''Revenge'' (1967) is the fifth album by comedian
Bill Cosby
William Henry Cosby Jr. ( ; born July 12, 1937) is an American retired comedian, actor, and media personality. Often cited as a trailblazer for African Americans in the entertainment industry, Cosby was a film, television, and stand-up comedy ...
. It was recorded live at
Harrah's,
Lake Tahoe
Lake Tahoe (; Washo language, Washo: ''dáʔaw'') is a Fresh water, freshwater lake in the Sierra Nevada of the Western United States, straddling the border between California and Nevada. Lying at above sea level, Lake Tahoe is the largest a ...
,
Nevada
Nevada ( ; ) is a landlocked state in the Western United States. It borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the seventh-most extensive, th ...
by
Warner Bros. Records
Warner Records Inc. (known as Warner Bros. Records Inc. until 2019) is an American record label. A subsidiary of Warner Music Group, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on March 19, 1958, as the recorded music division ...
. It won the 1968 Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album. It also hit #1 on the ''Billboard''
R&B chart
The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by '' Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 ...
and #2 on the magazine's
Pop album chart.
Background
Like earlier albums such as ''
I Started Out as a Child'' and ''
Wonderfulness'', this album features several anecdotes based on Cosby's childhood memories. It also serves to introduce Fat Albert, one of his most enduring characters.
The track "Buck Buck" contains Cosby's first recorded mention of Fat Albert, his
Philadelphia
Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
childhood friend who would later become the basis for the hit cartoon series ''
Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids
''Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids'' (often referred to simply as ''Fat Albert'') is an educational American animated television series created, produced, and hosted (in live action bookends) by comedian Bill Cosby, who also lent his voice to a nu ...
''; Albert's signature cry "Hey! Hey! Hey!", a trademark of the later TV series, is also heard for the first time. Old Weird Harold, another of Cosby's friends/characters, figures prominently in the "9th Street Bridge" routine.
Track listing
Side one
#Revenge – 6:00
#Two Daughters – 5:10
#Two Brothers – 2:54
#The Tank – 1:36
#Smoking – 2:56
#Wives – 2:37
Side two
#Cool Covers – 4:22
#9th St. Bridge – 5:09
#Buck, Buck – 9:13
#Planes – 2:03
See also
*
Buck buck
*
List of number-one R&B albums of 1967 (U.S.)
References
1960s comedy albums
1960s spoken word albums
1967 live albums
Bill Cosby live albums
Stand-up comedy albums
Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album
Live spoken word albums
Spoken word albums by American artists
Warner Records live albums
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