Complaints and Grievances
Complaints and Grievances is the 17th album and twelfth HBO stand-up special by comedian George Carlin. Its working title was I Kinda Like It When a Lot of People Die, but it was renamed following the September 11, 2001 attacks.[1] Another possible title was The Great American Cattle Drive, according to Carlin during an interview with Coast to Coast AM in 1999.
Complaints and Grievances | ||||
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Live album by | ||||
Released | December 11, 2001 | |||
Recorded | November 17, 2001, Beacon Theater, New York City, New York | |||
Genre | Comedy | |||
Length | 56:16 | |||
Label | Eardrum/Atlantic | |||
Producer | George Carlin | |||
George Carlin chronology | ||||
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Complaints and Grievances was nominated for the 2003 Grammy Award for Best Spoken Comedy Album.
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
Allmusic |
Production
The working title of the show was "I Kinda Like It When A Lot of People Die" but it was changed after the September 11 2001 attacks. In an interview with Opie & Anthony on October 24, 2001, Carlin explained: "It's gonna be good, though. It's a strong show. I had to make a few alterations 'cause–You wanna hear the name of what the show was called and I'm telling you the truth? [...] The name of it was I Kinda Like It When A Lot of People Die. Yeah. And it was all about natural disasters and stuff and I had a nice nine minute piece on that but the morning I woke up and saw the special effects thing on the TV I thought 'Oh yeah. Oh. Change. Changing the name.'" After explaining briefly the nature of the show, Carlin added "Everything's the same, except I had to take that piece out. I just knew... no-one would laugh. You know. Obviously."[2] The unaltered opening to the program was later discovered by his daughter, after his death.[3]
Legacy
The title track of the working version of this show was released on the official 2016 release I Kinda Like It When a Lotta People Die.[4] The material had been performed on September 10, 2001 and is released alongside the first performance of the routine which shows a marked contrast in the writing of the routine.
Track listing
All tracks by George Carlin.
- "The Opening" - 9:22
- "Traffic Accidents: Keep Movin'!" - 6:16
- "You and Me (Things That Come Off of Your Body)" - 10:38
- "People Who Oughta Be Killed: Self-Help Books" - 1:16
- "Motivation Seminars" - 1:05
- "Parents of Honor Students" - 2:15
- "Baby Slings" - 0:59
- "My Daddy" - 0:51
- "Telephone Mimes" - 1:09
- "Hands-Free Telephone Headsets" - 0:38
- "Answering Machines" - 0:52
- "Family Newsletters" - 1:23
- "Music on Answering Machines" - 1:39
- "People Who Wear Visors" - 0:39
- "Singers with One Name" - 0:41
- "Rich Guys in Hot Air Balloons" - 1:01
- "People Who Misuse Credit Cards" - 0:51
- "Guys Named Todd" - 1:30
- "Gun Enthusiasts" - 1:26
- "White Guys Who Shave Their Heads" - 0:48
- "NASA-Holes" - 1:32
- "Why We Don't Need 10 Commandments" - 7:14
Personnel
- George Carlin - production
- Greg Calbi - editing, mastering
- Terry Kulchar - location sound
- Winston Smith - illustrations
References
External links
- George Carlin's official website
- Quotations related to George Carlin at Wikiquote