Tenacious D

Tenacious D recently has achieved a mainstream following through it's latest single 'Tribute' (receiving high rotations on MTV, and international stations such as Channel [V] in Australia), but what the everyday casual listener may not realise is the fact that the roots of Tenacious D were firmly planted long before the song graced international shores.

After some digging, I happened to come across a collection of episodes. Even though the CD was my introduction to the band, all fans need to see the shows to even grasp the genius the is 'the D'.

Of course, the show isn't just for fans. The series is a comedic delight in it's own right, outlining the very real struggle of an unsigned act, trying to make it big in the music industry and the struggles that come with it. New fans of the D who have heard the music will defiantly get a kick out of seeing the back stories behind some of the songs such as 'Lee' and 'Tribute'.

Jack Black and Kyle Gass are a great team, music wise and acting, perhaps because of the fact that they are playing themselves, and the elements of the Tenacious D story are autobiographical in nature.

Of course, Tenacious D aren't for every. Those who do not appreciate the comic stylings of the almighty Jack Black will probably not enjoy the show or the music. With that said, almost everyone with a sense of humour should be able to get a kick out of 'the D' in some way, whether through their music or acting.

The series is a must-see if not only for musicians, but also comedy lovers as well, and of course, new fans of the D.

The true spirit of Tenacious D is actually captured quite accurately in the other reviews on this site (well, the fanatical ones anyway). For the uninitiated, I'll try to clear things up. Tenacious D is composed of two guys, Jack Black & Kyle Gass, who have a two man band in which they both play acoustic guitar and sing (though Jack is the primary singer). They play some bizarre hybrid of heavy metal and folk. All their lyrics center around how they are truly the greatest band in the universe and have incredible, unfathomable sexual prowess. All of this is sung with 100%, almost hyper-conviction. This is, basically, the joke. I was never a big fan of them live, or their whole act in general (it's amusing and unquestionably original in presentation, but I feel it wears kinda thin fast). However, when Bob Odenkirk and David Cross (and their creative team) from "Mr. Show" got a hold of them for a group of shows for HBO, they transformed the concept into something even better. The show, which presents the two as two out-of-work oddballs who get into all sorts of screwy adventures in between gigs, is as hilarious and out-of-left-field as "Mr. Show" (which is saying something, as "Mr. Show" is the best comedy show of the last decade, easily). Each "adventure" is about fifteen minutes long, each containing a thematically-linked live song. The whole kit-and-kaboodle is bracketed by appearances by Jack & Kyle speaking as hosts directly to the TV audience, as Burns & Allen and Abbott & Costello used to do on their shows. All in all, the total effect is as if "The Abbott & Costello Show" has been updated for the '90s starring Tenacious D and adding music. Did I mention, it was really funny?

If you were wondering, Tenacious D is the name of the show of the greatest band in the world of the same name. It consists of Jack Black and Kyle Gass. Add a camera and if you air their crazy adventures on HBO then you have yourself one of the funniest half hours since neanderthals tried to create fire. Although it only ran for 3 episodes, I hope this goes the way of the short-lived Clerks animated series and is updated to DVD with more episodes.

In case you have been in a coma for the last few years and haven't heard of Tenacious D. They are a running joke as the greatest rock band in the world. The joke being they play acoustic rock solely on 2 acoustic guitars. But they really are one of the greatest rock bands in the world. Jack Black has the greatest rock voice since Ian Gillan off Deep Purple fame (check out the original CD of Jesus Christ Superstar, you'll see what i mean).

As for Kyle Gass, he truly is an incredibly talented guitar player as is JB. But KG is up there with paco pina and Julian Bream in my opinion. The short lived HBO Tenacious D episodes now available on The complete masterworks of Tenacious D are a cross between the monkees and Ren and Stimpy. Sheer genius. And on the DVD you get a lot of bang for your bucks.. The episodes. live concert. road footage. skits. and music vids and TV appearances. Ask Santa to bring you it this Xmas, you will not be disappointed!

From their garage, to the Comedy Clubs to HBO, this series (produced by David Cross "Mr. Show") helped add fuel to an underground following for Tenacious D that would lead to their debut Album in 2001 "Tenacious D" and their sold out shows across the US and England. Each of the 6 episodes that aired on HBO start out with Jack and Kyle heading out to open mic night with guitars in hand. Starting out with an opening tune that usually meshed their clever comedic talents with beautiful harmonies and acoustic guitar, this would set up a Pulp style storyline that led to yet another open mic night and another great tune. This series is a modern Spinal Tap for the Garage Musician. I would like to see HBO offer the episodes on DVD so everyone can enjoy this classic. SM