COMEDY CORNER #6 - TIM MINCHIN

Now if you don't know who Tim Minchin is, you are in for a real treat once you sample his work.

Very rarely do we see such a successful export from Australia who can entertain in the way that this bloke can.

I hear him called a Comedian, but that is such a tiny part of his skill set, this man is a Musician, and a bloody good one at that.

I'm not going to list his credits and such I mean I will supply you the links to check all that out, but he is quite topical right now for my entire audience out there.

For the Aussie and UK viewers you may have recently seen him in Jesus Christ Superstar, but he is also about to appear for the Sydney Theatre Company stages very soon in Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead

He will also appear at the Helpmann Awards at the Sydney Opera House on July 29.

For the US viewers you may have already enjoyed his new music score for the Broadway musical Matilda, which opened in the West End initially then Broadway. There is a rumoured musical remake of the film as well.

But for the die hard Minchin fans globally, you have probably enjoyed his live shows recently with the biggest orchestra's in your city playing similar material to that which he recorded with the Heritage Orchestra.

But do yourself a favour, if you have the opportunity, go and see this man perform - you will not be disappointed.

Minchin's music is as diverse as his credits as he flows through moving self examining moments of life to hilarious parody and the mocking of serious institutions of society.

His sound ranges from vaudeville to hard rock at times and his lyrics are as clever as the likes of Stephen Sondheim, yet funnier and a lot more vulgar.

The best song to examine Minchin's style is his infamous Pope Song, for it shows his work is like an ice burg, 1/8th above the surface 7/8ths below.

On the surface it appears to be a vulgar offensive attack on Pope John Paul II. But when you listen to the lyrics, you realise he is questioning how you measure and form your morality and beliefs and whether you are basing it on the right influences.

Have a listen, and a laugh.

POPE SONG - Audio with Lyrics

But he doesn't stop at the Pope, he likes to question how people accept very unusual and outrageous notions like miracles. In his song Thank You God, he mentions how God fixed a very treatable condition on a woman who could easily afford the minor surgery on a cataract after her congregation prayed for her. He thanks God for doing that even though God is doing nothing to stop babies dying from malaria or people starving to death in third world countries.

But then Minchin also manages to give a heart felt rendition of what Christmas means to him and the devotion he feels to his family.

White Wine In The Sun - Youtube clip


MATILDA

I am yet to see Matilda as it still has not reached the Australian Stage but after hearing some of the songs I am really looking forward to it.

Minchin has written the music and lyrics for the score and he was even nominated for Best Original Score at the Tony Awards for this work.

MATILDA on Wikipedia


Being a huge fan of Minchin's I once penned a libretto for a musical based on Minchin's works contained in the Heritage Orchestra album. In what began as a personal challenge to see if I could derive a story that used every song from the album in a relatively believable context, it became a piece that I was very proud of, and dare I say enhanced Mr Minchin's humourous lyrics with the script.

The premise was based around Politics and how a very unlikable man is thrust into the role of Prime Minister just before an election due to an enormous political scandal. He is an absolute liability and it is up to his team to try and clean him up and get him across the line. (Living in Australia, this is a pretty typical event in our political landscape)

I really enjoyed writing it but sadly and not surprisingly, I could not secure any rights to use the songs to work the musical up. I lack that kind of talent and ability to challenge that as well so it still sits on the shelf.

But I remain a true Minchin fan and I look forward to enjoying his works into the future.

YOU GREW ON ME - Youtube Clip

TIM MINCHIN'S WEBSITE

TIM MINCHIN - Wikipedia

Enjoy

J G S