We don’t usually consider our favorite comics to be our favorite philosophers. However, what makes us laugh most has ideals that are powerful to us; what moves us most has an intense relevance to our lives.
Each of my selections reveals their philosophy in different ways. A couple of the following five comedians have a casual, frank demeanor from which their ideas permeate; two more have the lens of tragedy or hardship; and one’s ideas are supplemented with a transcendent musical component.
With regard to these selections, the editors of the literary magazine Blast may have said it best in 1914: “We only want Humor if it has fought like Tragedy…We only want Tragedy if it can clench its side-muscles like hands on its belly, and bring to the surface a laugh like a bomb.” Comedy should always give us something that sustains longer than the length of a CD and the following five albums were chosen with that precept.
Check out the top five picks for best comedy albums of 2012.
