Like the vast majority of
Pigmeat Markham's albums for Chess,
If You Can't Be Good, Be Careful captures the comedian live at Chicago's venerable Regal Theater, and his delivery channels the energy of the crowd to potent effect, galvanizing material that might seem hokey in the hands of a lesser talent.
Markham's all over the map this time out, eschewing thematic consistency for a series of self-explanatory routines like "The Preacher," "The Bachelor Apartment" and "Court Session," the latter another extension of his signature "Here comes the judge" bit. As always, few have played the fool quite so brilliantly. ~ Jason Ankeny