Joe Bartnick and Greg Warren have both come out with specials recently. Two journeymen comics, long haulers, who’ve paid their dues, each wildly unique American stand ups from different angles, both on separate major comedians labels as it were, Nate Bargatze’s Nateland, and Burr’s All Things Comedy. It’s as if, going back a beat, Mitch Ryder and Steve Forbert had breakout albums out back to back produced by Bob Seger and Morgan Waller. Either way, no matter who’s behind these hours, they’re both excellent. Each of them underlining and spotlighting two distinct voices and styles. Two perfect examples of what everyone means when we constantly throw out that tired but true line about it taking twenty years to become great as a stand up.

BARTNICK

Bartnick is wrapped around an opening and closing credit sequence positing Joe as the star of a 70’s or 80’s style network television series ala Mannix or Magnum PI. It’s pretty great and Ben Tishler, the director of the special, wisely just teases the send up with a small taste at the open. The majority of what you see of it is in the closing credits which is smart, because one, it gets the train out of the station, and two, Burr flat out steals the thing with his bartender bit the way Tom Cruise stole Tropic Thunder with very little screen time, which would not be a good way to open the special. That being said, it’s all gold, Joe is fantastic, and after the hour of stand up he’s just laid out he’s not in any danger of letting someone else shine. (By the way, someone needs to give Bartnick the show, ‘Bartnick’.)

A KILLING IN CHICAGO

Not sure why Joe shot this in Chicago? I think he just likes the Dean theatre. It looks great on film though. Everything about this one came together. Bartnick’s stand up is so tight here. It’s very hard not to watch it all in one sitting. This is just Joe in his zone. A Pittsburgh bred Cicalone, as we used to call them in Detroit. Non-stop comedy, telling you his side of the story of the world as he sees it. He doesn’t really care if it’s polite or not, it was when he grew up, and it is when he’s with his compagno’s which he assumes we all are.

‘First time my wife me made me lasagna it had orange chunks in it. I was oh this fucking broad put American cheese in my Lasagna. I got to call my Nonna and get an annulment.

She was like ‘no, you moron that’s squash’

I’m like, ‘gay Raquetball?’

My wife uses chopsticks at home. Who are you impressing? When you’re home alone do you do the taxes with an abacus?

He’s truly himself onstage too. I have to say this. I know Joe. I’ve hung with him and smoked cigars and had a lot of laughs and there’s no difference between Joe onstage and Joe just hanging out. He’s just I-talian and a guy, and a jock, and funny as hell. The stuff he does about his daughter playing basketball is great, but the stuff about her taking ballet is pure Joe.

She does ballet. It’s awful. All the mothers hate me because I call the bar a pole.

To me, he’s Sebastian’s brother in law that’s not allowed over to the house anymore and Sebastian isn’t allowed to tell the reason why he’s been banned, but Sebastian texts you later that he’ll call you on the drive home and tell you and you’ll bust a gut.

Watch the special. It’s up on You Tube on Burr’s All Things Comedy channel. It’s already killing it and it’s only out a few days.  I promise you you’ll laugh. Hard. If you don’t, you just had a shitty childhood or something.

Also, check out his podcast with the legendary Frazier Smith

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/puck-off/id1105077934

GREG WARREN – THE SALESMAN

‘The Salesman’ is a one of a kind, and so special. It’s been put out by Nateland and 800 Pound Gorilla Media and directed by Nate Bargatze. There’s so much about this hour that begs you to watch it. Greg, like Joe Bartnick, is honed and seasoned and so wizened to the ways of the stand up stage that you feel it in the very first seconds of the show. He and Nate smartly give this no opening, maybe for that reason, maybe not, but it does help underline his sense of belonging onstage, as if he was the veteran salesman who’s just rang your bell. You’ve opened the door to find a simple smirk and a surety in his stance that says he’s got the goods in his briefcase and there’s no chance he won’t close the sale he’s come to make.

Greg, a St. Louis raised guy, has been doing stand up for a couple decades for sure. He’s definitely paid his dues. This may be his third special, something like that, but it’s his best, like Joe’s, his bell ringer. Yet unlike Joe’s, which is Joe being Joe, and non-stop funny, an hour or so of classic stand up comedy, this is a concept piece. It’s a masterpiece. It’s a thesis. A lecture. A Ted Talk. It’s a drilled down, dynamite discourse, on the nature of Peanut Butter in America. How it’s sold, marketed, and consumed, by a man that was, before he was a comedian, a peanut butter salesman. For Procter and Gamble.

It’s hysterical. You can not believe how funny it is as you’re learning one scoop after the next about peanut butter. It’s a magic trick is what it is. It just keeps going too. It’s not completely the entire hour, there are some other aspects to his routine here, but the lion share of this is about peanut butter. It’s hard to believe a man can be this funny for this long on the subject of peanut butter, but Greg Warren pulls it off. That’s what twenty years gets you up there in the midwest. Up there in St. Louis. That kind of comic precision. This guy has it. He works the crowd, giving them all kinds of grief about their peanut butter choices. He gives us inside baseball business stories about peanut butter that we never even knew we wanted to know. (The special was shot in Lexington Kentucky the home of Proctor and Gamble.)

