The Carnegie Hall Concert

The Carnegie Hall Concert
It’s impossible to trace the full extent of Lenny Bruce‘s influence, but it’s safe to say contemporary comedy, let alone stand-up, would simply not exist as it does today without his daring example. Bruce’s free-flowing, jazz-like style was built on improvisatory rhythms, and his transgressive stand-up set was among the first to blend highly charged political ideas into a wild and funny stream of consciousness. Integration, drugs, the generation gap, the Ku Klux Klan, communism, interracial relationships — after Lenny, it seemed nothing was taboo. The Carnegie Hall Concert captures a comic genius on the creative ascent, and listening to it one hears the clear echoes of those who would follow his lead: Richard Pryor, George Carlin, Sam Kinison, among many others. The masterwork of a true visionary, this recording marks the birth of modern American comedy. — D.G. [written for Barnes & Noble.com]