Notes From The GED Section, the stand-up comedy CD by D.L. Hughley, of Kings of Comedy fame, is a decent recording that will not stand the test of time or more than a few listenings.

Much of the material here feels already dated only six months or so after this CD was released: jokes about Janet Jackson’s “wardrobe malfunction”, Kobe Bryan, Elian, and Martha Stewart already sound old. Although D.L. Hughley is a very talented stand-up comedian his scattershot approach to his material, going from kids today to Martha Stewart to Pets And Food for example can be a little annoying.

The comedy CD starts off rather deceptively with a standard joke about driving and paying the toll in San Francisco before immediately changing tack and taking on the war in Iraq and 9/11. Though I am far from sensitive when it comes to language, I nevertheless sometimes question the use of profanity when it serves absolutely no purpose and is done to death as I feel it is a sign of weakness and wanting to go for cheap laughs. This is the case with Notes From The GED Section. D.L. Hughley swears up and down the flagpole for no particular reason as often as he breathes. This bugs me because Hughley’s stand-up comedy is not as lazy as it may sometimes sound.

D. L. Hughley is pretty good at political humor, such as the material about Bush and the Patriotism track. As a social commentator, Hughley definitely does not rise above the fray. This is evident in easy and common track like Hypocrisy, about the death penalty and violence on TV does not say anything particularly new. I mean, how many comics have remarked that people who are for the death penalty are also anti-choice? How many stand-up comedians have said they’d rather see a breast than violence on TV?. Sniper, about the Black shooter and his friend, is material many other Black comics have done.

Still, Black, White, & Elian and the wicked track about Al Sharpton running for President are pretty good stuff. Hughley’s relationship material is also pretty good but, again, not anything any other comic doesn’t do. His routine on religion is also pretty decent.

An interesting detail about Notes From The GED Section is the track list cover art on the back of this comedy CD. Next to The War somebody has written 2 + 2 = 5 on the blackboard.

D.L. Hughley Notes From The GED Section is about as solid as a GED diploma.

Track List:

D.L. Hughley
Notes From the GED Section
stand-up comedy CD
Comedy Central 2005
Parental Advisory
67 minutes

Too Cold
What I Learned From The News
The War
9/11
Kids
Genius Of The GED
The Hook Up
Pets & Food
Women
Sex & Money
Father
Sniper
Patriotism
Religion
Hypocrisy
Black, White, & Elian
Al Sharpton
Online Dating

 

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