Various Artists
Cueing up a comedy album is to confess that, yes, you are that desperate to be entertained. But here's a comedy boxed set without the shame: It's got historical merit. The four discs extend from comedy pioneers—beginning with the not particularly funny rube Cal Stewart ("Uncle Josh in a Barber Shop") in 1915—to Depression-era radio and movie stars, such as the wonderfully scabrous W.C. Fields ("The Temperance Lecture"), and to the contemporary comedy of deadpanning-for-gold Steven Wright ("Hitchhiking"). The many classic bits preserved here include Abbott & Costello's slambang "Who's on First" and George Carlin's deftly crude "Seven Words You Can Never Say on Television." But this collection suffers from the repetition of topics (three football bits on one disc alone) and some dud routines (David Brenner's "N.Y. N.Y.; L.A. L.A."). And there are some eye-popping omissions. No Groucho Marx? They've got to be kidding. (Rhino)
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