out, bailed on it. That one’s on Netflix. Mae Martin’s sap is on Netflix. Didn’t like that one. Kyle Kanaan Shocks and Struts.
Love that one. That’s gonna make my top ten, maybe my top five, depending on how things like Jervaise shakeout culture writes. His cruise ship material conjures a nightmarish, heatonistic carnival. His story about a van goes places no one could have predicted, but shocks and stresses a reminder the Canaane is so good you can do it with no words too. There’s an act out about a jam band that is somehow perfectly exasperated while nearly silent.
That one’s on YouTube. Highly recommended by me. Marlon Wayns God Loves Me. Yeah, I wasn’t feeling that one that was on Max Nprighatsy’s Hello World. One of my favorites could be top five.
That one was so good I had pause, grabbed my wife and watched twenty minutes again because I knew she would enjoy it. That one’s strong. That’s on Amazon, way up my list, but I’ll tell you I just double check my list. I have it below Kyle Kaneen’s That’s how Much I like? Those two?
From December eleventh, Paced Magazines the Best Comedy Albums of twenty twenty three. This one I have skimmed, and I didn’t know most of these, so it’s excited to read this one. These are listed alphabetically. Maria Bamford’s Crowd Pleaser, So that’s that same special that we just talked about that’s out on Comedy Dynamics. Next, they have Liz Barrett’s Getting by Getting with an apostrophe.
There, it didn’t drop the jeep because of my queen accent. Liz shares her secrets to living well. I’m having a great year because I’ve given up. Between her deadpan delivery and shrugging sarcastic observations, Barrett’s comedy is a perfect marriage of tone and content. Derek Brown’s a close Shave with Heaven.
Derek takes the Boston stage accompanied by a twinkling piano, and this musical choice sets the tone for an LP that clearly would be at home on the airwaves of NPR. Yet Brown keeps from being pretentious. He reminds us to stay stupid everybody. Carack Connor’s Straight for Pay past writes, there’s a lot of pressure on a stand up comedian’s debut album to properly introduce them to a sight unseen. You need to be confident in your ability to sell jokes based on your voice and your voice alone.
Luckily, for La based comedian Karack Connors, her voice is one of her strongest suits. Connor’s vocal elasticity is truly a wonder, immediately bringing to mind Adam sing Handler’s goofy impressions. Not sure that’s a good comparison there, and not sure that’s helping. It’s not helping with me John Glazer’s soothing meditations for the Solitary Dog. The album begins with spa ready ambient music and twinkling sounds in the background, as the gentle voice of Uncle John reassures lonely canines that their humans will surely be home soon.
He plans to record the perfect calming audio companion for needy dogs, although more and more issues crop up. It’s the type of escalating chaos Glazer excels at, aided by sound design expertise, sounds awesome. Pap Johnson’s Timeless Papp Johnson past writes. The first thing you notice about Pap Johnson is the timber of his voice. It’s sonorous setting depth to his unhurried, care free delivery.
He set is full of pregnant pauses, some so long they’ll think you’ve accidentally stopped the track. Love it. Sometimes Johnson’s trailing off is the punchline itself, and again this demonstrates just how comfortable he is on stage to make such a risky choice. Greg proofs Gregg’s comedy albums are pretty strong. I play them a lot on live one.
I’d like to play all of these. So many of these are not available for digital release. That’s why I’m not really familiar with them. I guess I could purchase them, but I’m trying to just stream them and they’re not available. French drug deal involves an extended tangent about bats an anecdote about the view, a bit about performing at then Prince now King Charles’s birthday, and multiple stories starting off with travel destinations.
We’ve made quite a leap in the alphabetical order. We’ve gone from p to Van Natasha vain Blatt, We’re all dads here. Natasha emigrated from Russia at the age of seven, and some of her funniest anecdotes touch on the differences between Russia and American cultures. World Dads Here is a hilarious look at vain BLAT’s family life, her marriage of ten years, and the various scrapes she’s gotten herself into. Her droll delivery of increasingly silly jokes like a call in response bit where the crowd guesses the veracity of odd workout classes is the perfect packaging pace.
Magazines Best of twenty twenty three comedy albums, and that is your comedy news for today. I hope you have a Greek Christmas, even a fantastic Christmas. There is an episode tomorrow. There’s always an episode. If you enjoy the show US Somebody about It.
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