Comedy/Spoken -- In Stock -- CDs  

One of the greatest albums to come from the New York underground of the early 80s -- even if it was a relatively big "hit" on a major label! Laurie Anderson is in perfect form here -- drawing on a strong tradition of avant garde performance, but without any of the indulgences that would... read more

First, we'll confess, we've been in love with the Aqua Teens since first stumbling upon it, bleary-eyed, on latenight cable tee vee a bunch of years ago. OK, with that said, take with however many grains of salt our word that this is the absolute funniest comedy Christmas album we've heard in... read more

A hip batch of underground poetry tracks -- collected together by the Before Columbus Foundation, a group dedicated to promoting the works of African-American and Native American artists! Despite the 1980 date, the collection has a feel that's similar to earlier righteous poetry albums on the... read more

Core grooves from trumpeter Terence Blanchard and combo -- but mixed with some compelling words from Cornel West and Bilal! The record's a jazz album at its core, but the presence of West and Bilal makes for a bit of a change, too -- kind of an added level of consciousness on top of Blanchard's... read more

A Lenny Bruce 2-fer -- 2 classic albums back to back on a single CD! First up is the album Togetherness -- classic early Lenny Bruce work on Fantasy -- a groundbreaking set of tracks that features some great shorter snippets, plus a few of the longer, more drawn-out routines that soon became Bruce'... read more

Issued after Lenny's death, but a record that contains some of his best bits ever! In fact, the later date of the album probably allowed Fantasy to get away with some rawer material, so you'll hear more of the "true" side of Lenny -- especially on the album's live tracks. We think this... read more

An early funk album by Bill Cosby -- with backing by the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band! Bill was pals with Charles Wright and crew in the hip LA of the late 60s, and he was also responsible for bringing the group to Warner Brothers -- so the fit here is quite a natural one. The record was also... read more

Incredible early work from Ivor Cutler -- recorded at the end of the 50s and the start of the 60s -- and with an approach that's somehow even odder than his later work from the hipster rock years! Although Cutler's later fame came from his association with talents in the progressive and punk rock... read more

A pretty cool collection produced by Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee -- focusing on famous speeches by important female African-Americans -- mostly focusing on the civil rights era, but also featuring an early speech by Ida B Wells. Ruby reads the speeches, and works include "I Am A Black... read more

An incredible album, and very unique! Sarah Webster Fabio was a hip 70s poet with a very righteous sound -- and she's working here with funky backings by a tight group that includes family members, in a style that's similar to early 70s work by artists like Wanda Robinson and Camille Yarborough --... read more

Excellent stuff -- one of Redd's high-quality albums for the Loma label, arguably some of his finest ever -- because the recording quality is always high, and the material is pretty fresh throughout! If you only know Foxx from his work on TV, this album is a key example of the genius that got him... read more

One of the coolest records we've ever heard from beat legend Allen Ginsberg -- not just a record of his famous poetry, but one that also features him on harmonium as well! There's a really weird, dark sound to the record -- as Ginsberg plays harmonium and sings/speaks his own words -- older themes... read more

A beautiful beat-era relic! This is one of the few albums that San Francisco-based Fantasy records cut of famous beat poets reading their own work -- and it's probably one of the most enduring! Ginsberg reads "Howl", "Footnote To Howl", "Sunflower Sutra", "Superm... read more

One of the lesser-known 70s albums by Nikki Giovanni -- a wonderful selection of material from her book Cotton Candy On A Rainy Day -- read in a spare setting, without any musical accompaniment! In some ways, this album's even better than the more famous Giovanni albums on Atlantic -- as Nikki's... read more

Nikki Giovanni reads a host of her own work -- material from the previous decade or so, originally published in 5 different books, and read beautifully here by the author! Giovanni's got a wonderful style of reading -- clear, crisp, and with an understated sense of feeling -- one that never tries... read more

A beautiful post-Atlantic album from Nikki Giovanni -- much more intimate and personal than her better known work, with only Nikki's voice throughout the album -- heard on a number of shorter poems! At some level, Giovanni seems to have left behind the more righteous themes of before, and is going... read more

A really lost chapter in the career of Brian Wilson -- an album produced by the famous Beach Boy for poet Stephen John Kalinich, done with a bit of music and vocals by Wilson himself! The record's quite odd -- spare, thoughtful poetry -- often recorded with slight production touches that make the... read more

