EPISODE NUMBER: 5160 (December 15, 2009)
GUEST: Alicia Keys
SEGMENTS: Joe Lieberman is a Jowly Good Fellow, Prescott Financial, Blitzkrieg on Grinchitude
VIDEOS: Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Another stellar musical performance! We’re getting so spoiled, kids. That was my favorite Colbert musical performance since… well, since the last one. And the return of the pinstripe hoodie was a perfect touch. I love the fact that Stephen is willing to try performing just about any type of music. Rap? Sure, why not! I loved the interview, too. Alicia Keys seems to be a real it-getter, which always makes for an entertaining exchange.
It’s hard to focus on the rest of the show with that performance in the front of my mind, but there were some real gems mixed in there tonight. It’s always gratifying to see the hypocrisy of the worst whiners on the right highlighted. The conflicts of interest and the manipulation of people’s fears don’t exactly add up to integrity. Come on, people, if you want to make your case and be taken seriously, don’t be stupid about it. Personally, I found the Prescott Financial segment hilarious, because sheep are inherently funny animals. They make great comedy.
I’m a big fan of religious humor, and the Blitzkrieg on Grinchitude is always amusing. I’m the epitome of Grinchitude myself, but I’m often stunned by the ways others find to kill the Christmas spirit. Hey, let’s put a huge cross on the Christmas tree to remind everyone of Jesus’ agonizing death! Uh… no. That’s just bizarre. But possibly not quite as bizarre as Treesus, King of the Spruce.
So what did you all think of the episode? Let us know in the comments — I’m sure you’ll all have plenty to say about the musical performance. Huge thanks to Ms I for transcribing Stephen’s rap for us!
- Nation, I am flying high. And not just because last night, I interviewed Snoop Dogg. My apologies to our ventilation system.
- At this point, the only reform left in the bill is government-mandated post-appointment lollipops. But don’t eat too many, you’re not covered for Type II diabetes.
- For he’s a jowly good fellow, for he’s a jowly good fellow, for he’s a jowly good felloooooow…. your coverage will be denied.
- Clearly Lieberman has gone from having Joe-mentum to Joe-mentia.
- [Shameless Sports Illustrated plug!] Get this issue now, because after the holidays, I am not going to look this good in spandex.
- Gold’s appeal is elemental. It practically cries out to you from the periodic table. A! U!
- Did you know that if you collect a hundred gold coins, you get an extra life?
- Yeah, pray on it. Just imagine gold is a calf.
- There’s nothing dirty about it. The money is perfectly laundered.
- Everyone knows that trees are Christians. Why do you think so many of them become crosses?
- Specifically, it’s an affront to the Christmas tree’s lord and savior, Treesus, King of the Spruce. Yes, Treesus, the peace-loving evergreen who was chopped down for trees’ sins. They know what they did. And then, I’m gonna guess, nailed to a person. Then Treesus rose from the dead — he’s a perennial — before ascending to the right hand of the Father as a handsome end table for the Lord to put his coffee cup on.
- What is the Element of Freedom? Is it gold? Alicia Keys: No, it’s sheep.
- Alicia Keys: I did start on the Cosby show and you better not show a clip. Stephen: I wish.
- Do you speak Cosby, or did you have to learn it?
- (Cosby impression! Y’all will have to do your own translation.)
What a fun show! I loved Treesus and especially loved the Prescott Financial commercial. “Pray on it. Because we’re preying on you.” LOL! Perfect. The interview and the performance were both wonderful! Stephen rapping always makes me laugh. :-)
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That performance was massive! Very very funny and good. And the pinstripe hoodie was very nice. I enjoyed his mussed hair when he took it off, too.
The Prescott comecrial was also very funny. I wonder who the guy was who presented it.
But I loved LOVED the interview with Alicia. She was so sharp, she made him break character and laugh THREE TIMES! And that makes you automatically awesome in my book. :D
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That would be John Slattery from Mad Men (He was on Desperate Housewives for a while, too). I got giddy when I saw him in the commercial, he was hilarious. “The sheep will provide you with warmth in case someone steals your women.” haha! :)
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The singing was great, but I had to vote for the hilarious Prescott Financial ad. I laughed until I cried.
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I can’t think of anything more crazy about the Blitzkreig on Grinchitude than a product that combines it with the War on Easter! Really, a wooden cross in the middle of the Christmas tree?! Let’s celebrate the holidays one at a time. I think Stephen’s line said it all, “Merry Christmas, Kids..God is dead.”
John Slattery cameo! Stephen must really want to be on Mad Men! But, Stephen singing is always the highlight for me. The lyrics were hilarious and I love the set up for it during the interview when he asked her about the suburbs!
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Was anyone else reminded of the Tree Surgeon video when Stephen mentioned Treesus and the graphic appeared?
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Ah, the sign of a true Zoner. I didn’t think of it at the time, but now that you mention it…Haha!
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Great show — “Treesus” is still making me giggle this morning. I ended up voting for the Prescott Financial ad, but the performance with Alicia Keys is a close second. Great interview with her also. Hard to choose just one favorite!
