Button -Down Mind Of Bob Newhart

Solo performer: Bob Newhart (spoken vocals).
Recorded live at The Tidelands Club, Houston, Texas. Includes liner notes by Dan Sorkin.
All material written by Bob Newhart.
Long before he was a successful TV sitcom star, Bob Newhart was perpetrating his brand of refined, low-key humor on recordings and on stages across America. In sharp contrast to the brash, in-your-face humor of the borscht belt veterans, Newhart had a style that was unassuming and genteel. Where other comedians of the early '60s might seem like used car salesmen, Newhart came across more like someone's tax accountant or local grocer. His meek, guy-next-door demeanor made his bouts with bizarre circumstances all the more humorous. When he places himself in the middle of historical events like Lincoln's Gettysburg Address, his manner-of-fact demeanor hilariously deflates the situation. Newhart's patented style--presenting one end of a conversation and leaving us to imagine the unheard other side through his comments--allows his deadpan humor to achieve maximum impact.