King of the Mountains

When he landed a sitcom on ABC in 2004, Rodney Carrington quickly lifted himself out of the world of guest appearances on morning zoo radio and small-time comedy clubs. In other words, he went from Tim Wilson to Jeff Foxworthy and sanitized his act accordingly for prime-time TV. The two seasons of Rodney had a bit of an edge, but the truly trashy side of his act was still there, growing or maybe festering and waiting for its turn. Completely free of shame, King of the Mountains is the hilarious result. Carrington has used the four years since his last new album to hone his ribald act without disrupting the easygoing, everyman charm. His standup material is tight, but it also flows effortlessly with the comedian casually strolling through his day-to-day life of porno, immature friends, dysfunctional family, and a world that's a little too fast for a die-hard Oklahoman. His "aw shucks" attitude tempers the filth and down-home bias, but it's his understanding of what he pretends to not understand that really separates him from the Cable Guys and other Blue Collar comedians. Carrington does a perfect Bobby Trendy impression to play a Rodeo Drive salesclerk on "Shopping on Rodeo Street," while the song "Rap Star" has some current insider and properly used hip-hop slang, even if it's introduced with an "I don't know a dang thing about these rappers" excuse. As good as the standup portion of the album is, King of the Mountains does ramp up to what is always the best part of any Carrington effort: the dirty, silly, and catchy songs. They're presented at the end of the live show and again in their studio versions with a touching, heartfelt tribute to fellow comedian and longtime friend Barry Martin closing the album. With observational humor threatening to take the spotlight away from the novelty songs, King of the Mountains is a good laugh the whole way through and, in turn, his strongest album to date.