Hilarity on silver discs

February 6, 2008 9:21 PM

Please recommend some of your favorite standup comedy DVDs. Lesser known is good, but not outrageously obscure.

I'm looking to broaden my standup horizons with some new DVDs. My wikipediamanship brings up many names, but none of the personal recommendations I'm looking for.

All-time favorites: Mitch Hedberg, Dane Cook, Russell Peters, David Cross. British humour is great.

What makes you laugh on DVD?

posted by graytona to sports, hobbies, & recreation (56 comments total)

Louis CK? Youtube?
posted by mhp at 9:29 PM on February 6

Also, Demetri Martin?

Very Hedburgesque
posted by mhp at 9:30 PM on February 6 [1 favorite]

Yeah, Louis CK is awesome. Shameless is the most recent one. Doug Stanhope's Deadbeat Hero has crap production values but is still great.

Richard Pryor did great standup films. Eddie Murphy's Raw is another classic. If you like David Cross you should check out Patton Oswalt. George Carlin's HBO specials (shoot for the early ones) are classic for a reason.
posted by Bookhouse at 9:32 PM on February 6

I was about to suggest Patton Oswalt as seriously underrated.
Any Robin Williams, Live on Broadway is awesomely good,but older stuff is amazing.
posted by piedmont at 9:40 PM on February 6

British you say? Rowan Atkinson's stage show is skit-based, but very funny.
posted by Paragon at 9:41 PM on February 6

Bill Hicks.
posted by philad at 9:42 PM on February 6 [1 favorite]

Oh my god, EDDIE IZZARD. Dress to Kill is quite possibly my all-time favorite comedy performance.
posted by scody at 9:43 PM on February 6 [7 favorites]

Louis CK - Shameless is absolutely worth the money.

Ron White - You Can't Fix Stupid
Ron White is hugely popular - however, he's also hilarious. Comedy Central frequently shows this.

Daniel Tosh - Completely Serious (Or buy his cd True Stories I Made Up which comes bundled with a dvd of his half hour CC special. True Stories I Made Up is a thing of comedic beauty.)

Bob Newhart - Button Down Concert

Patton Oswalt is also hilarious. However, it appears that his newer stuff isn't out on DVD. Pick up Werewolves and Lollipops on cd to get a feel for him.
posted by fluffy battle kitten at 9:43 PM on February 6

Eddie Izzard. Dressed to Kill is one of the best, but it's all good stuff.
posted by katemonster at 9:44 PM on February 6

I love Eddie Izzard's Dress to Kill.
posted by tracicle at 9:44 PM on February 6

Heh.
posted by tracicle at 9:44 PM on February 6

Damn you scody! And you got the name right, which I failed to do. But I will attempt to one-up you by providing a link.
posted by katemonster at 9:45 PM on February 6

I'm pretty sure there's something not quite right with Zach Galifinakis, but the guy is hysterical, and this DVD is awesome:

Live at the Purple Onion
posted by Mikey-San at 9:49 PM on February 6 [1 favorite]

I am sure you are aware of Eddie Izzard. Most people know him from HBO's near constant 4am playing of Dress To Kill, but our favorite Executive Transvestite also has several other routines available on DVD. I really must recommend Unrepeatable & Glorious. Sadly, I haven't seen Circle or Sexie yet.

Thanks, because I was all nice and quiet and settled for the evening, but I'm listening to "Glorious" now.
posted by aristan at 9:57 PM on February 6

Decidedly Eddie Izzard.
posted by mumkin at 9:57 PM on February 6

lmao... what the heck... like 9 of us all at once.
posted by aristan at 9:58 PM on February 6

As if you needed any convincing, you can check out a sample of Dressed To Kill on Youtube (actually you can watch the whole thing on there but whatever).

Bill Bailey is good too, specifically Part Troll - similar to Izzard but more musical. Samples of his stuff (not necessarily from Part Troll): Magic Roundabout theme tune; Insect Nation; Acts of God.
posted by EndsOfInvention at 10:16 PM on February 6

eddie izzard, dane cook, and mitch hedberg are among my favourites...
but my favourite stand-up DVD is Ellen's "here and now".

i watch it about once a month, and laugh 'til i cry every time.
posted by gursky at 10:17 PM on February 6

Chris Rock
Patton Oswalt
Louis CK
Zach Galifianakis
posted by YoungAmerican at 10:19 PM on February 6

Jo Brand is my favorite British stand-up comic.
posted by mewithoutyou at 10:26 PM on February 6

Richard Pryor: Live In Concert is one of my favorite.
posted by sharkfu at 10:34 PM on February 6

Seconding Patton Oswalt and Louis C.K. (Shameless is the funniest thing I've ever seen).

