Billy Crystal - Mahvelous! (1985)

In 1982, Billy Crystal hosted his own variety show, The Billy Crystal Comedy Hour on NBC. When Crystal arrived to shoot the fifth episode, he learned it had been canceled after only the first two aired. After hosting Saturday Night Live twice on March 17, 1984 and the show's ninth season finale on May 5, he joined the regular cast for the 1984-85 season. His most famous recurring sketch was his parody of Fernando Lamas, a smarmy talk-show host whose catchphrase, "You look... mahvelous!," became a media sensation. Crystal subsequently released an album of his stand-up material titled Mahvelous! in 1985, as well as the single "You Look Marvelous", which peaked at No. 58 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the US.
“Mahvelous” is a budget-line sampler of Billy Crystal's Saturday Night Live routines, which helped make him a star in the early to mid-'80s. Although it's better to experience the material with the visuals, it is kind of handy to have a lot of it all in one place.
Most of the tracks here are taken from a live standup performance at The Bottom Line in New York City. It's pretty funny stuff. But the highlight is the studio recording "I Hate When That Happens", which features Billy and Christopher Guest doing their "Willie & Frankie" characters from Saturday Night Live. There is also a song by "Fernando Lamas" called "You Look Marvelous", which is pretty funny. The album closes with "Fernando's Special Gift", which is an answering machine message you could actually use on your machine, if you wanted.

Track listing

01. "I Hate When That Happens" (feat. Special Guest) (Christopher Guest)  - 5:16 
02. "Live" From The Bottom Line"  (Billy Crystal)  - 5:21 
03. "Godammit, You... Bastard"  (Billy Crystal)  - 3:20 
04. "A Mind Of It's Own"  (Billy Crystal)  - 5:12 
05. "Now!"  (Billy Crystal)  - 4:58 
06. "Sammy For Africa" (feat. Special Appearance By Paul Shaffer)  (Billy Crystal)  - 3:22 
07. "You Look Marvelous"  (Billy Crystal, Paul Shaffer)  - 4:24 
08. "Where's Your Messiah Now?"  (Billy Crystal)  - 2:29 
09. "Buddy Young, Jr."  (Billy Crystal)  - 2:44 
10. "Howard Cosell, Right There!"  (Billy Crystal)  - 5:03 
11. "Face"   (Billy Crystal)  - 8:27 
12. "Fernando's Special Gift"  (Billy Crystal)  - 0:25 

Credits
Guitar – Dan Huff
Keyboards – Greg Phillinganes
Saxophone – Kim Hutchcroft, Larry Williams
Trombone – Bill Reichenbach
Trumpet – Gary Grant, Jerry Hey
Voice – Bob Tischler
Coordinator [Reissue Project Coordination] – Jeff Fura, Lynise Levine
Executive Producer – Billy Crystal
Producer – Bob Tischler
Written-By – (Billy Crystal)

Notes
Genre:  Non-Music, Comedy
Length:  51:08
Label:  A&M Records

© 1985