Customer Reviews

Be a Great Stand-Up: Teach Yourself

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I own at least 8 books on stand-up comedy, and I only bought this one because I just arrived in London and considered doing Logan Murray's course.

Well, after only reading some random parts of the book I knew that this is by far the best and most helpful book on stand-up comedy I have ever read. It covers lots of areas other established books don't even touch; there is golden advice on every page, and unlike with many of the other books you know after reading only a few lines that here is somebody who has actually done stand-up successfully instead of just writing about it.
For anybody who thinks about trying their hand at stand-up: buy this book!

Having said that, I don't want to slag all off the other books, but too many of them tell you too many things you already know or that are simply about 20 years out of date. If you would like to complement this book with others, I'd recommend Jay Sankey's "Zen and the art of stand-up comedy" for a very interesting look at the performance side of stand-up, and Greg Dean's "Step by Step to Stand-up Comedy" mainly for its interesting and helpful approach to the dreadfully tricky topic of rehearsing for stand-up comedy. And since Greg Dean covers the important (though in some ways dated) set-up/punchline stuff (that everybody who's ever told a joke probably knows, to be honest) you probably don't need any of the others, either.

But for me, Logan Murray's book is absolute top dog among these three and I will definitely do his course even though I've been on stage before.

Ah yeah, none of the books will of course save you from actually going on stage over and over and over again and dying on your arse every now and then.

I have bought a number of stand-up comedy books, done a few gigs (failed to beat the frog, gonged off at the comedy store) and even took a part time course. If I'd had this book to start with I would have progressed further a lot quicker. This is a very practical manual which will have you writing your own material very soon. It helps you decide which type of comic you want to be, and shows you how to play to your strengths. It's a good book at a good price, and in my view should be top of your list.

I'd done two open mic spots before getting this and let's just say they didn't go fantastically!
With the help of this book I have managed to write some fantastic new material. All of which I managed to mine out of my own head thanks to the techniques I picked up form this book. I would recommend this to anyone who has suffered with the dreaded writers block, as it offers all kinds of writing ideas that will get your creative juices flowing again.

While there are a lot of useful exercises for the individual working alone, there are twice as many for those working in groups (No use to me but great if you're working with other trainee comedians!). Even so, there's plenty for the lone writer to get stuck into, including a complete set building workshop.

This book follows the standard format of the Teach Yourself range which is easy to follow and packed with handy tips and words of wisdom from other comedians. Taking you from the history of stand-up through comedy theory, joke theory & routine building right up to stagecraft and the all important business side.

I say the best all-inclusive starter guide *money* can buy, having said that bartering or exchanging love or other goods might find you a better guide.

This is a fantastic book - giving you a good guide of basic how to do everything on stage - from mic usage to pausing and working the room - as well as excellent stuff on how to generate material and ways to come up with different ways of doing the joke. Oh, and afterthought everything.

I did Logan's comedy course and died on stage... That I died on stage is no surprise but that I managed to get the bottle to do it at all is a testament to his great teaching skills. This book gets the message across well but there's nowt like giving it a go - highly recommend the Amused Moose courses...

Logan Murray loves stand-up comedy, he loves the whole concept of it, he's made his living at it for over 20 years and he loves teaching it. All this comes across in this inspiring book. It's packed with advice for the new comic and is a complete guide to becoming a stand-up. It has loads of impro exercises that are particularly good for groups but there's quite a few writing exercises you can do on your own. These really get your creative juices flowing. I teach comedy myself and this is the book my student's like best.

This is the best book on the market I have read. I have used the ideas to improve my performance (after dinner speaking), and would recommend the book to anyone interested in reading about, thinking about and especially doing something about getting better as a stand-up/comedy performer.

An excellent step up from Greg Deans stand up book. This book certainly gets you thinking and broadens your view of what is funny. It doesnt concentrate on joke formats but instead exercises to get you working within those formats and creating material. Advice at the end from working stand ups gives a true reflection of the pros and cons and some useful advice.

There are plenty of crap books out there written by unfunny hacks, but after reading this and then taking one of the guy's courses, I can honestly say it was the best book I ever bought. Not that he's trying to come on like Dostoevsky but its massively practical and finally kicked me into comedy, with the material and confidence his games instil in you. Please don't buy it though because comedy is full and I don't want any more competition.

Logan's book gives a step by step guide of how to break into the world of stand up at all levels. It's extremely useful that the author is a stand up and therefore advises you from his own experiences. Logan's genuine enthusiasm and passion for all things stand up make it a compelling book for anyone interested in comedy whether it's from a performance, writing or even audience viewpoint it will leave you with a thorough appreciation for the art form. Get this book: it delivers honest inspiration Be a Great Stand-Up: Teach Yourself