The way John Baglio sees it, his decade-and-counting tenure coming up through the Boston comedy scene has been a nice, long journey. Now, he has his own championship belt of sorts to further cement his life’s work.
It’s the hope of the Waltham native that his debut stand-up album, Tag Me In, which made its way into the ring back in June, not only exhibits who he has been built himself up to be as a comedian over the years, but puts his low-stakes approach to the stage on full display as he gleefully takes a deep dive into what makes him tick, as well as the experiences, awkward family interactions and all the “other fun stuff” that has happened to him throughout his life.
Having worked to capitalize on his desire to have more fulfilling life experiences offstage has proven to make for better stories onstage for Baglio, and while the moments he reflects on from his childhood shine through on the album, he’s even surprised himself at how much recent material cultivated since the pandemic not only found its way into the record, but also held its own with the older jokes and stories he had woven into the mix.
“A lot of the material is fairly new, which honestly surprised me, as there is a bunch of stuff that came up during the pandemic, and I feel that kind of holds up with the whole idea that your voice changes,” Baglio tells Vanyaland. “You aren’t the same person today as you were a year ago or three years ago, so it’s nice to look back and go through the track list and see all the stuff that is pretty recent. That is a little daunting, where putting out an album is really just putting your best foot forward, but I think it really shows how I’ve gotten stronger over time, and as I’ve continued to grow as an individual offstage, it’s allowed me to grow as an individual onstage, as well.”
The deeply personal nature of Baglio’s material is consciously in place to be unique to him, but as he’s come to find, even his most unique experiences have resonated with his audience in their own ways. And while he does make it a point to largely veer away from any sort of topics that might be considered divisive, that doesn’t mean he didn’t think about dipping his toes into topical waters. Alas, his lighthearted predictions of a Jackie Chan sex tape did not find their way into the set, and when it comes down to it, for a comic who just wants to stay in the moment, everything on the record fell into place incredibly well.
“There is topical material that I’ve touched on in the past that sort of just lives in that moment, and that’s just something you have to accept as a comedian. There are comedians still trying to do ‘Baby Jessica’ jokes, but we have to keep moving,” says Baglio. “My goal as a comedian is to give people a nice, fun night out, and with getting political and into other in-depth topics, not only am I not smart enough to handle those gracefully, but I have a very cherubic face and nobody really wants to hear someone who looks so young have political views, because it can get kind of annoying.”
A debut album is a prestigious milestone for any artist, and to have the local scene be a part of that experience is almost a given when it comes to where the recording takes place — unless you have a comedy home away from home, headed by an old local trench mate in Tennessee.
From the moment Baglio performed at the opening weekend of Blue Ridge Comedy Club, a spot founded and curated by former Boston showrunner Shawn Carter in Bristol, Tennessee, he knew it would be where the recording would take place. Sure, the special place in his heart held by the Dugout Cafe, where Baglio produced The Mendoza Line showcase was initially highly considered, but once he got onstage in Bristol and heard the laughter reverberate off the walls as he was enveloped in the overall warmth of the room, there was no clearer choice for his big night.
And for what it’s worth, putting his own stamp in the town regarded by many as the location of the “Big Bang” of country music certainly played its own role in Baglio’s decision.
“It felt right, in a sense, to do it there since I had already been there and I knew my material did well there, and I also knew material that didn’t work that weekend, so I knew what I wasn’t going to do on the album,” says Baglio. “It’s a really burgeoning comedy community down there, and Shawn does wonders with that entire region with how he’s cultivated the scene and continues to develop new comedic voices, so it was just such a supportive atmosphere and everyone was super onboard with it.”
It may have been recorded away from home, but for Baglio, his years grinding in the Boston scene is what prepared him for the opportunity to lay it down in the Volunteer State, and it was the city’s eclectic comedy crowds that gave him the confidence to perform his craft out of town. Still, he hopes the laughs can travel back to home turf, and continue to bring audiences into the bustling local scene and get excited for what he and the blossoming comedy voices around the area have to offer.
“With this album, I hope that people will listen to it, find it funny and keep following me and some of the best comics we have here in Boston to see all the content they churn out,” says Baglio. “I want people to think it was worth the money they paid for it, and to get excited for what I have in store for the future.”