Back when it took a computer the size of the Pentagon to do long division, Lenny Bruce was the personification of hypertext, connecting ideas through puns, jokes, impressions, and the weaving together of complex tales. As ... more »Don Friedman says in his spoken introduction to this prestigious gig by America's (then) "nastiest" nightclub standup act, it's not Bruce that's nasty per se, but society. And while that's true, Bruce was dirty--a master of filth, from sexual innuendo to dirty words. In addition to all that heavy stuff, he gives you everything that was totally funny in second grade and still is, including the shaggy-dog story. Sure, there's a lot going on; you have to listen to it a dozen times to get the hushed-breath synaptic leaps uttered in between the big jokes that aim for the bleacher seats. This set is Lenny Bruce in rare form, at his most soberingly funny. --Mike McGonigal« less
Back when it took a computer the size of the Pentagon to do long division, Lenny Bruce was the personification of hypertext, connecting ideas through puns, jokes, impressions, and the weaving together of complex tales. As Don Friedman says in his spoken introduction to this prestigious gig by America's (then) "nastiest" nightclub standup act, it's not Bruce that's nasty per se, but society. And while that's true, Bruce was dirty--a master of filth, from sexual innuendo to dirty words. In addition to all that heavy stuff, he gives you everything that was totally funny in second grade and still is, including the shaggy-dog story. Sure, there's a lot going on; you have to listen to it a dozen times to get the hushed-breath synaptic leaps uttered in between the big jokes that aim for the bleacher seats. This set is Lenny Bruce in rare form, at his most soberingly funny. --Mike McGonigal
David C. Mason | Muncie, IN United States | 01/19/2001
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Hmmm, I was just reading the review by the guy who says that MAYBE Lenny Bruce is funny to people born before 1960. Maybe he is. I was born in 1975 and purchased this album when I was 19. It was funny then and it is funny now. Yes, there is a LOT of social commentary, and Lenny certainly focused on current events which dates the album, but seldom do I find myself not being able to follow his humor. Lenny Bruce is not a comic for the intellectually challenged. He was quick, improvisational in nature, and at times brilliant. Listening to one of his live performances requires your undivided attention, like great jazz or classical music, to truly appreciate. If you want jokes jokes about dad making breakfast and babies being born, go listen to Cosby and Pryor, they ARE great, but when I want my gray matter tickled along with my funny bone, I go to Lenny Bruce. To those of us who do appreciate Lenny Bruce he was more than just an important and influential comedian, he was a prophet and a sage; still is. But along the way, if you have the guts, the brains, the honesty to listen, you WILL laugh, because Lenny Bruce is a very funny (if dead) man."
M' Lords and Ladies of the Royal Court....
Eddie Landsberg | Tokyo, Japan | 08/05/2000
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Lenny Bruce has become such a cultural icon, a lot of his wit and genius have been burried beneath the "isms" - - that is to say, many people are more likely to know his face, even life story, than have actually heard his message or truly understand what he was about and even when we do, its almost as if we're no longer part of his audience... we're sort of listening to his routines the same way people rewind that tape of the Kennedy assasination and play it over and over again... its not Kennedy they're interested in seeing... its the conspiracy and what's hidden beneath the surface - - not what's there.A fan of Lord Buckley, Bruce's mentor, it was inevitable after hearing schticks like "Psychopathia Sexualis" (on the Beat Generation boxed set)and hearing his gay Lone Ranger routine, I finally decided to bang my head against the wall, try to forget all the biographical/historical propaganda rammed down my throat and try to relive his routines. I found them to be incredibly engaging, thought provoking, at times rambly and self centered, at other times hillarious. In fact, in many ways, Bruce surpassed his mentor, especially in his abililty to bring a wide array of strange and twisted charactors to life... from his Yiddish accents to American icons and authority figures. Lord Buckley was moreso Lord Buckley and his imagination, whereas Bruce had a knack with charactors.His routines are great and absorbing. He draws you into his world and holds you. Though perhaps a product of the beat generation, and later the hippies, his style of intellectual comedy holds well today, surpassing the times, and making much of the comedy one sees and hears today seem superficial.Long live Bruce and Buckley ! ! !"
John Rudolf | Colorado Springs, Colorado United States | 04/12/2001
(5 out of 5 stars)
"If you wish to glimpse into a mind that could veer in the course of one performance (in one minute, sometimes!) from the hilarity of the burlesque that has been a joy to humanity from its birth, to the poetry of compassion and insight into the profound of a great poet, to the moral anguish of Auchwietz and Hiroshima, and the love of a father, brother, friend in a private moment, then listen to the words of this inimitable performer and creator."
Not easy, but worth it
Eddie Landsberg | 05/21/1999
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Lenny Bruce is hard to work through. Like Renaisance poetry, so much is happening in such tightly packed phrases that it is hard to hear the joke. But after the third or fourth listen it becomes clearer. By the tenth you don't know how you ever went without having heard it. Perhaps you will never be rolling in the isles, but once you get over the fact that Lenny is making fun of you you'll laugh a little bit easier, not just at his points, but at everything."
Vintage Dirty Lenny...
Cubist | United States | 06/03/2004
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Like many jazz and blues musicians, Lenny Bruce was truly in his element when performing live. His studio recordings simply do not have the spontaneity of his live stuff. This is why his Carnegie Hall Concert is essential listening for any fan of Bruce or stand-up comedy in general. There would be no Eddie Izzard, Bill Hicks or a host of thousands of other comics without Lenny Bruce. He paved the way and was a pioneer.Listening to this recording is to hear the man in his element, riffing off the crowd and going off on anything that came into his head. He zips all over the place and it is almost as if you can hear his mind at work, racing from topic to topic. While his material is dated at times, it is an incredible snapshot of the times he lived in. He brutually skewered social conventions (like how we refer to minorities) and was quite political as well. But most of all he was just damn funny and this performance shows him in great form.This is easily one of the best live recordings of Lenny at his uncensored best. Before he got beaten down by endless obscenity trials and his slide in substance abuse. Essential."