Bill Hicks 20th Anniversary evening

The original goat boy himself was honoured in fine style on the 20th anniversary of his death at Dingwalls in Camden Lock on Wednesday night. There were rare clips shown, a Q&A with his brother and great sets from stand ups Jeff Innocent Robin Ince and Brendon Burns. It was curated by Matt Harlock director of the Bill Hicks documentary American the Bill Hicks story. That Hicks can still draw a crowd to pay their respect and celebrate the life of comic that died twenty years ago shows not just how good a stand-up he was but also what he seemed to stand for and the messages that he conveyed. He was to comedy what the Clash were to punk rock, they were something more than just the music; he was something more than just the jokes. The downside of this though is that it can lead to the deification of the man- and whilst he may have had a chuckle to himself about this you can’t help but feel it doesn’t sit well with his trust no one philosophy. 

Since Hicks there have been many stand ups that have come along in the same mould. Doug Stanhope for one is every bit as shocking as Hicks ever was and his attacks on society and double standards even more piercing. But none have come close to the affection that Hicks was and still is, held in. Seeing Hicks for the first time in the 90s was almost mind blowing, his stand up captured the zeitgeist of feeling of the time. He encapsulated why people were feeling frustrated and regurgitated it in the form of some of the sharpest jokes you’d ever heard. For the UK crowd especially it was satirical comedy at its best but delivered by someone outside of the cosy radio four middleclass Oxbridge set that seem to make so many from the UK stand up scene.

Some of the clips shown had been seen hundreds of times but they were still sharp and best of all very funny. He could do almost the same sets today; just replace names like Debbie Gibson to Katy Perry, George Michael to Jay Z and Iraq to well ironically enough Iraq or Afghanistan. It would have been fun to see what he would have made of e-cigarettes. These events are held every year and are taking place all over the world from the US to Italy. Not only do they celebrate the life of a great comedian they raise money for charity- Bill Hicks Wildlife Foundation and No Surrender the UK cancer charity. Let’s hope these nights continue for many years, Hicks like many of his rock star heroes left us too early but he left behind a beautiful legacy. If you can’t attend any of these events then check out the documentary- American The Bill Hicks Story, it captures the Hicks perfectly. And remember- it’s just a ride.