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Bill Hicks? Overrated or underrated?

[Deleted User]

Gold TV now showing "It's Just a Ride" about the career of Bill Hicks.

As his name constantly features on comedian threads, maybe it's time he deserves a thread of his own.

What's your take on him?

Personally I always found him to be overrated as a comedian, he just wasn't my idea of hilarious...but underrated as a polemicist and a political commentator, his attack on the US government after Waco was direct and relentless, as was much of his stand up routine.

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lertsnim

A poor mans Denis Leary

Tigger

lertsnim wrote: »

A poor mans Denis Leary

I take it you're being ironic

Flint Fredstone

Internet Ham wrote: »

What comedians do you like? No better way to get a sense of someones taste than that.

Humour is subjective so reeling off names is not productive here. The poster I quoted seemed proud that there was no joke. Call me old fashioned but I like my comedians to tell jokes and be funny, not preachy.

MRnotlob606

Very Underrated in my opinion. These days great iconic comedic greats are often forshawdowed by politically correct Live at the Apollo comedians and all of the Russells.

I have a friend from Texas actually that has never even heard of Bill Hicks !!

Bill Hicks was never mainstream, he only became really famous posthumously,His biography is called Love All the People and reveals some very interesting stuff about him, including the fact he much preferred preforming in the UK than the United States.

Internet Ham

Flint Fredstone wrote: »

Humour is subjective so reeling off names is not productive here. The poster I quoted seemed proud that there was no joke. Call me old fashioned but I like my comedians to tell jokes and be funny, not preachy.

Fair enough. I was really trying to get an idea of your taste. The segment the poster spoke of is sandwiched in between four or five extremely good pieces of comedy if I recall. It wasn't a ninety minute show of Hicks standing on a stage, pontificating with no humour. Your point is facile if you are saying you prefer a comedian telling jokes when one twenty to thirty second segment was not a joke - even though it was delivered in a comical style.

Humour is subjective, I agree but I am curious to know your standard of funny. It's just one poster asking another what he finds more enjoyable than Hicks.

I am hoping Michael Macintyre gets a mention...

furiousox

Some comedians make me "lol" but Hicks is the only one who makes me laugh until my ribs hurt and tears roll down my face.
His take on the LA riots, the first gulf war, and sending terminally ill people to make movies with Chuck Norris is priceless.

The King of Moo

He never feel through an open half-door in a bar though, did he?

bodhrandude

Denis Leary I always found to be overrated, his No Cure for Cancer show is a complete rip off of Bill Hicks stand up routine. I like Hicks, I like the fact that he brought the deep South into comedy.

lertsnim

Tigger wrote: »

I take it you're being ironic

Of course.

Internet Ham

bodhrandude wrote: »

Denis Leary I always found to be overrated, his No Cure for Cancer show is a complete rip off of Bill Hicks stand up routine.

This led to someone asking: Why is Denis Leary better than Bill Hicks?

Because there's no cure for cancer.

bodice ripper

SHUT UP AND LISTEN TO HIM PLAY.

catbear

MRnotlob606 wrote: »

......including the fact he much preferred preforming in the UK than the United States.

It think this says most about him. His cutting perceptions of his own consumerist instant gratification society never got the same traction as when performing to audiences outside the bubble who could look in with him.

He's far from the funniest comedian I've seen but I think comedy was only half his act.

Joe_ Public

Internet Ham wrote: »

Fair enough. I was really trying to get an idea of your taste. The segment the poster spoke of is sandwiched in between four or five extremely good pieces of comedy if I recall. It wasn't a ninety minute show of Hicks standing on a stage, pontificating with no humour. Your point is facile if you are saying you prefer a comedian telling jokes when one twenty to thirty second segment was not a joke - even though it was delivered in a comical style.

Humour is subjective, I agree but I am curious to know your standard of funny. It's just one poster asking another what he finds more enjoyable than Hicks.

I am hoping Michael Macintyre gets a mention...

Seeing as I appear to be the "poster" being impugned, I'd better explain that, as you said, I just quoted a familiar line from a very familiar routine for no particular reason only it just popped into my head at the time. Nor am I "proud" of Bill Hicks or any stand-up comedian for that matter. I just like his particular brand of satirical/observational humour and don't mind if others don't share that opinion. It's the nature of the beast.

