Review of Andy Kaufman's posthumous debut CD

Andy Kaufman never released a comedy album in his lifetime, even though the Seventies and the Eighties, when he was fusing comedy and performance art, were the heyday of the format.

And his reputation might have been better served had Andy And His Grandmother not been released now.

These are not stage recordings, but private ones, taped from his real life between 1977 and 1979. He thought the Dictaphone-style device was a fantastic new way to capture his practical jokes and interactions, winding up friends and family and capturing their reaction. Andy And His Grandmother is the distillation of 82 hours of recordings on to one CD.

For someone known for pushing the boundaries of stand-up, this might, you hope, throw new light on this most intriguing of cult figures. Indeed it does: it shows him as a manipulative bully, toying with people for his twisted amusement. You might not think any less of him as a comedian before hearing this, but you might think less of him as a person.

He gets his clearly uncomfortable girlfriend to discuss intimate details... heaven knows what she must think now this ancient recordings have become public. Later, he winds up another (or possibly the same) girl by setting up an artificial argument with another woman, then refusing to get involved or take any responsibility for acting so badly. It’s difficult listening, even 35 years later. ‘I want those fucking tapes,’ she screams in desperation, so how intrusive to be hearing them now.

Other sections are more benign, such as the titular grandmother struggling to understand the new-fangled technology, which is rather charming, while other tracks are definitely curios for die-hard fans. One trippy segment, originally planned for a concept album, is allegedly designed to be listened to while asleep; and in another he discusses with long-term collaborator Bob Zmuda his plans for faking his death, which will no doubt be seized on by the conspiracy theorists who believe his 1984 passing was the ultimate prank.

The argument against that claim – apart from documentary evidence, of course – was always that Kaufman would never put his family through the agony of thinking him dead. After hearing these unpleasant tapes, that reasoning looks decidedly rickety.

- by Steve Bennett

• Andy And His Grandmother was released last week on Drag City. Click here to buy for £9.20.

Published: 23 Jul 2013