Blogcritics: Comments on David Sedaris live at Carnegie Hall

Comment by jack e. jett

Sat, 8 May 2004 15:13:44 EDT

he is one of the funniest people i have have ever seen live. so much better than any comedian. as far as his voice is concerned, it can be a bit annoying at fist, however, with time, it becomes part of the story... jack

Comment by Tom Johnson

Sat, 8 May 2004 00:19:45 EDT

Cool, very intriguing, Bryan. This makes me need the box even more.

Comment by bryan

Fri, 7 May 2004 20:50:12 EDT

Tom, sorry I wasn't clear. I have the box set, and amy does the female voices on a whole host of stories, including the one about his lisp, for instance. She often plays the part of his mother or sister. The reason I mentioned the Rooster is specifically because I have the tape recording of "You can't kill the rooster." And actually, amy does the voice of the Rooster on that story, as well! Another story that really made me laugh was the story about learning about Easter in France - with the chocolate bells compared to the easter bunny that expands into a discussion of the nature of faith. I chuckle just thinking about it. My problem is I have the box set on tape. I'm going to have to invest in a CD version so I can listen to selected parts without having to wait for the fast forward.

Comment by Tom Johnson

Fri, 7 May 2004 19:09:57 EDT

Bryan - the story you mention, oddly, is not as effective in the book as it is it hear it. I think it's as you note - the inflection of his voice as he reads it adds a dimension somehow missing in the story. However, the voices are all David - not his sister, unless you're referring to a different version of "True Detective" than I am. If you like David's brother, I HIGHLY recommend reading his story "You Can't Kill The Rooster." His brother seems like he must have been adopted from a rural Kentucky family, he's so different. My favorite part? When his brother suggests to anyone in distress that they get themselves a "fuckit bucket," a bucket full of candy. (I'm paraphrasing, but it's close.) "When you're havin' a bad day, just get your fuckit-bucket and say, "Fuck it," and have some fuckin' candy bars." Absolutely priceless. Damn, now I think I need to order that boxset.

Comment by Nick Jones

Fri, 7 May 2004 17:22:01 EDT

Wasn't my intention to decrease your enjoyment. Just throwing in my 2 cents worth. A few years ago, after I had expressed myself on some aspect of The Phantom Menace, my niece asked, "Uncle Steve, do you have an opinion on everything?"
I stopped to ponder the question for a moment. "Yes," I replied, "Yes, I do."

Comment by bryan

Fri, 7 May 2004 17:02:53 EDT

BTW, the "real life detective stories" is absolutely side-splitting on the tape. I don't know that reading it would have the same effect. Plus, the way he gets his sister to do all the female voices - it's just that much added humor.

Comment by bryan

Fri, 7 May 2004 16:58:24 EDT

Oh, well, Nick. I was going to say the same thing about the voice. If you've heard his voice, it is unique, and you won't be able to read it without getting that voice out of your head. But it's your loss. Doesn't decrease my enjoyment one whit.

Comment by Nick Jones

Fri, 7 May 2004 16:54:34 EDT

Too late. I can now never get that voice out of my head. If I had heard Bukowski's voice before reading him, I never would have read him, either.
Besides that, the content (maybe about the difficulty of learning French?) was more than a bit too precious and twee for my taste.

Comment by Tom Johnson

Fri, 7 May 2004 14:20:17 EDT

Well then, Nick, at least pick up his books - you can assign your own voice to his words in your head.

Comment by Nick Jones

Fri, 7 May 2004 14:16:02 EDT

Having heard him on NPR, Sedaris' voice is exactly why I wouldn't buy this. Just totally irritating.

Comment by Tom Johnson

Fri, 7 May 2004 14:03:25 EDT

Great review, Bryan. I recently "found" Sedaris after years of reading about him and hearing people tell me I'd like him. Man, were they right. I've read Me Talk Pretty One Day and am in the middle of Naked right now, plus also own this recording. To really appreciate his gifts, I'd say you need to both read the stories yourself and hear his renditions of them. Each story has such rich detail that it might get overlooked in the live context. What amazes me, story after story, is that this is all real. His family really is this weird. Someone in his house really did use the bath towels instead of toilet paper to "clean up" after using the toilet. His sister really does dress up as other people just for the fun of it. Everyone thinks their own family is weird, but the Sedaris clan is so far beyond what we've all learned to accept with our own families - this is one of the most bizarre families I've ever heard of. Seeing sister Amy on David Letterman a couple weeks back only confirms this - she may actually be much more odd than even his stories indicate. Neat show-off fact: I've got front-row seats for Sedaris when he visits Scottsdale, AZ in June in support of his new book. Can't wait!