Anyway the best comedy routines for me are more about observation or interpretation rather than jokes. I doubt George Carlin has ever made me roll round the floor in stitches, but the cleverness/verbal dexterity of his routines still thrill me. Not that I have any issue with jokes/sharp one-liners, some of them can be "crackers" and it's the way they tell em.

Realt Dearg Sec

Cienciano wrote: »

They're not funny. Give me Brendan O'Carroll, Hector, Brendan Grace, June Rogers, Sil Fox and Maeve Higgins any day of the week

Now THAT'S funny.

Debil

He's very shouty.

smurgen

Joe_ Public wrote: »

I didn't like him. I loved him. Bill Hicks on the evils of marketing...just genius. "You think there's a joke comin? There's no fkcin joke comin."

I actually thought that was retarded.I just don't get him at all at all and I'd big into stand up.he was a try hard which is everything his persona and act was geared against.

MadDog76

Hicks was an intelligent comedian, ie. if you're an intelligent person then you will have found him funny/entertaining and generally just "get" him ........ if you don't like him ......... well ...........

Cathy.C

You see that's what annoys me. People think that if they get Bill Hicks, they're intelligent, as if what he said was really profound or something.

It wasn't. It really really wasn't.

smurgen

MadDog76 wrote: »

Hicks was an intelligent comedian, ie. if you're an intelligent person then you will have found him funny/entertaining and generally just "get" him ........ if you don't like him ......... well ...........

I forgot that intelligent people all like the same things.he was an angry,fat,whiney **** who's achieved cult status when it really isn't merited.there's literally dozens of comedians better than him

bodice ripper

Cathy.C wrote: »

You see that's what annoys me. People think that if they get Bill Hicks, they're intelligent, as if what he said was really profound or something.

It wasn't. It really really wasn't.

As opposed to all the people on thread who think they are intelligent because they don't like Hicks? Pfft.

Agent Coulson

FortySeven wrote: »

To be fair, he did die. Hard to stay current really.

Yet years after he died there was another Bush in power and America was back in Iraq and all is old jokes on the first gulf conflict worked again.

Realt Dearg Sec

smurgen wrote: »

I forgot that intelligent people all like the same things.he was an angry,fat,whiney **** who's achieved cult status when it really isn't merited.there's literally dozens of comedians better than him

You're right there. How could a fat person ever dare to think he could be funny? Back in your box tubby.

Flint Fredstone

MadDog76 wrote: »

Hicks was an intelligent comedian, ie. if you're an intelligent person then you will have found him funny/entertaining and generally just "get" him ........ if you don't like him ......... well ...........

Such a pretentious pile of ****.

Dyr

He had moments of comedy genius, and moments of genuine insight but generally he came across as much of a self righteous prick as the people he was lampooning.

MadDog76

Cathy.C wrote: »

You see that's what annoys me. People think that if they get Bill Hicks, they're intelligent, as if what he said was really profound or something.

It wasn't. It really really wasn't.

smurgen wrote: »

I forgot that intelligent people all like the same things.he was an angry,fat,whiney **** who's achieved cult status when it really isn't merited.there's literally dozens of comedians better than him

Flint Fredstone wrote: »

Such a pretentious pile of ****.

You three can sit over there in the corner, somebody will be along soon to bring you home ........... :cool:

smurgen

MadDog76 wrote: »

You three can sit over there in the corner, somebody will be along soon to bring you home ........... :cool:

Good.I'll watch a good standup while I'm waiting https://youtu.be/G-wxw_vxMcg

MadDog76

smurgen wrote: »

Good.I'll watch a good standup while I'm waiting https://youtu.be/G-wxw_vxMcg

You do that!

Wompa1

He's very hit and miss. I'd say underrated because he doesn't and didn't really have much mainstream success. He's a cult like figure. But I'd say overrated by that cult following.

He was a good comedian when he was on point. He was a much better pundit, analyst and philosopher. Kind of like George Carlin. The comedy is in the absurdity, I guess...

The King of Moo

Wait, this just in!!

It seems that you can be intelligent and like Bill Hicks, and...

and equally, you can be intelligent and dislike him!!

Maireadio

He was more interesting to listen to than hilarious. But, jays Bill, shut up about cigarettes will ya? We get it, we get it. :pac: He was a bit annoying, the kind of person who would have got on my tits in school.

Really sad and crap that he died so young though.