Bill Hicks - Totally Bill Hicks
VCI - VCD0162 - 2002
By Paddy Walsh
Bill Hicks. Just try and name someone else - be they in rock, metal, or whatever - that encapsulates the whole ethic of what makes our preferred genre of music so great and
dangerous. A better example you will not find. Never mind the fact that he wasn't even a musician per se but a stand up comedian; this man stayed true to what he believed in, right to the end, despite his growing mainstream popularity and media interest. He never wimped out, sold himself out, or went where the cash was. On the contrary, prior to his tragic death of cancer in 1994 his shows became increasingly visceral, bitter, and acidic. A man close to death, knowing of his impending fate and realising that he didn't have much time to get his message across to the masses.
Totally Bill Hicks is a document of his last ever live performance, as well a fitting tribute in the form of a documentary about life called 'It's Just A Ride'.
For the uninitiated,
Bill Hicks is a free spirit's wet dream. The man oozes wit and humour, all the while commanding a general aura of sincerity that is sorely missing from most comedian's repertoires. The show itself, entitled 'Revelations', is just that; the philosophies of a man delivered with passion, vigour and a biting wit that is impossible not to chuckle at. Perhaps what separates
Bill Hicks from the rest is his refusal to ever balk at offending anyone, be they Christians, conservatives, pro-lifers, the military or the government.
Anyone. Laugh at the power of his more crude moments you will, but the underlying messages will leave you no option but to
think, in exactly the same way as a great writer, poet or musician.
Bill Hicks spent his life crusading against everything he saw wrong with America and the world, and I could spend all day here typing his more inspired moments in quotations. But I won't. Just buy this, and let yourself go. Not for the faint of heart. Or should that be the opposite? It is those who are easily offended that should be the first to watch this,
Bill Hicks wants you!
The show is absolutely faultless, and the documentary is a fitting tribute to one of the few spokespersons of actual true, no holds barred liberalism that ever walked the earth. Current events around the world have proven everything he said to be true, and his message is even more relevant today than it was 10 years ago. Essential.
9.5/10