I would add: Kathy Griffin (esp. Allegedly), Billy Connolly, and Dave Chappelle (esp. Killing Them Softly).
posted by hjo3 at 10:40 PM on February 6

Try Pablo Francisco. He uses his voice mimicry skills to great effect. He can perform Al Pacino's Scarface doing a drug deal with Kermit the Frog. Downside is, all his "dude" voices sound like Keanu Reeves.
posted by micketymoc at 10:49 PM on February 6

Steven Wright I Have A Pony
Lenny Bruce
Woody Allen Standup Comic
Emo Phillips Live at Hasty Pudding Theatre
Ellen Degeneres Taste This
Bill Hicks Rant in E Minor
Margaret Cho I'm The One That I Want
And yeah, Eddie Izzard.
posted by miss lynnster at 11:05 PM on February 6

Oh, and I'll second that Ellen's "Here & Now" is good. That woman really is funny.
posted by miss lynnster at 11:07 PM on February 6

Lewis Black does great politically-themed stand up.
I'm a fan of Margaret Cho as a person and when she's being interviewed, but I think her stand up is awful.
posted by HotPatatta at 11:08 PM on February 6

Dave Chappelle's Killin' Them Softly (sample).
posted by good in a vacuum at 11:18 PM on February 6

I am completely in love with Bill Cosby: Himself. Definitely a classic.
posted by PhatLobley at 11:31 PM on February 6

Oops, just noticed hjo3 already mentioned Chappelle. Well, I guess nobody's said Jerry Seinfeld. I'm Telling You For the Last Time is where he retires all the material from his TV show era.
posted by good in a vacuum at 11:38 PM on February 6

I can't believe nobody's said Ricky Gervais Live - Animals.
posted by mjao at 12:16 AM on February 7

We Don't Die, We Multiply: The Robin Harris Story has the Robin Harris standup bit ("[if ya] Gotta go, [ya] Gotta Go!") that totally slayed me when I first saw it on TV in the late 80s.
posted by panamax at 12:45 AM on February 7

Bill Bailey

An example.
posted by louche mustachio at 1:26 AM on February 7

Seconding Bill Bailey
posted by Neonshock at 1:28 AM on February 7

A few more British comedians for you:

Stewart Lee (writer of Jerry Springer: The Opera and an extremely sharp stand-up)
Maybe some Ross Noble? He's a bit surreal and chatty but very funny.
Mark Thomas is a political comedian you might find amusing.
And yeah, Bill Bailey and Eddie Izzard (Dress to Kill is great, but I like Glorious too).
posted by terrynutkins at 2:33 AM on February 7

Dave Gorman's Googlewhack Adventure is an amazing show (All his stuff is great) as he tells the story of flying all over the world in search of Googlewhacks. It's insane, a true story, and one of the funniest things I have ever watched.
posted by paulfreeman at 3:38 AM on February 7

Kevin James: Sweat the Small Stuff. Silly humor, but it cracks me up every time I watch it.
posted by unclejeffy at 4:32 AM on February 7

Go looking for some Doug Anthony All Stars - "Dead and Alive" is probably the peak. My brief Googling shows that's what is available is probably fairly unofficial or grey market - check eBay. Seriously, seriously funny Australian comedy trio in the 90s.
posted by Jimbob at 4:35 AM on February 7

Peter Kay!

Northern English comic, that the southerners probably dont get/like/understand/care about as he has a "funny accent" and "sounds poor". He is very likeable, and his comedy is made up of usually stories relating to his family and growing up in a northern working class town. Its very gentle and he talks about his mum a lot. He causes minor riots on most chat shows.

