My Top Five George Carlin Specials
Like all those comics, George was also important to me. I can honestly say that, had I not gotten into his work when I was 14 years old and listened to every single album and special of his from 14-18, I'm not entirely sure I'd still be here (and if I was, I'm not sure I'd be as high functioning as I am).
To keep the honor going, I thought I'd briefly list my top favorite HBO specials of his. All together, George released 14 HBO specials in his lifetime. He taped his final one It's Bad for Ya! for HBO only three weeks before his death from heart disease. Picking only five out of these 14 is difficult, but here I go. Let the countdown begin.
5. George Carlin, Again
In the number five spot, I've opted for George's second HBO special George Carlin, Again.
The period of George's career that I love and know the most was his later work, but of his early specials, this one holds a special place in my heart. The version of "7 Words You Can't Say on Television," the routine that made George famous and with which he became synonymous for many, was the first piece of George Carlin to which I ever listened. To this day, in fact, whenever someone brings up the concept of bad language, I inevitably lapse into my recitation of this routine (shows you how many times I listened to it).
If you want to see what I'm talking about, take a listen to the routine below, and you'll see what's so special about this routine by following this link.
It may be a sentimental reason for picking, but I'm sort of a sentimental guy.
4. Complaints and Grievances
At number four, I've moved from George's early and middle years as a comic to his heyday as a stand up. Complaints and Grievances was George's 12th HBO show and his third shot live from the Beacon Theatre in New York City. What makes this show significant, historically speaking, is that HBO aired it live, shortly after the events of 9/11. Despite that though, it's one of George's best in my book.
In addition to great routines about driving, the weird little things that come off our bodies, and a fantastic closer on "The Ten Commandments," this show features one of the longest, funniest rants of George's whole career. In a long, 20+ minutes tirade, George goes through a list of different groups of people who, since his last HBO show, have been pissing him off.
Essentially, it's a list of one-liners, but packed together in a way that only someone like George could do, the rant, "People Who Ought to be Killed," remains one of my favorites. I just wish I could memorize the whole thing. Check it out here.
3. It's Bad for Ya!
George's comedy, particularly in his later years, epitomized that famous phrase of Dylan Thomas' "Rage, rage against the dying of the light." In his last HBO show, my number three pick, George manages to do just that. His comedy in his final years had taken a harder, darker edge to it, but when you get into your 70s (actually, in your 60s), you're allowed to be a cantankerous old fuck.
Shot a few weeks before he died, It's Bad for Ya! arguably is Carlin at his best. Not just technically, but thematically. There's a wonderful rhythm to this show. The bits perfectly flow from one to another, with each emphasizing the one point at the heart of the show: the it in question (aka BULLSHIT), is bad for ya! One of the funniest bits, for me personally, has to be his savage tirade against children, a subject and theme he'd been exploring since 1999 at that point. But here it reaches it's crescendo of hilarity.
2. Back in Town
In an interview he did in 1996, George admitted that he believed that the material he was producing and performing in the 90s was his best because, to paraphrase him, he finally figured out how to do his thing. His 9th show, my 2nd pick, "Back in Town," is definitely where he truly allowed his social satirist voice of that period to flourish. The pieces he performs in this show aren't bits. Really, they're essays. He takes a subject and thoroughly, and verbally, disembowels it. Or alternatively, he makes an argument for something which, on paper, might seem absurd, yet through his humor and his performance, he's able to make it seem convincing.
My favorite among these pieces--and there are many, like "Pro-Life," "Common Sayings," and "Free-floating Hostility," that are fantastic--but the one closest to my heart has to be "Four Groups that Gotta Go."
1. Jammin' in New York
What I said earlier about the "7 Words You Can't Say on Television," being the first piece of George Carlin's comedy I ever watched is true. However, the first full special I ever watched of George's was his 1992 special, Jammin' in New York. Filmed at the theater in Madison Square Garden, and originally broadcast live on HBO, this was my true introduction to George Carlin's comedy and to stand-up as an artform.
This was the show that George considered his most significant artistic break-through, specifically due to his piece "The Planet is Fine, The People are Fucked," which was the first time in his career where he discovered how to use silence on stage and to explore even more deep material than he'd previously handled.
For me though, as wonderful as that piece is, one of the funniest bits of the show has to be his bit on "Airline Announcements," which is so good that, while some comedians have talked about airlines since, no one has done such a spot-on piece of social satire like this.
Like many fans of George's work, I often lament that he isn't around anymore especially now of all time. I miss his fresh, honest, and funny perspective on the big things in life, the little things in life, and on language. He may be gone, but his legacy still lives and so long as people keep listening to his comedy, much of which is timeless, he'll never truly be gone. Thanks for the laughs, George.
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