Everything I will say a little bit below, due to certain circumstances, is known to a fairly small circle of people, but the idea I want to convey, you will easily understand, believe me, it is not so confused as the main example for its illustration. In the midst of modern jazz musicians, among others, there is a wonderful pianist, Brad Meldau, he is an American, he has a cool trio, for which he is a leader and inspiration. His music is beautiful, not without exceptions, but still, in general, it is so, while it can not be said that it bursts with wild variety, just the guy does what he can and does not go where not necessary. However, one composition in his work, among the many songs written and played by him, stands apart. This is Sky Turning Grey, written for the death of composer Elliott Smith, whose most notable achievement for the general public was the authorship of the soundtrack for the film Good Will Hunting. Elliott was an idol for Brad, had a great influence on his work, and after his death, the pianist found it necessary to say something with his music. The composition, at the same time, turned out quite in his style, but at the same time completely different, more sensual and emotional; personally, in my opinion, it is the best in his work.
In fact, I wrote all this only to show one simple thing: if a professional person devotes any of what he does to a person, especially a deceased person; a person whom he loved or with whom he was connected in one way or another, something more is obtained than what he usually does, because his usual creative act is filled with emotions, memories, feelings associated with that person. He's the only one. When there is such a strong concentration on one person, the end result cannot be the same.
To get to the point, I may not say the most popular one, but it is in the speeches designated by the initiates that Louis C.K. reveals himself fully as a comedian, as a person, and in every other quality imaginable. And a performance at the Bacon Theatre in 2011, dedicated to deceased comedian Patrice O'Neill, rises above the rest of Louis's work. No, of course, the thematic direction of the speech has changed little compared to the past. But everything else has changed. These changes are not too imperceptible, but rather sensitive: in addition to the very presentation of the material of Louis, which has become more “pure” (from “macho”), rough and ragged, humor has shifted in about the same direction, and it is impossible to attribute this to simple retubations in the style of a comedian, because in the next haste you can observe the same C.K., to which you are accustomed. Here, the phrase that he says about himself: “I get paid for being a professional asshole” acquires absolute accuracy of hitting, and this is not for nothing. It is a tribute to the work of a man Louis respected and perhaps loved, with whom he communicated, talked, joked and so on and so forth. Approximately the same picture can be observed in Sikeev’s “Bashed”, made on the death of George Carlin, whose influence Louis experienced.
At the same time, it is very important to say that there is no dissonance, no inconvenience from the fact that C.K. is playing with style like this. First of all, because he does it skillfully, he does it correctly and harmoniously, without diminishing or killing his style for the sake of ostentation, but at the same time introducing some elements into the performance that say a lot. It can be quite insignificant, as I said, but it is quite tangible and weighty - some facial things, a slightly tougher presentation of material, movement around the stage and so on. Someone may not even notice, but for someone who can catch it, the comedian will not remain the same as he was.
In fact, CK is simple, and loving him is not difficult. Everyone likes him because he is red and fat and funny, he has two daughters and he talks funny about masturbation. But when the screens come out performances like the one that was in 2011 at the Bacon Theatre, you begin to perceive it in a different way. It becomes deeper, you can feel what he was hiding or not showing, but now just could not, and it is expensive. It's expensive because tomorrow he'll come to you the same way, but you know there's actually something else, and it's something really real. In fact, that is why the performance in the Bacon Theater, as well as in a hurry C.K. “Bashed” occupy a special place in the work of the comedian. It is because, although they are made for everyone, they are dedicated to one thing. Someone with whom something in this life was connected, and not to give it credit was simply impossible.