Live At The Comedy Store, 1973

What makes this archival audio compelling is the rare chance to hear a comedian actively building his onstage identity, long before it became celebrated. In October 1973, Richard Pryor took the stage at West Hollywood’s Comedy Store for a four-night run, not to record a commercial release, but to work out new material. The recordings show him transitioning away from the polite, middle-of-the-road persona of his early career toward a more audacious and socially conscious style. Rather than running through a finished hour, Pryor plays with the room, testing out unrefined bits that would later form the spine of his breakthrough album, That Nigger’s Crazy. He works through routines about the street-smart characters he encountered in his life, introducing early versions of his wino and junkie routines. His delivery is unrehearsed and highly interactive, often pausing to address specific people in the crowd or playfully mock the celebrities in attendance. The material ranges from personal drug experiences to sharp commentary on police and the Nixon presidency. These tracks, eventually compiled and released by Omnivore Recordings in 2021, preserve the work-in-progress drafts of pieces that would soon define the next decade of American stand-up.