''Comedy Is Not Pretty!'' (1979) is an album by the American comedian
Steve Martin. It was recorded at
The Boarding House
"The Boarding House" is a short story by James Joyce published in his 1914 collection ''Dubliners
''Dubliners'' is a collection of fifteen short stories by James Joyce, first published in 1914. It presents a naturalistic depiction of Irish mid ...
in
San Francisco, California, where his previous two albums were also recorded.
When released, the album was not as well-received as his previous two albums (''
Let's Get Small
''Let's Get Small'' (1977) is an album by American comedian Steve Martin. It includes "Excuse Me", a comedy bit whose title went on to become a national catchphrase. The album went platinum and peaked at No. 10 on the ''Billboard'' Pop Albums Cha ...
'', ''
A Wild and Crazy Guy
''A Wild and Crazy Guy'' is an album by American comedian Steve Martin released in 1978. It reached number two on ''Billboards Pop Albums Chart. The album was eventually certified double platinum.
It contains the hit novelty single "King Tu ...
''). However, at this point in his career, Martin was in the midst of writing the screenplay for his first starring role in the motion picture, ''
The Jerk''. As a result, he spent less of his time working on material for his stand-up career and the album was his first to not make the Top 10 on
Billboard's Pop Albums Chart, peaking only at #25. The album was also his first to not go Platinum; it was, however, certified
Gold.
One track was simply a humorous reading of a short story from his book ''
Cruel Shoes'' accompanied by a banjo solo in the background. The track "Drop Thumb Medley" is an instrumental
banjo
The banjo is a stringed instrument with a thin membrane stretched over a frame or cavity to form a resonator. The membrane is typically circular, and usually made of plastic, or occasionally animal skin. Early forms of the instrument were fashi ...
performance.
This album was nominated for a
Grammy Award for
Best Comedy Album
The Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album is presented by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to "honor artistic achievement in comedy." The award was awarded yearly from 1959 to 1993 and then from 2004 to presen ...
.
Martin also starred in a
television special of the same name for
NBC in 1980.
Track listing
All tracks by
Steve Martin
#"
Born to Be Wild" (
Mars Bonfire, Martin) – 5:49
#"The All Being" – 1:24
#"
McDonald's/Men's Underwear" – 3:11
#"Drop Thumb Medley" – 2:10
#"Googlephonics" – 3:06
#"Hostages" – 1:13
#"Cruel Shoes" – 2:17
#"Comedy Is Not Pretty" – 3:26
#"How to Meet a Girl" – 3:47
#"Rubberhead" – 0:56
#"
Jackie O. and
Farrah F." – 3:39
#"You Can Be a Millionaire" – 2:55
Personnel
*William R. Eastabrook – Photography
*Pat Kraus – Digital Mastering
*Steve Martin – Composer
*William McEuen – Producer, Engineer, Artwork, Editing, Art Direction, Design
*
Norman Seeff – Photography
*Geoff Sykes – Mastering
*
Dean Torrence – Graphic Design
References
External links
*
{{Authority control
1979 live albums
Steve Martin albums
Warner Records live albums
Albums with cover art by Dean Torrence
1970s comedy albums
Live comedy albums
Comedy albums by American artists
Stand-up comedy albums