 "Photo: Matthew Zu/The Poly Post")
A hush fell over the dimly lit Music Recital Hall last Thursday as a tall, thin, bespectacled figure took the stage armed with only an acoustic guitar, a satiric wit and a nearly endless supply of ammunition from President Bush.
"One more Bush Administration screw-up and I've got tenure," said political satirist Roy Zimmerman as he took the stage for two hours of uproariously funny and thought-provoking songs.
From that point on, the laughter never ceased in the small auditorium. Zimmerman's performance, entitled "Faulty Intelligence: Funny Songs About Ignorance, War and Greed," highlighted the folk singer's keen comic wit, as well as his lyrical acumen and guitar skills.
The show was set up by music professor Arthur Winer to raise money for the music industries studies program. Winer found Zimmerman during one his many excursions on Youtube and thought he'd be great to host.
"Roy Zimmerman is a fun lesson," Winer said during his introduction of Zimmerman.
The musical styles ranged as widely as the subject material during Zimmerman's two-hour set. The music ranged from fast-paced bluegrass that showcased Zimmerman's technical abilities to outright ballads, but always remained closely tied to the folk roots he wears so proudly on his sleeve.
Similarly, the subjects of his songs could go from the Iraq War to the Moral Majority, but they never strayed from his unapologetically liberal viewpoint.
His first set elicited the most laughter from the audience, singing sexually charged songs about Bush "pulling out" of Iraq and Dick Cheney's animal magnetism. Throughout the entire show, he made full use of bad impersonations and asides along with outrageous faces to really get into character of each song.
"It was different from something I expected," said Joseph Viallajin, a second-year computer information systems student who came to the show to fulfill a requirement for a music class. "It was kind of dirty humor … it turned out to be really funny."
Zimmerman's second set was noticeably less crude than the first, causing slightly fewer laughs but much deeper thought. This music personified Zimmerman at his most biting, with scathingly honest satire.
He began by mocking the difficulties of being a liberal - one of Zimmerman's best traits is his ability to analyze himself and his self-deprecating nature.
He continued by lampooning creationism as a science, abstinence only sex education, multi-national corporations and racially charged bigotry, in addition to the Bush fodder.
The set as a whole was very powerful in its depictions of various political and social figures. Zimmerman embodies each one of the viewpoints with the humor, hope or anger that it requires.
One song in particular, "Thanks for the Support," about the laughable way Americans "support the troops" with things like bumper stickers and barbecues, was particularly moving.
"That last song about the war ['Thanks for the Support'] made me really sad," said Jack Woodward, a third-year music business student.
Zimmerman mostly played songs from his most recent albums, "Faulty Intelligence" and "Homeland/Security," but he also played a couple of new songs. These included "Thanks for the Support," the title track from his forthcoming album, and a song about Sen. Barack Obama.
In his trademark style, Zimmerman takes a discussion over something like Obama's name and reduces it to the silly debate it truly is.
"I like the Barack Obama song," said Roxanne Cervantes, a third-year music business student. "I like how he mixed it with the Mozart."
For his encore, Zimmerman played a parody.
"It's perhaps my most controversial song, oddly enough," he said just before his encore. "What if The Beatles were Irish?"
He then proceeded to break into a medley of Beatles songs, from "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" to "Help" to "Michelle." By the end of the song, he had most of the crowd singing along to Lennon's unforgettable lyrics.
Zimmerman's lefty humor has earned him notice from folk gods like Joni Mitchell, as well as National Public Radio, former President Clinton and numerous others.
Despite his many talents, both lyrically and musically, Zimmerman has never felt the call of corporate music too strong to ignore.
"[Satire] is kind of what I ended up doing naturally," Zimmerman said. "Each song has its own message. I hope that people look past the absurdity at the issues."
Absurd as it may be, Zimmerman's music touches on the very things that are corroding our society. Though he may seem a bit odd with his over-the-top expressions and pun-hearty lyrics, Zimmerman's message can't be denied.
During his opening song, "Saddam Shame," he repeatedly asked the question, "Who's sane, who's sane, who sane?" After witnessing his performance, oddly enough, Zimmerman might be the only one.
Be the first to comment on this article!