Michael Ian Black didn't used to be a stand-up comic. He started out as a member of the great sketch troupe The State, who you may remember from their 1990s MTV show. Then he became a character actor and TV personality, playing supporting roles on TV shows likeEd and appearing on every other show on VH1. He's worked as a director (the straight-to-DVD Wedding Daze) and a screenwriter (Run Fatboy Run).
I only mention these other projects because none of them are stand-up comedy, which Black is still fairly new at. That fact makes his first stand-up album, I Am a Wonderful Man, an especially pleasant surprise. It starts a little slow; it's dry and mannered and a little odd -- it's exactly what you would expect a Michael Ian Black album to sound like. But Black finds his footing rather quickly, and by the time he gets to his routine on seeing The Black Crowes live in New Orleans (which is only the fourth track on the album), there's little to distinguish him from a seasoned stand-up.
That Black is funny isn't newsworthy; anyone who's tracked his career since The State already knows that. But stand-up is a different animal than sketch comedy, and being skilled at one has little to do with the ability to do the other. For evidence, check out Black's State-mate Michael Showalter, who released his stand-up album, Sandwiches and Cats, around the same time; his album feels more amateurish and less prepared than Black's, despite the fact that both have always been funny in other projects.
What's also surprising is that Black manages to maintain his unique voice on the album -- what might have seemed best suited for snarky VH1 commentary actually makes for some excellent routines. And it's not that his subject matter is particularly revolutionary; track titles like "Terrorists," "College" and "Sex" indicate that he's covering some fairly well-worn territory. He manages to put his own spin on it, though, in a way that's not too ironically hip or detached (which he can sometimes be accused of being). In certain routines, he even talks about himself -- his experiences growing up, his marriage and his family -- and, for the first time, you feel like you get to know Michael Ian Black. Just a little, of course. Then it's right back to that guy from the Sierra Mist commercials.
- Album Release Date: September 25, 2007
- Label: Comedy Central Records
