Customer Reviews

Monty Python Live at City Center

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is a recording of Monty Python's live perforamnce at New York's City Center in April of 1976. Although it contains some of their best material, the performances aren't Monty Python's greatest. Reason being is because Arista Records wanted the album out while the show was going on, so the first few and worst performances were recorded. But it's still a great album for their fans. Interesting to note, the "Lumberjack Song" on this record features ex-Beatle George Harrison as one of the mounties. Unfortunately for Britain, this album was only released in America.

The title of this cd, LIVE at the City Center, should be the first and biggest clue to anyone interested in this disc. The performance and sound quality are those of a live performance, so be prepared for that. However, it is very interesting to hear Python captured live, where their humor is at its rawest (no time for editing in a live performance). With Monty no longer out on the road, this is a great way to hear what they were like in the flesh at their prime.

On Easter Sunday 1976, I was in New York City and was lucky enough to see a matinee presentation of Monty Python Live at the City Center. My stomach hurt for 2 days after the show from all the laughing I did. This was, without a doubt, the funniest show I've ever seen. When the Pythons did The Lumberjack Song, the audience was on the stage and the Pythons were all out in the theater. I was thinking about jumping off the balcony where I was sitting (front row center)and going on stage but my friend grabbed me and convinced me not to. It's been a long time since the concert but I seem to remember that George Harrison played a song (unannounced) during one of the blackouts that usually included an animated presentation that so greatly separated the different bits. It is significant, also, to mention that the Pythons were not that famous in the US yet. They had just released, I think, "And Now For Something Completely Different", but none of their more famous movies had been released yet. The only place you could see them on TV was the "Education Channel" and we all know how often the public watched that channel in those years. The audience "went nuts" with each of their bits and it seems that they were all crazy Python fans like me. The theater was packed, standing room only. If the sound quality of the CD seems lacking, it doesn't really matter, the show was fantastic and the CD captures it all. This was, for me, a once in a lifetime event. I still rave about it to anybody when the subject of the Pythons comes up.

Wow, how times change. As a Monty Python devotee I remember ordering this from the US via import (back in the days when you could really only do that via a record store - no internet in those days kids) and upon it's final arrival I was thrilled as I found this a great companion to the more readily available Live at Drury Lane release.

This release sees the Python troupe ably assisted by Carol Clevelend and Neil Innes and fairly ripping through a whole range of their greatest skits, so to speak. It's certainly more polished than the earlier Drury Lane set which saw the Pythons somewhat wrestling with how to present themselves on stage. But here they've had the time to think it through and to the experience as a performing troupe to really nail the delivery of the material in a live setting.

And the recording sound better too, less cloistered essentially. For all these reasons I give this a resounding four stars. Even if you have the truly essential Drury Lane (which is in some respects better/more raw/more historically interesting) you should should still pick this up especially if you didn't get it the first time around due to it mainly only being released in the North American market.

Monty Python are possible the best comedy troupe ever. They ruled the television in England, and eventually took over the US. They made some of the funniest skits and movies made. But how are they live? On this disc Monty Python do some of their most famous skits and some lesser known, yet equally funny skits. If you enjoy Monty Python's Flying Circus or any of their movies, you will laugh until you die.

I totally disagree with the two reviews above. I think this is the funniest of all the Python records I've ever heard (including Matching Tie and Handkerchief). I think Monty Python was at its best live -- feeding off the energy of the audience -- and the sketches on this particular album are better-presented than on the original TV series.

I would say that in the performances on this album the cast is much more energetic than in the TV shows. If you were to listen to bits like "The Argument Clinic" and "Crunchy Frog" here and then compare them with the original TV series versions on YouTube, you're going to notice that here the cast seems much more switched on.

I happen to be familiar with most of monty python's material. I love it. But this CD was done apparantly in some sort of concert form so it's constantly interrupted by wild clapping from the audience. Annoying. And there ARE some of their funniest sketches on there, but they do them 1. at the top of their lungs which does NOT add to the humor and 2. with slight changes in the dialogue, mostly to accomodate their addition of expletives that weren't in the original sketches that also detract from the humor. I'm as much a fan as anyone, but this particular CD butchers their work.