When the dust cleared after Sept. 11 and the hunt for Osama bin Laden began, comedians began a full-frontal laugh assault on this shadowy terrorist's bad name.

No one was more qualified to lead the charge than Ray Stevens, who has spent four decades skewering whatever target wandered into his sights. In the weeks after the terrorist attacks, Ray had a hit with "Osama-Yo' Mama," which questions the quality of bin Laden's "raising" against a serpentine Middle Eastern musical backdrop.

Once the opening title track fades out, Osama-Yo' Mama: The Album's humor is

mostly devoted to comedy found in everyday life. "Hang Up And Drive" tells off obnoxious cellphone users, "Freudian Slip" bemoans the difficulty of being suave in a tense situation and "Deerslayer" tells the strange story of one man's trouble with roadkill.

Among the yuks, Ray gets nostalgic for small-town life in "Safe At Home," throws a Cajun party with "Bon Temps Roulette" and winds things up with "United We Stand," an ode to the all-American values of love and peace -- just the kind of thing that would drive bin Laden even crazier.

-- Chris Neal