"Something Like This: The Bob Newhart Anthology" (03/20/2001) Comedy Newhart, Bob, Warner ArchivesProducers include: Jimmy Hilliard. Compilation producer: Bill Inglot. Engineers include: Lee Herschberg. Recorded between 1960 & 1967. Includes liner notes by Bill Inglot and Judy Brown. Audio Remasterers: Dan Hersch; Bill Inglot. Liner Note Author: Judy Brown. Recording information: Freddie's Club, MN; San Fernando State College, Northridge, CA; The Broadmoor International Center, Colorado Springs, C; The Crystal Room of the Desert Inn, Las Vegas, NV; The hungry i, San Francisco, CA; The Ice House, Pasadena, CA; The Tidelands club, Houston, TX; UCLA; University of California, Los Angeles, CA. Editor: Wally Kamin. It's a testament to Bob Newhart's considerable talents that his TV shows, particularly his '70s classic The Bob Newhart Show, overshadowed his comedy records which were trailblazers in their own accord. His first album, The Button Down Mind of Bob Newhart, became the first comedy album to ever reach the top of the charts, and it did so in 1960, when there were scores of other comedians, singers, rockers, and Broadway soundtracks vying for the coveted pole position. Newhart succeeded then, and his records remain fresh, because they were elegantly written, easily delivered, perfectly formed sketch comedy, the kind of routines that could appeal to all audiences, yet still contained twists and asides that proved how hip and clever Newhart was. This is the same trait that fueled his television shows, and while certain particulars of both the show and the records may have dated, the routines remain uproariously funny because of their construction. Newhart created a setting and existed within it, letting little details speak large volumes. This is apparent throughout Rhino's splendid double-disc set, Something Like This: The Bob Newhart Anthology, which contains 24 tracks from his eight albums for Warner Brothers. Since most of these records are out of print, this is a blessing for Newhart fans, but anyone with even a passing interest in comedy should check this out, because there are few comedy records that ever transcend time like this. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine Unique among even the most cutting-edge standup comics of the '60s, Bob Newhart entertained his audiences not with snappy patter and jokes, but with long monologues in which his voice represented one side of a conversation, the other side left to the listener's imagination. This idiosyncratic format proved endlessly adaptable, as Newhart spun seemingly endless scenarios from it. Before he became a beloved TV star with the Bob Newhart Show, he released several popular comedy albums, from which the best moments have been culled for inclusion on this definitive two-disc compilation. Whether he's advising Abraham Lincoln, confronting King Kong, or getting blitzed at a retirement party (among other comedic situations to be found here), Newhart employs his patented mild-mannered, "button-down" personality to subtle but sharp comic effect.
