Python fans argue constantly about the best performances of particular sketches precisely because the boys performed (and recorded) them at so many different venues. The only thing fans all agree on is the fact that the performances ARE different depending upon the recording. Every fan who loves Python's studio sessions has a counterpart who prefers the raw edge of the live theatricals. RIP OFF has a mixture of both, with probably the best balance of any Python album. To be sure, it's the most exhaustive collection, because it was released well after the group's demise. I don't believe you'll find a compilation with as much material from as many different phases of the group's history. As such, RIP OFF is a particularly good place to start a Python collection. This is not the same thing as saying it's the best Python album. To be sure, other records, most obviously those recorded while the group was still together, are better in the way that any original album is better than a "best of" compilation. It's hard to top, for instance, the quality of the sketches on MONTY PYTHON'S PREVIOUS RECORD, or the overall coherence of MATCHING TIE AND HANDKERCHIEF--a work so brilliant that it actually had two Side Twos on vinyl. Still, even if it doesn't match the brilliance of any of the original albums, it's easily the best thing the group has put on CD after their breakup. If you're getting to know the group retrospectively, choose this over any other compilation album. The Final Rip Off
This is probably the best Monty Python CD or CD's there is. It's jammed packed full of funny sketches and songs from all of their previous albums. It's basically a 2-CD compilation for the price of 1-CD. Get it. It's good!!!
Most of the sketches on this CD are on-stage performances; they don't seem to have the snap of the original television sketches. Also, some of the sketches are not funny without the visual element. For example, The Cocktail Bar definitely needs visuals. Of course, it is still Monty Python, and therefore funnier than your average government tax form, but not as funny as it could have been had the original material been used.
The Final Rip Off is a great way to listen to the various ways that Python can entertain. Through sketches and musical numbers from a variety of sources, this CD captures the essence of Python. Where it fails however, is its use of live performances in place of the excellent original recordings. The live performance are filled with audience expectations, they know the punchline, the exquisite timing is lost amidst the guffaws. The slapdash sequencing is also a bit annoying, but it's still funnier than most things available. After you give this a try seek out the original recordings, like Matching Tie and Handkerchief, and hear how this material sounds when the planning is concise and thoughtful in the way Monty Python should be.
This is an amusing set. Compiled from previously released material, it is as fresh now as it was the first time I heard it years ago. The best parts are the harder to find skits, such as The Cheese Shop. If one wishes to begin or complete a Python collection, this is the CD I would reccommend. The variety on these discs is commendable.
I really think this is the best monty python cd that I own: it has some of their best skits and other unique and histerical ones! it is truly a worthy cd and probably the best buy i've made in a long time.
I memorized the three famous Monty Python albums of the early 1970's but I haven't listened to them in years and I just got this CD collection. Some of the routines hold up well (Novel Writing). Some seem tired to me. Some of them seem to have been re-mastered and made to sound worse (The Cheese Shop?). And having them taken out of their original flow and contexts makes me feel like I've visited an old neighborhood that has changed more than I want. Maybe it's a good introduction for you fresh young folks to whom it's new. I feel sorry for you to hear the live versions with the actors shouting all their lines and the audience so predisposed to laughter that all the subtlety of the original versions is lost. But it's an overview...
This is a fairly decent compilation, but only with the six original British Charisma LPs in mind. That means, there is no material from "Monty Python's Flying Circus" (a 1970 album released on BBC Records and also on Pye Records); "Live at City Center" (a US only release from Arista Records in 1976) "The Life of Brian" (1979 soundtrack released on Warner Bros. Records); and "The Meaning of Life" (1983 soundtrack released on MCA Records). "Monty Python Sings" kind of makes up for these oversights, but a redone career-spanning compilation would be appreciated. Even the box set doesn't have all the material in one place (leaving out "City Center" and the BBC album). I would also include some material only available on the TV shows, and material from "And Now For Something Completely Different" (1971 feature); the two German shows (1972-1973); and material from "Monty Python Live at the Hollywood Bowl" (1981 feature). I would like to be "ripped off" from Monty Python again! - Classic Comedy - Cd - Humor - British Comedy'
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