‘Now, the company I worked for Procter and Gamble sold the peanut butter that I used to sell, Jiff, to a company called Smuckers, which as you probably know, owns Jelly. So now Smuckers owns peanut butter and jelly.  If these guys ever get ahold of bread, that’s a real monopoly. I think Washington may have to step in in that case.’

And stories about the launch of new kinds of peanut butter.

‘I was there when the company wanted to launch a new version of Jiff. Low salt peanut butter, targeted towards diabetics. I wanted to call it ‘Type 2 peanut goo”

It really goes on and on, and I don’t do it any justice quoting it. It’s all in his delivery which is wonderful. He’s clean as can be, calm, steady, in control at all times. He reminds me of a modern day Bob Newhart. He really is something to see. I love this special so much. Check it out.

By the way, he’s the guest next week on my podcast. Standupworld. Give it a watch/listen if you can.

Also watch him on Nateland where he’s a regular.

 

PLEASE SIGN UP FOR OUR NEWSLETTER.  (AND GET THE FREE BOOK! THANKS!!)

 

Anyone who reads this blog, (or whatever this thing is) regularly, knows how special I think Shane Gillis is. He consistently makes me laugh out loud. My buddy, Dan Soder, summed it up best when we were discussing Shane; he referred to him as a ‘once-in-a-generation talent.’ That’s undeniably true, especially considering the competition in his generation. He’s working alongside an incredibly talented group of stand-ups, with Soder among them. The likes of Big Jay Oakerson, Andrew Schultz, Joe List, Tony Hinchcliffe, Jessica Kirson, Mark Normand, Luis J. Gomez, Theo Von, Annie Lederman, Andrew Santino, Yamaneika, Sam Morril, Will Noonan, Erica Rhodes, Dave Smith, and the list goes on and on. The fact that he’s risen to prominence so quickly and distinctly begs the question: why? What is it about this big guy in a loose-fitting T-shirt who’s perpetually beer-dizzy that makes him so extraordinary?

He’s not just funny; he possesses something invaluable for a comedian – an ability to court controversy and rile people up while being a pretty damn good guy.

“THIS GUY IS SO FUNNY, HE GOT CANCELLED AT THE BEGINNING OF HIS CAREER”

Dave Chappelle said it best. ” Shane Gillis is so funny that he got cancelled at the beginning of his career.” That’s a fact. It’s what happened, and it’s a perfect story. One for us all to hold tight to, because getting fired by SNL was the best thing that ever happened to him, even though at the time, it seemed like he was done. Yes, he was radioactive for a beat, but he was a prodigious talent, at that there was no doubt. That’s why they hired him. That’s also what the next few years revealed as he went on to star in, write, and co- conceive the most original sketch show since In Living Color, maybe even The Groove Tube, with his partner John McKeever. The show on GillyandKeeves.tv is ten times funnier, more clever, daring, and entertaining than anything SNL had done in years. Lorne Michaels let go of his best new player since the Sandman due to old podcast episodes with Matt McCusker where Shane used an Asian accent and made a few Asian jokes.

JOE ROGAN AND THE CAVALRY

It was a public drubbing. No doubt. It had to hurt. To be the guy that famously got fired like that? In an era where cancellations were like beheadings in 18th century Britain, with the press being the town square.  Shane was marched up the steps without even a hood on, and his head rolled off of the scaffolding for the whole town to see. The good news is the stand ups around him, his old friends and the new ones he made, picked him up,  dusted the body off and somehow fastened the head back on. Joe Rogan, Bert Kreisher, and the Cavalry actually saved him. He had his own podcast of course, and his unique voice and stance, yet the acceptance by the stand up community is what made it all happen so quickly. He just seemed to perfectly fit in there with Joe Rogan, Ari Shaffir, Mark Normand, and Bert Kreisher in a jolly stoners pack of off the cuff comedy curling. Like a missing piece of a favorite bong pipe. Eventually the newly un-cancelled, Louis C.K, bellied up to the bar with him alongside of Dave Chappelle and the rest of the top dogs.  Shane became a made man, which made sense.

 

I had the privilege of performing before him at Cobb’s Comedy Club in San Francisco a couple of nights a year or so ago when I was just getting back into stand-up. Andrew Yang happened to be in the audience. Shane and Andrew had become friends during Shane’s SNL ordeal. Right as he was being figuratively led up the steps (to continue the metaphor), Andrew, who was running for President at the time (note: he didn’t win), penned a thoughtful New York Times opinion piece essentially saying, “Hey, I’m Asian, you shouldn’t fire him over these old jokes.” Unfortunately, Lorne fired him anyway, and Shane’s career suffered a temporary setback. However, he gained another good friend in the process, and the night I was at Cobb’s, Andrew introduced Shane and delivered some genuinely funny moments.

