One of my favorite things about Sarah Silverman's Comedy Central series The Sarah Silverman Program is its music, so it makes me happy to see that Comedy Central Records has released the massively expansive, 99-song album Songs of the Sarah Silverman Program. It's insanely comprehensive, almost intimidatingly so; while I appreciate the value in not splitting the songs across several CDs, the sheer amount of material on the album makes listening to it in one sitting pretty much impossible.
Of course, it's not really the kind of album you'll want to listen to from beginning to end. Songs of the Sarah Silverman Program is more of a novelty, meant to be enjoyed a la carte -- you pick and choose the songs you want to hear as your mood dictates. Obviously, a big reason for that is the huge number of tracks on the CD, but an even more pressing reason is that a lot of the songs don't work as well when removed from the context of the series. Their placement in The Sarah Silverman Program usually underscores one of the things that show does so well (but rarely receives credit for), which is the way it satirizes familiar entertainment conventions. With that overall satire removed, however, what you end up with listening to Songs of the Sarah Silverman Program is either a) a huge collection of amusing "style" parodies or b) a way of quickly accessing fond memories of the series. Neither is a bad thing, and the CD can be enjoyed on either or both levels. It just doesn't really warrant extended listening -- after hearing three or four songs, you'll likely be out until the next time.
Still, there's a lot -- a whole lot -- to enjoy on Songs of the Sarah Silverman Program. In addition to all the songs and pieces of music, there's a ton of dialogue snippets from the show that are all funny. Listening to the album is a lot like listening to the albums put out by The Simpsons -- the dialogue and songs are taken out of context, but combined add up to their own kind of experience. It's really only for fans of the show, though; anyone who hasn't been watching The Sarah Silverman Program isn't going to get much out of it (and, frankly, why would you even think you might?). It may be little more than a novelty, but there's enough material on the CD to please just about any fan of The Sarah Silverman Program.
If nothing else, the album is worth buying just to listen to "Making New Friends" over and over. When I first heard the song on an episode of the show, I laughed about as hard as I've ever laughed at anything. The song still holds up even without the visuals. I laugh every time I listen to it.
- Album Release Date: 3/2/10
- Label: Comedy Central Records
