Richard Pryor recommendations?

I want to get some albums and/or compilations by Richard but I don't know what to get. Any suggestions? It has to be something I can get via Amazon.com (IE: something in print). Thanks!

 

The Anthology: 1968-1992 is a good start.

So many original albums are out of print it's ridiculous.

 

That's the one I have, picked it up last year in a clearance bin for $1. Funny as hell.

 

His WB years were his richest recorded period; if you want more after the Anthology, I recommend ...And It's Deep Too; the complete WB recordings box set. I haven't heard the box itself, but have heard most of his WB albums individually, and can recommend them heartily.

Genius...

 

If you can find them on vinyl or CD I suggest:

That N****'s Crazy
Bicentennial N****r
Is it Something I Said?

 

My recommendations, also.

 

That N****'s Crazy

An absolute must have.

 

I have it an it is GREAT if your a Pryor fan!

 

amen to that

 

MY introduction to Pryor way back when. Superb.

Evab

 

Not exactly what you asked, but his first video "Richard Pryor: Live In Concert" is perhaps the funniest stand up comedy routine in history.

http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:acfexq9kldae

 

All of it!!

 

Some of the Richard Pryor albums are taken from his concert films. I would suggest checking out the concert films too, so you can see his expressions and movement.

 

Amen.
A true Comedic Genius.

 

I have never heard a bad album by him. Get anything you can get your hands on!

 

If you can find it, grab a copy of the 2000 box set "...And It's Deep Too!-The Complete Recordings". That has all of the Richard Pryor you need minus the album "Craps After Hours" which is contained in the 2CD Anthology set. The box set did go out of print a couple of years ago, but it shouldn't be too hard to find a used copy around.

 

Not true, you need it all. Next would be, The Richard Pryor Show, Vols. 1 & 2 plus Bonus Disc.

 

RIB, true that the DVD set of Richard's show from 1977 is essential, but I meant what's available on CD.

 

You mean "That African-American Fellow Is Mentally Challenged"?????

 

+1

No one should go through life without hearing "Wino Dealing With Dracula"

 

My CDs
And It's Deep Too! The Complete Warner Bros. Recordings (1968-1992)

Black Ben the Blacksmith
Craps (After Hours)
Is It Something I Said?
Who Me? I'm Not Him

 

The peak unquestionably runs from That N***er's through Wanted; after his fire, he lost some indefinable something that made him so brilliant before -- still funny, but not transcendentally so.

Once you've got the essentials, it's a real education to listen to Evolution/Revolution, a two-CD collection of pre-1974 recordings assembled by his wife Jennifer, who's in charge of his estate. Along with containing the whole of Craps -- After Hours, it compiles the cream of the many Laff cash-in albums, along with some amazing unreleased material. Listening to how his "Wino and Junkie" routine developed over time is a treat.

 

New 2-DVD/7-CD set out today: http://www.amazon.com/No-Pryor-Restraint-Life-Concert/dp/B00C6P7I8Y/


With seven CDs and two DVDs that deliver over 12 hours of prime Pryor hilarity both familiar and rare spanning from 1966 to 1992, this essential collection features the best recordings from his early years as a still-developing stand-up, his '70s-early '80s glory years as a profane-but-profound comic icon, and one of his final onstage performances in 1992. The deluxe book contains rare photos, multiple essays, exclusive celebrity tributes, a discography, a filmography, and a personal note penned by Richard's widow, Jennifer Lee Pryor. This is the most comprehensive collection ever devoted to the greatest comedian who ever lived and includes nearly two hours of previously unreleased material.

DVDs include three complete concert films:
Richard Pryor Live In Concert (1979)
Richard Pryor Live On The Sunset Strip (1982)
Richard Pryor... Here And Now (1983)

CDs collect the best material from Pryor's classic albums for the Laff, Stax and Warner Bros. labels, including:
Richard Pryor (1968)
'Craps' (After Hours) (1971)
That n****r's Crazy (1974)
...Is It Something I Said? (1975)
Bicentennial n****r (1976)
Wanted/Richard Pryor - Live In Concert (1978)
Live On The Sunset Strip (1982)
Here And Now (1983)

As well as tracks released only on the following compilations
...And It's Deep Too! The Complete Warner Bros. Recordings (1968-1992) (2000)
Evolution/Revolution: The Early Years (1966-1974) (2005)

 

I remember my neighbor bought this album and we sat down and listened to it in his parents house when we got home from the store.
Very funny album. I think my neighbor went back and bought another one.



One thing that always seemed curious to me is this...

Doesn't the album start with an intro from Don Cornelius ? The host of Soul Train ?

I seem to remember Cornelius mentioning Soul Train in the intro (something like "Let's all give a great big Soul Train welcome to Mr. Richard Pryor!")

Does that mean the album was recorded on a television sound stage ? Or was Cornelius just assuming that (what would normally be) a nightclub was filled with people who watched his (music and dance) television show ?

 

I see a lot of live recommendations. I'm don't think I've seen this one from 1978. This is one of his best for me anyway.