Richard Pryor - Anthology 19681992 (26 tracks) +Album Reviews

A Genius At His Best

Juan Mobili | Valley Cottage, NY USA | 08/20/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I don't doubt that the box set these selections are taken from has many more immaculate moments to offer, but for the money, this 2-CD offering will not cause you any regrets.

Some of you may be wondering why I may refer to Pryor's routines as "immaculate," given the free use of schatological language and common themes from his inspired imagination, yet it is not without thought that I chose such term.

Let me explain ... underneath, at the root of every Pryor routine there's so much heart, such honest pain turned into laughs, such uncanny gift for showing the absurdity of our social ills, that it is hard to imagine that some divine order of grace has not touched this man.

Yes, the language is strong but not because he curses, it is strong because he speaks irresistibly and poignantly to what makes us humans so foolish and, often, so cruel.

Here's the work that gave birth to so many great comedians, from Eddie Murphy to Dave Chappelle. And, specially, to Chris Rock's great work, someone who has not copied but learned from Richard and seems to be the only politically meaningful stand up artist around these days.

Anyway, back to Richard Pryor, I urge you to buy this CD, have it travel with you. Whenever you may find yourself depressed, overwhelmed or taken over by your own form of "automatic pilot," play it and laugh yourself back to your real life.

If you still have any doubts, just take a look at this CD's cover, Richard, bare-chested and raising his fists, ready for a fight, and behind him the American flag. This is how courageous this material is, how willing to take on something so much bigger than he was. And you know what? In some level, he won the fight by a knockout."

Groundbreaking - and a great value

R. Riis | NY | 01/20/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"A well-selected overview of the best of Pryor's comedy albums, 1968-1992. Pryor's material and presentation, especially in the mid-1970s, were groundbreaking for all comics, black and white, and many of these bits still have sharp social impact. That aside, he is just plain funny. And what a value for a two-disc set!"

A Toast!

mistermaxxx@yahoo.com | usa | 03/29/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"to the Man who forever changed the Game of Comedy.He is really showcased fully well here.He is Deep on so many topics&yet you are laughing so hard.He was to Comedy in the 70's as Ali was to the Ring in the Same Era.a Voice second too None.He is a Ground-Breaker&a PowerFul Force."

Good collection

Andre M. | Mt. Pleasant, SC United States | 03/06/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is a good intro to Pryor's work and a fine companion piece to EVOLUTION/REVOLUTION, which contains "Craps After Hours" and other early and (mostly) unreleased material.

The CD starts off with two early Pryor routines SUPERN----R and the mesmorising PRISON PLAY from his self titiled 1968 debut album. The former is so-so, but PRISON PLAY is an early classic. PP is best heard as it is on EVOLUTION REVOLTION, as part of a longer prison monologue. The TV PANEL routine from that debut album would have fit well here, but space forbade.

We jump a few years to some choice cuts from THAT N(egro's)CRAZY (1974) which features Pryor classics such as N(egroes) AND THE POLICE "I am reaching for my driver's license." and THE WINO AND THE JUNKIE. Comedy's answer to the blues as Pryor uses his one-man theatrical style to expose the unarticulated realities of ghetto life.

After a few Mudbone set pieces from what I consider to be his best work IS IT SOMETHING I SAID which should be heard on its own in its entirety, we get some of Pryor's deepest work from BICENTENNIAL N(egro), which inclues the hilariously un-PC BICENTENNIAL PRAYER, which as a teenager in the late 70s, my peers would memorize in the same way that we would with the early rap records a few years later. But the title cut of that album is amazing, as the title character, a 200 year old black man in blackface (influence of the great BERT WILLIAMS, perchance?) gives an poignant and sardonic look at the black man's plight in America to the tune of the "Battle Hymn of the Republic." You'll never forget this once you hear it.

A few cuts from succeeding albums follow (including the cut from "Live on the Sunset Strip where he famously renounces the word N----r) and it concludes with a too-heartbreaking to be as funny as Pryor intended cut of Pryor talking about being stricken with MS. It's profound, but so sad that you are not likely to want to hear this more than once. But it's historically important as what was probably Pryor's last performance.

If you want the whole enchilada, plunk down the bux for the complete WB recordings "And It's deep too." With that and EVOLUTION REVOLUTION, your Pryor catalog will be complete.

(Oh yeah, when the first season of Partridge family DVD set comes out, check out the 1970 episode with Richard Pryor. Trust me, it's a mind-boggling juxtaposition to imagine the man who did this CD interacting with David Cassidy and co)."

Priceless pieces at a peerless price

T. Davis | Seattle, WA | 02/03/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"You love this king of cutting-edge comedy, but you don't want to wade through the full 9 CDs of "And It's Deep Too!" which, admittedly, contain more than a bit of dross. So invest in this compact 2-CD set with 2-1/2 hours of Richard's best routines. Then sit back with your drug of choice and bust a gut! Golden!"

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