If you want to understand northern english working class psyche, look no further.
posted by daveyt at 5:28 AM on February 7

I know his star has been tarnished lately but I would suggest you check out some of Dennis Miller's standup from earlier years. Try Mr. Miller Goes To Washington.
posted by lpsguy at 5:52 AM on February 7

Brian Regan without a doubt. I haven't seen this DVD, but I have seen him live 3 times. I make a point of catching him whenever he comes to town.
posted by strangememes at 6:01 AM on February 7

Jim Norton - Monster Rain
posted by nineRED at 6:55 AM on February 7

Don't forget Dylan Moran
posted by craven_morhead at 7:14 AM on February 7

Dylan Moran is a brilliant Irish comedian.

Monster
&
Like, Totally


One of my favorite bits from Monster:
On men, women, and relationships.

Without a doubt, one of the funniest people I've ever seen. His bit (from Monster) about the French is also rather droll. This little clip from his series Black Books (with the equally brilliant Bill Bailey) is a little indication of the type of sardonic humour he's known for.

Highly recommended.
posted by slimepuppy at 7:38 AM on February 7

Agh! Craven_morhead beat me to it while I was distraced watching Dylan Moran clips on youtube!
posted by slimepuppy at 7:39 AM on February 7

Joe Rogan. Hilarious. Not sure if he has a DVD or not, but whatever I listened to was gutsplittingly funny.
posted by ChefQuix at 8:07 AM on February 7

Henry Cho - What's That Clickin' Noise?
Jim Gaffigan - Beyond the Pale
posted by puritycontrol at 8:09 AM on February 7

Seconding Brian Regan.
posted by wittgenstein at 9:10 AM on February 7

Seconding Jim Gaffigan.
I'm also a big fan of Mike Birbiglia.

If you are interested in stand up comedy in general, you might enjoy the documentary about Seinfeld's return to stand-up, Comedian as well as Steve Martin's book, Born Standing Up.
posted by bristolcat at 9:43 AM on February 7

X-ing

Dylan Moran
Bill Bailey
Ricky Gervais
Jim Gaffigan
posted by o0dano0o at 10:45 AM on February 7

Always liked the first two Sam Kinison albums - Louder Than Hell and Have You Seen Me Lately?
posted by OilPull at 1:02 PM on February 7

Gervais' Animals is amazing. But also Are you Dave Gorman was a great program I saw put on by Dave Gorman (now sometimes on the daily show) about 6 years ago. Also I've heard bill Bailey is good
posted by Large Marge at 1:47 PM on February 7

If you haven't seen Richard Jeni then you're really missing out. A big Steaming Pile Of Me is hilarious.

You seem like you'd also like Stephen Lynch. You'll see him on Comedy Central Presents every now and again, but that is not really his best effort. Check out Live At The El Rey for a decent show.

And now that I'm thinking of Comedy Central Presents, check out Steve Byrne as well. I've only ever caught his Comedy Central special, but it's one that I always watch if it's on.

I don't think you'd like Brian Regan. He's funny, and a great comedian, but doesn't quite fit in with the styles you've mentioned.

Also, even though I hate to give her credit for anything, Sarah Silverman is probably right up your alley.

Finally, (Ricky Gervais - Animals + Louis CK - Shameless)ⁿ
posted by sambosambo at 3:44 AM on February 8

Jeff Dunham - Arguing With Myself
posted by Serena at 7:03 PM on February 8

Jeff Dunham - Arguing With Myself

The ventriloquist? Seriously? I (unintentionally) had one of his specials on while playing TF2 and was amazed at how incredibly trite his material is. Here's a quick sampling of the kinds of jokes he tells:
* "Marriage is an institution -- so is Alcatraz."
* "If you choke a smurf, what color does it turn?"
Plus tired, tired stuff about terrorists, 72 virgins, and viagra.
posted by hjo3 at 8:21 PM on February 9

I’m surprised no one has mentioned Katt Williams. All of his DVDs are really funny, although he does reuse some of his material.
posted by breaks the guidelines? at 11:36 AM on February 28

Comedians of Comedy: Live at the Troubadour, or their documentary feature which also has "Live at the El Ray".

Eddie Murphy's Delirious was re-released last year (I liked it better than Raw, but both are available pretty cheap).

2nding Chris Rock, with the recommendation to start with "Bring the Pain" and "Bigger and Blacker".

John Pinette is quite funny. He's lesser known and there's a ton of his stuff on youtube if you want to try before you buy.
posted by Gary at 1:10 AM on April 3