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This show was so fabulous :D I always ramble too much in my taping reports, so I’ll just link to it here. There were lots of retakes, and Evie and Maddie were in the audience which led to some adorable moments. The performance live (2.5 times because of mistakes) was glorious ♥
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Awww! Great taping report! I can always tell when his wife is in the audience because he makes that “beautiful woman” comment. :-) That’s so funny that his daughter deemed his performance “OK”. Thanks for sharing with us!
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The “beautiful woman” comment makes complete sense now. He is so adorable. :)
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Thanks for the report! It makes me want to go back. You saw an amazing show! So happy for you!
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Thanks so much for the fantastic report! The fact that Evie and Maddie were in the audience for Stephen’s musical performance is wonderful, and I also wish that they had included his character break during the gold segment – I just love seeing him laugh.
Lucky you for getting to see such an awesome show! :)
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OH.MY.GOODNESS. So… who was it that said white boys can’t rap? I BEG TO DIFFER!
loved that he pulled out the spin, hahhahahah. And his hair was a TOTAL mess when he pulled off the hood, what a dork.
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Stephen with mussed up hair is just too gorgeous for words. The lyrics to his counter rap were really very clever – kudos to whomever wrote them. But, I have to say I liked the Gold, Women, and Sheep segment the best, although it would have been more alliterative and equally cute if they’d gone with Gold, Girls, and Goats.
Re:CAPTCHA – busboy develop
Hey, ReCAPTCHA made a shout out to Jon. Awww.
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I was literally tearing at my hair and rending my garments during that musical performance. Just incredible. One question: Where the hell’s the mp3?! Get on that, Nation! ^_^ (Meh, I’m impatient: I’ll just go make my own.)
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if you do make an mp3 please share! :D
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Oh, sure! :)
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=DCHI2IB4
Sorry about the imperfections. Hulu does hate to give me a perfectly clean playthrough.
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“I was literally tearing at my hair and rending my garments during that musical performance.” – ME TOO. I had a hooded sweatshirt on and I kept tugging at it and squealing with joy at his performance. :)
And, fellow Zoner
Cromptown posted an mp3 of the song on a previous post :P
http://www.nofactzone.net/?p=19145
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Oh, good! I’ll check that out when I get home. Hopefully it’s better quality than the one I managed to squeeze out of Hulu. Thanks! ^_^
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Cromptown’s version is WORLDS better! I just went and scooped it up. Thanks so much for the heads up, lockhart. :)
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You’re welcome! Like “Cheap Reward,” this song will be played continuously on my iTunes :)
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I thought the interview with Alicia Keys was great, she is quite the it-getter! But I had to vote for the performance, with Stephen rapping and singing and twirling!
thanks for the report ThngWhtSqks! Great to know that Evie and Maddie were there!
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What a GREAT taping report! And what a fabulous night to have been there. Thanks much.
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I thought the segment on Glen Beck/Prescott Financial was one of the best Beck bits he and the writers have ever come up with. The comment he made at the end, “Pray on it. Like we’re preying on you.” was absolutely *brilliant*. Double thumbs up to John Slattery for doing that promo! Loved it. :D
To say that Stephen’s musical performance last night was just fantastic or wonderful would not be doing it justice. The whole thing was perfect, and with this being finals week for me, it was EXACTLY what I needed after a day full of stress. To see him do his classic spin dance while rapping about “clean suburban air, much better for my asthma” was pure joy. Definitely one of my favorite episodes. :)
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I’m with you, lockhart43. I absolutely loved the Prescott/Glenn Beck piece. John Slattery!! Sheep! That was incredibly funny, and Slattery, AKA Roger Sterling, was the perfect pitchman.
And then to top that off with the rap from the ‘burbs w/ Alicia Keys. Man, oh, man, what a show. One of the best ever, I think.
I did vote for the Prescott thing, but it was impossible to choose. The musical number was fantastic.
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Slattery WAS the perfect pitch man! He’s got a great voice for pitching gold/sheep/women, HA.
I’m still reeling over what an excellent episode this was. It is beyond me how he has the energy to deliver such fantastic shows week after week. :)
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Slattery WAS the perfect pitch man! He’s got a great voice for pitching gold/sheep/women, HA.
I’m still reeling over what an excellent episode this was. It is beyond me how he has the energy to deliver such fantastic shows week after week. :)
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Has it really been nearly a year since this episode? Wow, and still fresh in my mind. I was at U2′s 360 concert in Auckland the other day and Jay-Z was the support act (no, many of us can’t figure that one out) and of course, in his encore he performed Empire State of Mind. All the time I was wishing that Stephen could be there with his pin-stripe hoodie, doing his rap. Ah well, maybe next time in my dreams…
And off topic, U2 were simply awesome!
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That’s awesome that you went to see U2! I had tickets to see them this past June, but then Bono had to cancel half the tour for his back surgery. The tickets are still good though and the concert’s been rescheduled for next summer, thankfully.
And you’re right – it is crazy to think that this show aired almost a year ago already. Just like it’s weird to think that it’s already been a year and a half since TCR went to Iraq and Stephen lost all of his hair, ha.
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