Review: Puttin' on the Blitz at the 100 Club

Here’s the thing about comedy: it is only ever as funny as you find it.

I will be the first to admit that, when it comes to un-PC jokes, I can be a bit of an old bore. Rape jokes, race jokes, classist jokes – these are all unlikely to make me laugh…unless they are really fucking clever and turn those subjects on their heads.

Now, I’m not sure a Hitler-Sinatra hybrid counts as “really fucking clever” – and the jokes were all obvious in the extreme – and yet… and yet, I had the very best of nights watching Frank Sanazi’s “Puttin’ on the Blitz”. I laughed so hard my face hurt and I left wondering if I am a terrible person and not the woke lefty liberal I thought I was.

Entertainment and an existential crisis all in one, eh? Not bad for a Wednesday night.

Here’s what you need to know about this Fascist crooner. If you take Frank’s smooth, melodic tones, and mix them with Adolf’s crazed mannerisms, you’re halfway there. If you then take Sinatra’s classic tunes and update them with lyrics about Berlin, bombs, and an overwhelming anxiety concerning foreigners…well… you’ve pretty much cracked it!

It's sounds simple…because it is! Simple and simply ridiculous, meaning that it can’t help but make such far-right ideologies seem ridiculous, which is key. Sanazi’s voice is gorgeous, and his monologues between pieces are delivered in a silky American accent – which is occasionally broken into by Nuremberg-esque Hitler mannerisms. The result is unnerving, but not off-putting, and I found myself relaxing into the music, only to be jolted out by the revised lyrics and sent into fits of the giggles. This is a show which will keep you on your toes and I loved it.

The self-confessed leader of the “Iraq Pack”, Frank’s gang of buddies include Dean Stalin, Osama Bing Crosby and Saddammi Davis Junior – and the former was good enough to join him on stage. Dean Martin’s Commie comrade and counterpart spent most of the show rollicking around with a bottle of vodka – but his voice is so good, you don’t even mind.

He did, however, bear an uncanny resemblance to “Spliff Richard” – another special guest and, to be honest, the only real dud in an otherwise top-notch show. His premise is that Cliff has fled the country and fallen in with some rastas, but there aren’t really enough famous Cliff Richard songs to help bring the gag off.

The remaining two acts get full marks though. The divine Eva von Schnippisch, who we were lucky enough to see at Gersch and Rox’s Halloween bash, demonstrated how audience interaction should be done (hint: there are whoopie cushions involved). Then there was Sol Bernstein – “the oldest living Jewish comedian”. Here’s a five-word review for you folks: We. Could. Not. Stop. Laughing.

Seriously, the whole night is a hoot – just go with an open-mind, and leave your easily-offended mates at home.

If you want to see the comedy crooner and Ubermeister of lounge – you’re in luck! He and Dean will be in Edinburgh from August 3^rd to August 26^th, so if you’re heading Fringe-wards, better getyourself a ticket.