I have within the last few months discovered the comedian Bill Burr. I have also come across some of his YouTube videos where he railed against or at minimum mentioned people that took issue with something he said in his act, like he was supposed to apologize to what he describes as “internet warriors/sensitvity police” types, etc.
I think he’s absolutely hilarious and I also happen to think that a comedian’s act is largely sacrosanct and that in addition to making you laugh, my favorite comedians also make you think. Now that doesn’t excuse Michael Richards type shit onstage, but being colorful with language, both profanity and/or race, gender, etc is perfectly acceptable…when placed in the appropriate context.
I think Bill Burr meets that criteria. Anyone else like or hate him?
His was the first podcast I listened too, several years ago. The Monday Morning Podcast. It’s just him, being him, railing, commenting. The lovely Nia (his wife) occasionally joins. He also has an animated series on Netflix called F is for Family - set in the 70’s - based on his (and some other writers’ childhoods).
I think he’s funny, but there’s a strange dichotomy in his comedy where fully he acknowledges a harsh and perhaps brutal upbringing by his father and was taught to hold every emotion in and within the next sentence will rail against emasculated men. It’s like he hasn’t connected the dots. He thinks outrage at what an 80 year old racist says is silly, “what did you think they thought?”, but the outrage isn’t that the public is surprised, it’s that the world has changed and that is not acceptable social behavior. He doesn’t really know this, or chooses to ignore it for comedic effect.
Comedians should be able to say whatever they want, but no one is above accountability for what they say. I get the sense within the last 5 years Bill Burr is embracing the first part of that contract and chafing at the second. Which is easier to do on a YouTube radio channel.
I will have to check out his podcasts on different media somehow. I have listened to a few of his, and they’re funny for sure, but for some reason it’s annoying to me to listen to only audio on a video channel.
Sir, what do you desire a link to? Rub the genie lamp and perhaps something will arise.
Boo! You of all people, observing your sense of humor all these years from afar, this commentary from YOU on Bill Burr is SO out of left field. Jesus Chocolate Rain Christ, ya think you know somebody, then BOOM, right in the face…
I agree to an extent. Good analysis, by the way. I am currently watching (okay, RE watching) one of his acts on Netflix and a bit he does regarding being “more of a man” if you squash your inner feelings or risk being called a “fag” by your friends fits your description. It’s funny, but uncomfortable…but he sells it well.
I’ve found him funny in my limited consumption of his material, I want to say sporadically over the last 15 or so years. My perception right now is that he’s supposed to be a little controversial and appeal to the “anti-PC” and/or redpill (for lack of better words) crowds. I find some of those guys hilarious, even if I don’t agree with the views of a lot of their fans. I enjoyed guys like Patrice O’Neal and others that I discovered on Tough Crowd with Colin Quinn and related shows back in the early '00s. I’m sure they would be hated today.
At first I thought he was funny, but then he said something that wasn’t funny, it was just misogynistic as hell. It really jarred me and made me say “what?” out loud, but then the clip ended.
Later I saw another clip and he said something that made me think “well that sounded more racist than funny” so I stopped bothering with him.
He strikes me as a funny guy, in the same sense that Carlin or Bruce was funny, but he also strikes me as having some really shitty attitudes and ideas that are a pretty deep part of himself.
I had that moment smack in the middle of a stadium filled Kevin Hart special when he said he’d beat his kid if he acted gay. It was bizarre. Suddenly it was harder to laugh with his schtick of the the daily trials and tribulations of a weak black short guy.
It’s schtick. I do think his comedy comes from a real place, as with most good comedians, but I also believe a good bit of it is an exaggerated put on( again, as with many good comedians ). I’m pretty certain he’s connected the dots, he just thinks it’s funnier not to when he’s on stage.
Whether he is right or not will be a matter of opinion ;). I like a fair bit of what he does, but not everything.
I came to know about him through watching Jim Jefferies (who really did lose his edge in his last special)…and think he’s hilarious. It’s one of the few podcasts I listen to regularly. He’s very self depricating in it and pretty much admits to being an idiot constantly…funny though.
He has been railling about the “groan factor” on the coasts, but lately also has been coming out saying that the shows there are actually going very well… people are still coming to the show to have a laugh and not to get offended. Of Course, he has been mentioning the current climate a lot. For instance all the questions he gets about Louis CK…and how he feels “they” are trying to get a sound bite. A wrong answer can ruin his show.
The podcast is twice a week nowadays. Monday and thursday.
He is quite open about his anger issues, how they negatively affect his family and his comedy, etc. But he still has a ways to go to get to the point where is aware in real time when he’s crossed over the line. I dread the thought of him crossing the line with his family and not being able to control himself.
So he tells Conan that he’s trying to cut back and then a minute later he goes too far.
As long as he nears the line but doesn’t cross it, he can be good. But he needs to pull it back too often.
I find Burr’s comedy pretty sophisticated. He plays the idiot, but if you pay attention, he’s pretty on the ball. Look up a few clips on YouTube when he’s on Paul Provenza’s Green Room. It’s comedian bull-sessions on video, but it’s not all bits; they make some pretty compelling arguments about various social ills. He claims he never reads, but then ten minutes later he’ll say, “I read this book on the fall of the Roman Empire where blah blah blah …”
His jokes are really well crafted in that they throw the the listener for a loop, making his twists that much more impactful. He can start a bit off with, “You know the problem with black people?” and by the end of the bit you realized he’s taking down people who make those sort of observations.
He’s absolutely funny as hell and, as noted, can get a bit uncomfortable at times. Right now, he’s my favorite stand-up comic. (Well, maybe more than right now. Since first coming across his work about 5 years ago, I don’t think I’ve found anyone I found quite as funny and sharp.)
