The Pick of Billy Connolly

AMG Review of The Pick of Billy Connolly

Dave Thompson
All Music Guide

A British TV-advertised compilation drawing upon Connolly's assault upon pop stardom during the mid- to late '70s, The Pick of Billy Connolly is one of those rare comedy albums which manages to maintain its value long after listeners have committed the punch lines to memory. Part of that is due, of course, to Connolly's impeccable sense of timing (and, perhaps, to the rigors of trying to decipher every word he says), but it's also because he is incredibly funny and true humor never needs rest. Drawn from five past Connolly albums, this isn't the incontrovertible best of the Scots iconoclast -- both "A Wee Swearie" and "In the Brownies" are conspicuous by their absence. But listeners do get the merciless "Country and Western Super Song," in which crippled grannies, blind orphans, and gentle priests are wiped out with Biblical glee; a grippingly canine-centric version of Tammy Wynette's "D.I.V.O.R.C.E."; and, of course, the Big Yin's gratuitously evangelistic punk rock take on "Tell Laura I Love Her" -- imagine the Sensational Alex Harvey Band meets "I Want My Baby Back." But, better still, just imagine Connolly himself -- towering, bearded, imperturbable, and utterly, irresistibly brilliant. This isn't the best of Billy Connolly. But it's some of it.