Josh Johnson - Put Him on Your Radar
Refreshing, Contemporary, Comedy delivered like a Jazz Master Musician
What really makes America great?
So often these days, when we hear discussions on this topic, we run to our corners and engage in a debate about the issues that our broken two-party system directs us toward in the whirlpool of entwining tribalism and sophistry. But this weekend, I had the chance to watch a comedian who has the makings of greatness.
That is what makes America great. The freedom, creativity and opportunity for a George Carlin, a Lenny Bruce, an Eddie Murphy to emerge. The freedom for Josh Johnson to emerge and to bless us with laughter. Laughter that crosses the blood-brain barrier of tribalism and helps us to feel that we are one, if only for a moment.
I had the pleasure of seeing Josh Johnson at The Vermont Comedy Club in Burlington. He is exceedingly funny but his style is so unique. You never feel as if you are listening to a routine; it's more like listening to a great improvisational jazz musician riffing his stream-of-consciousness thoughts and eliciting the same sort of response from the crowd that a jazz master would, celebration and encouragement: “continue on, give us more!, don’t stop, keep thrilling us,” they seem to say.
If you get the chance, don't miss him. He's contemporary, likable, and refreshingly free of partisan politics, yet he hits on many of the great controversies and struggles of our times in ways that reveal our common humanity and the humor at the moment.