HE WANTED A NETFLIX SPECIAL

His first special, for those that don’t know, is a legendary off road You Tube special, ‘Live in Austin.’

This is arguably one of the best DIY YouTube specials of all time. Filmed at The Creek and the Cave in Austin, it features Shane alone on stage with perhaps three cameras and minimal production design. It has likely been viewed close to 25 million times across all platforms. ‘Shane Gillis Live in Austin’ did a remarkable job of dispelling the notion that his career had been permanently decapitated. Anyone who watched it understood that the blame lay squarely on Lorne Michaels. The man who was once considered the bravest in comedy had lost his nerve, his sense of what was real in comedy, what was bullshit, and most likely what was left of his testicles. Shane was the rightful heir to Sam Kinison and John Belushi, was about to capture the hearts, souls, and minds, of a whole generation of young men in a very similar way, and Lorne let him go because of a few ill-advised emails and write-ups he couldn’t weather.

However, what Shane truly desired was a Netflix special. Robbie Praw, the boss of Netflix’s stand-up division, admired him and likened him to Louis C.K. and Dave Chappelle. Yet Robbie initially hesitated to deal with the expected controversy both from outside and inside of his giant company. Nonetheless, he did eventually made the call, and extended the offer. This happened long before Joe Rogan, Bert Kreischer, and others elevated Shane to his current status, preceding a big New Yorker article and the waning influence of the MeToo movement. I will say it was an unequivocally bold move, the second one by Netflix that championed stand-up comedy by standing up to the cancel culture mob. The first was of course Ted Sarandos’s bold letter to his company of solid support for Dave Chappelle.

While I’ve been critical of Netflix for other reasons, they’ve consistently backed stand-up comedy and the right of comedians to express themselves freely. Praw’s giving Shane a special shortly after his SNL dismissal was significant and, as time has shown, astute.

BEAUTIFUL DOGS

His wish has finally come true – his Netflix special is here and has already hit the number one spot on Netflix’s shows during its opening weekend. I don’t recall any stand-up achieving this before, not even Chris Rock, Ricky Gervais, or Dave Chappelle, the triumvirate of Netflix stand-up royalty. It’s a well-deserved placement because the special is smart, funny, and daring. Shane wisely didn’t reinvent the wheel (I don’t believe he even changed his T-shirt). His style remains laid-back, giggly, naughty, clever, and audacious. It’s slightly better produced than ‘Live in Austin,’ with a solid direction by McKeever of Gilly and Keeves fame. Some might find the beginning a bit slow, but to me, it exudes confidence. Shane and John understand the wealth of great material he’s packed into the latter two-thirds, so they spend the first third letting the audience get to know Shane, including his controversial encounter with the entire continent of Australia.

If I haven’t hit it hard enough yet, I think a hell of a lot of this guy. He’s a good man. I’m a quite a bit older and I’ve been there, I worry about his drinking and shit, like I do about a lot of these guys who are partying so much. Anyone that knows me knows where that comes from, knows my past bullshit, but I think he’s got a good head on his shoulders. I am praying that these guys don’t blow it with drugs and alcohol like so many of my friends did when they got ahold of the brass ring. I wish them all only the best. They really are an incredible class.

Also, I do however happen to think Shane sometimes looks, and especially in the photo above, like he could play the Nazi guard in that stupid old joke about the guys grand-dad that died in the Holocaust. ‘Yeah, he was drunk and fell out of a guard tower.’

A STRONG PRESENCE

He’s not just a stellar stand-up; he exudes something so much more than that. He’s not mean, cranky, loud, or bitter about the world. He possesses a laid-back demeanor that’s delightful to share a laugh with. He’s like that neighbor you love to hang out with, even though you’d never leave him alone with your kids, your cars, your wife, or even your refrigerator. But for watching a game, a movie, smoking a cigar, or sharing a meal, he’d be your first choice. Personally, I think he’d make a fantastic comic film star, a blend of John Candy, Jack Black, and Sandler, with a dash of Albert Brooks.

Who knows what the future holds for him? If I were in his shoes, I’d consider making my own low-budget film maybe even releasing it on Gilly and Keeves TV. Sow new ground, much like Louis C.K. did in his prime.

If you haven’t seen Shane’s work yet, do yourself a favor and watch “Beautiful Dogs.” Then head over to GillyandKeeves.tv and purchase a season or two. You won’t regret it. Besides, there’s a strike happening, so you don’t have a plethora of entertainment options right now.

Also, if you can still snag a ticket, catch him on tour. He’s truly the cream of the crop at the moment.

https://www.shanemgillis.com/

PLEASE SIGN UP FOR OUR NEWSLETTER.  (AND GET THE FREE BOOK! THANKS!!)