Bill Engvall enjoys his Blue Collar roots

Bill Engvall didn’t know when he joined his cohorts on the Blue Collar Comedy Tour that it would become a cultural phenomenon.

He just knew they were a bunch of funny guys talking to an audience that wasn’t being addressed. That was back in 2000, when Engvall joined Jeff Foxworthy, Ron White and Larry the Cable Guy on what would spawn a series of popular comedy tours, movies, albums and a television show.

“Jeff and I had the same manager and the Kings of Comedy had gone out and done a tour. So we said we should do something for our fans,” Engvall said from his home in the Los Angeles area. “When we started, Jeff was the big dog. He was the one who had made it and skyrocketed. I think we all thought it’d be successful.

“But, man, I don’t think we had any idea how it would take off. It appealed to an audience that was largely ignored by the media in entertainment. We were just four guys out there all having a very good time. Four headliners with four different styles of comedy. Yeah, it was blast. We were supposed to do 10 shows and it went on for 10 years.”

Engvall brings his solo comedy show to Gallo Center for the Arts for back-to-back appearances Saturday, March 19.

The tour helped to catapult all of the comics’ careers into the stratosphere. Engvall, who is known for his clean comedy, parlayed his success into his own self-titled TV sitcom, “The Bill Engvall Show.” It aired for three seasons on TBS starting in 2007 and also helped to launch the career of a then little-known actress named Jennifer Lawrence. Engvall distinctly remembers casting Lawrence, who played his daughter on the series. It was her first starring role.

“I hate this phrase, but she really had something. I remember looking at one of the other producers and saying we’re going to be writing the episode where she goes off to college pretty quick,” he said. “She was just down-home and fun. Listen, I am honored she was a part of something I did. It’s like with your own kids: You want them to move on to greater things.”

Since the series ended in 2009, Engvall has kept busy. He returned to TV in roles on shows like “Hawthorne” and the animated series “Bounty Hunters.” In 2012 he reunited with Foxworthy and Larry the Cable Guy on the Them Idiots Whirled Tour, which aired as a special on CMT. Then the following year he appeared on the 17th season of the hit reality competition “Dancing With the Stars.” While he didn’t win, Engvall did make it to the finals with his partner Emma Slater.

But Engvall said headlining his own year-round comedy tour, on which he performs 80 to 90 shows a year, remains his true comfort zone.

“At this point in my career, I’m in such a comfortable place to be in. I have such a wonderful fan base. I just try to stay out of the way of my own career,” he said.

His set, he said, is constantly changing. He tries to incorporate new material and is always trying new stuff. Because, unlike with a musician, audiences aren’t expecting to hear his greatest hits catalog.

“If you keep doing the same stuff over and over, you’re not doing your best shows,” he said. “This keeps you interested and on your game. If you saw the Beatles, there are songs you’d hope they’d play. But with comedy, once you’ve heard a joke, you’ve heard it. So I always put in new stuff to keep the audience on its toes.”

But one thing he doesn’t waver on is keeping his shows clean and family-friendly. He said being a part of the Blue Collar Tour also helped to hone his comedy style.

“I am really proud of this show; it’s a clean show. I say: You can talk about whatever you want, just as long as you do it in a clean way,” he said. “My audiences are from age 85 to 15. I try to keep material relatable, so I don’t do politics and religion. When people come see my show, I don’t want them to think of me as a stand-up comic. I want them to think we’re sitting around in the living room and I’m the funny guy doing the talking.”

Engvall said while there are no Blue Collar reunions in the works, he would never rule out working with his fellow comics again. He said all the men stay in touch and have supported each other’s projects through the years.

“People always ask if we’re getting back together, but some things it’s good to leave them wanting more,” he said. “Still, if everyone is still interested in about five years, I wouldn’t be surprised if we got a tour back together.”

This story was originally published March 9, 2016 at 11:32 AM with the headline "Bill Engvall enjoys his Blue Collar roots."