One of their greatest, and one of the early ones with Jalal -- who gave the group a much more lyrical sound, with more of an emphais on song construction and music, instead of just vocalizing ideas. Includes the great "Birds Word", an early jazz-rap cut that's a precursor to Gang Starr's... read more

A really obscure one from The Last Poets -- dominated here by Jalal Nuriddin, who's relation with the London funk and soul crowd during the 80s probably led to the crafting of this set for Acid Jazz. The record's not a bad one --- with funky backings on most cuts, done in sort of a British acid... read more

One of the weirdest recordings we've ever heard from Timothy Leary -- a 1966 set that features mostly shorter spoken bits on a variety of topics -- done by Tim in a very odd sort of style -- almost like he's a bit shy in the recording studio! There's a slightly self-conscious feel to the record... read more

A wonderful early bit of psychedelia from an academic perspective -- a record that features Timothy Leary, Ralph Metzner, and Richard Alpert -- all reading from the book The Psychedelic Experience A Manual Based On The Tibetan Book Of The Dead! The album's divided up into two sections -- "G... read more

Fantastic stuff -- incredibly hard and incredibly funky, and a masterpiece all the way through! Long before there was any talk of gangster rap, Jalal of the Last Poets recorded this album of gamblin', pimpin', and hard double dealin'. It's a fantastic album-long ride through the dark side of the... read more

A great little live set from the one-and-only Pigmeat Markham -- doing his thing at Boston's Aquarius Theater joined by Baby Seals and others -- with routines that were never previously recorded, and only rarely available! Pigmeat & co. stroll through several bits, occasionally with funky... read more

Kind of a revised version of the classic Monty Python album of a similar name -- and one that adds in lots of nice extra bits too! The great thing about a record like this is the way that the Pythons replicate the energy of their highly-visual show in a sonic setting -- using quick verbal... read more

Classic work from the career of Rudy Ray Moore -- a whopping assortment of shorter numbers pulled from his deep catalog of raunchy party records -- and a blistering testament to Moore's verbal power over the years! The package features plenty of great bits from Rudy's classic records on Kent from... read more

Classic stuff -- Rudy's first album, and a fitting launch to his famous career of party records and live club performances! The cover's got Rudy in front of a nude black model, laying back on the couch, and encouraging him to do the thing that's implied by the title -- but the record itself is far... read more

A funky funky follow-up to Rudy Ray Moore's classic Dolemite film -- and a soundtrack that offers even more depth than the first one! The music here is a hip blend of gritty funk and some of the groovier soundtrack styles of the 70s -- almost a blend of the sounds you might normally hear on a Rudy... read more

Some of the most righteous poetry ever recorded -- set to musical backings with a nice dose of funk! Wanda Robinson belongs to an elite group of young, hip female African American poets -- others might include Nikki Giovanni, Dana Bryant, or Camille Yarbrough -- and during the early 70s, she... read more

A great set from Argentinean jazz bassist Jorge Lopez Ruiz -- funky, cinematic big band swing and choral arrangements! The set is a four piece suite based on the writings of Jose Tcherkaski, featuring arrangements that range from big band with heavy horns and strings and a very late 60s/early 70s... read more

Very tripped out work from Melvin Van Peebles -- the multi-talented artist who had a huge influence on African American film in the 70s! Melvin's working here in a a mode that combines soul, folk, funk, and lots of the more messed-up sounds that you'd hear on his own soundtracks for his films. ... read more

Really compelling work from Jan Erik Vold -- a Norwegian poet, but one who frequently works with jazz-based backings -- which gives his records a universal appeal, even if you don't understand the language! This set brings together a range of vintage recordings from Jan, plus rare recitations, and... read more

An unusual album from poet/actor/activist Benjamin Zephaniah -- a set that matches readings of his own work with reggae rhythms, dubby production, and a bit of electronics! There's a definite early 90s sheen to the sound of the set, but the record holds up surprisingly well over the years --... read more

A seminal set of righteous underground poetry -- a key bridge between the earlier work of Langston Hughes and some of the bigger spoken sides of the 70s by artists like Gil Scott-Heron or Wanda Robinson! As the title promises, there's a definite undercurrent of jazz in the work -- but mostly in... read more