Chris Rock: Roll With The New

Take Chris Rock out of Saturday Night Live, out of dumb Chris Farley movies, out of Nike commercials, out of uninspired skit comedy, and he can be a pretty funny guy. Much of the stand-up material on his first CD in five years proves that: Listen to a lengthy rant like "Niggas vs. Black People," and you'll experience some oft-shocking, no-holds-barred, controversial, occasionally very funny commentary about race relations. "Tossed Salad" turns some tired anal-rape-in-prison gags into more than just a cheap laugh. Even bits and pieces of his O.J. material are a cut above Jay Leno's horrendous work on the subject, and his differences-between-men-and-women stuff isn't as bad as most similar material by other comics. The problem with Roll With The New is that there isn't enough stand-up; most of Rock's filler skits are outright bad. "Champagne" is a boring song, and "Bad Phone Sex" goes on and on with precious little comedic pay-off. The staggeringly unfunny "Press Conference" consists of a fake interview with O.J. Simpson and Ike Turner, in which they "answer" questions with snippets from rap songs. That gag was worn-out in the '70s; remember the one where Jimmy Carter responds to a question about his brother Billy with, "We Don't Talk Anymore" Chris Rock is one of the better stand-up comics, though he could stand to tone down the shrieking a bit. On future albums, let's hope he cans the studio stuff and sticks to what he does best.