From Dr. Katz to Archer to Bob's Burgers, comedian H. Jon Benjamin has lent his impressively smooth vocals to a wide variety of cult classic cartoons. With pipes as soothing as his, it's a little surprising he hasn't released a comedy album yet — or at least until now.
Well, sort of, anyway.... The new Jon Benjamin album sees him taking on the persona of "Jazz Daredevil" on a release called I Should Have...* (the asterisk points to the phrase "learned how to play the piano").
It's an entire album that sees Benjamin performing piano alongside a bunch of top-notch jazz players, but there are two catches — he doesn't know how to play the piano, and he doesn't even like jazz.
"Jazz is the ocean… I am just one wave forming one curl, crashing once onto some remote beach somewhere in time. And that wave makes a small imperceptible change in the slope of the sand, upon which at some point in time a baby turtle will walk across, leaving his trail for just an instant, before the tide washes it clean," Jon Benjamin said in a press release. "That's a pretty cool analogy. More to the point, I do not play piano and I made this jazz album."
I Should Have... arrives on November 27 via Sub Pop, who reiterate that it's a very real album that'll arrive as a digital download and LP.
Below, you'll find a video about the album's creation (courtesy of the A.V. Club), along with some songs from the LP. The first is a sketch that also features Kristen Schaal and Aziz Ansari, and the second two are actual jazz tracks. It's amazing how well Benjamin's shitty piano playing works with the music.
I Should Have...
1. Deal With the Devil
2. I Can't Play Piano, Pt. 1
3. I Can't Play Piano, Pt. 2
4. It Had to Be You
5. Soft Jazzercise
6. I Can't Play Piano, Pt. 3
7. I Can't Play Piano, Pt. 4 (Trill Baby Trill)
8. Amy's Song (The Bum Steer)
Well, sort of, anyway.... The new Jon Benjamin album sees him taking on the persona of "Jazz Daredevil" on a release called I Should Have...* (the asterisk points to the phrase "learned how to play the piano").
It's an entire album that sees Benjamin performing piano alongside a bunch of top-notch jazz players, but there are two catches — he doesn't know how to play the piano, and he doesn't even like jazz.
"Jazz is the ocean… I am just one wave forming one curl, crashing once onto some remote beach somewhere in time. And that wave makes a small imperceptible change in the slope of the sand, upon which at some point in time a baby turtle will walk across, leaving his trail for just an instant, before the tide washes it clean," Jon Benjamin said in a press release. "That's a pretty cool analogy. More to the point, I do not play piano and I made this jazz album."
I Should Have... arrives on November 27 via Sub Pop, who reiterate that it's a very real album that'll arrive as a digital download and LP.
Below, you'll find a video about the album's creation (courtesy of the A.V. Club), along with some songs from the LP. The first is a sketch that also features Kristen Schaal and Aziz Ansari, and the second two are actual jazz tracks. It's amazing how well Benjamin's shitty piano playing works with the music.
I Should Have...
1. Deal With the Devil
2. I Can't Play Piano, Pt. 1
3. I Can't Play Piano, Pt. 2
4. It Had to Be You
5. Soft Jazzercise
6. I Can't Play Piano, Pt. 3
7. I Can't Play Piano, Pt. 4 (Trill Baby Trill)
8. Amy's Song (The Bum Steer)