It's True! It's True!

{{Infobox album

| name = It's True! It's True!

| type = Live album

| artist = Bill Cosby

| cover = Cosbyitstrue.jpg

| alt =

| released = 1969

| recorded = Late 1968

| venue = Harrah's (Lake Tahoe)

| studio =

| genre = Stand-up comedy

| length = {{Duration|m=33|s=49}}

| label = Warner Bros.

| producer = Jimmy Hilliard

| prev_title = 200 M.P.H.

| prev_year = 1968

| next_title = 8:15 12:15

| next_year = 1969

}}

It's True! It's True! is the eighth comedy album by Bill Cosby, released in 1969 by Warner Bros. Records. It was recorded live at Harrah's, Lake Tahoe, Nevada and was his last for Warner Bros. Due to a musician's strike, Cosby was allotted extra stage time at Harrah's, much of which was captured on this album. It features Cosby performing stand-up comedy on topics including women, helicopters, ants, burlesque, gambling, the toxic drug Spanish fly, and his travels to countries outside the United States.

The album reached No. 21 on the R&B Albums chart, and reached No. 37 on the Billboard 200 the same year. It received favorable reviews and garnered retrospective praise from AllMusic, The Colorado Springs Gazette, the Philadelphia Daily News and The Deseret News.

The album received renewed attention in 2014, after multiple women accused Cosby of sexual assault and rape, often facilitated by drugs. The Village Voice reported on the similarities between the female accusers' allegations and Cosby's "Spanish Fly" routine on the album, where he recounted his desire to slip the drug into women's drinks. Further comparisons were reported on by multiple publications, including CNN, The Boston Globe, the International Business Times, the Chicago Sun-Times, Philadelphia Daily News and The Washington Post.

Production

File:Bill cosby 1969.JPG in 1969, the same year the album was released.]]

=Recording=

It's True! It's True! was Cosby's last album for Warner Bros. Records for twenty years.{{cite news|first=Lindsay |last=Planer |title=Bill Cosby: It's True! It's True! – Review by Lindsay Planer |work=Allmusic |url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/its-true%21-its-true%21-mw0000668475 |access-date=November 22, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130715193541/http://www.allmusic.com/album/its-true%21-its-true%21-mw0000668475 |archive-date=July 15, 2013 |date=2014 |publisher=All Media Network, LLC. |url-status=dead }} His later albums, including the subsequent production 8:15 12:15, were released under Tetragrammaton Records, which was managed by Cosby and associates Bruce Post Campbell and Roy Silver under Cosby's parent company CSC Corps. It was recorded live at Harrah's, Lake Tahoe, Nevada. Due to a musician's strike, Cosby was allotted extra stage time at Harrah's, much of which was captured on this album.

Cosby wrote all the material for the album and was its sole performer.{{cite news|work=AllMusic|title=Bill Cosby: It's True! It's True! – Credits|date=2014|url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/its-true%21-its-true%21-mw0000668475/credits|access-date=November 22, 2014|publisher=All Media Network, LLC.}} The mastering on the album was carried out with a process referred to as Haeco-CSG monaural processing, which was used for a few years during the transition from mono to stereo to create artificial stereo from mono recordings. According to AllMusic, this led to a decrease of lower frequencies and an audio image which was not well established.

=Release=

The recording was released in 1969 in live album format. It was subsequently released on compact disc in 2005 by Rhino Records,{{cite news|via=NewsBank|title=New music: In stores Tuesday|date=February 18, 2005|work=The Miami Herald|location=Florida|page=35G}} and again in 2008 by Rhino Flashback.{{cite news|via=NewsBank|page=E29|title=What's new on DVD and CD|work=The Kansas City Star|location=Missouri|date=July 10, 2008}} A digital version was jointly released in 2013 by Rhino and Warner Bros.

Reception

{{Album ratings

| rev1 = AllMusic

| rev1score = {{Rating|3|5}}

}}

=Commercial=

It's True! It's True! reached No. 21 on the R&B Albums chart, and reached No. 37 on the Billboard 200 the same year.{{cite news|work=AllMusic|title=Bill Cosby: It's True! It's True! – Awards|date=2014|url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/its-true%21-its-true%21-mw0000668475/awards|access-date=November 22, 2014|publisher=All Media Network, LLC. }}

=Critical=

AllMusic gave the album three stars out of a possible five. In a 1990 article reflecting on Cosby's career, The Colorado Springs Gazette placed the album among the artist's "Major Records".{{cite news|title=COS – Human nature, warmth at heart of comic's humor|date= February 23, 1990|via=NewsBank|first=George|last=Kane|page=1|work=The Gazette|location=Colorado Springs, Colorado}}

Upon the album's 2005 release on compact disc, Philadelphia Daily News gave it a favorable review, inviting readers to "Return with us now to the glory days of Bill Cosby as a standup comedian".{{cite news|via=NewsBank|work=Philadelphia Daily News|last=Takiff|first=Jonathan|date=March 1, 2005|title=J.Lo gives 'Rebirth'|page=36|location=Pennsylvania}} The newspaper called the album "still very funny". The same year The Deseret News called the album "very funny", and noted it recounted Cosby's days filming I Spy.{{cite news|via=NewsBank|page=W1|title='The Cos' CDs are cause for celebration|work=The Deseret News|location=Salt Lake City, Utah|date=April 8, 2005|first=Chris|last=Hicks}} The article called the re-release of Cosby's work a "cause for celebration".

Retrospective controversy

File:Lytta-vesicatoria.jpg and use it on women by placing it into their drinks has been heavily discussed in the media.]]

In a track on the album titled "Spanish Fly", Cosby discussed his desire to obtain the drug Spanish fly and use it on women by placing it into their drinks.{{cite news|work=Sydney Morning Herald|title=Bill Cosby 'date rape' routine surfaces|date=November 18, 2014|url=http://www.smh.com.au/lifestyle/celebrity/bill-cosby-date-rape-routine-surfaces-20141118-11ozw7.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141118115056/http://www.smh.com.au/lifestyle/celebrity/bill-cosby-date-rape-routine-surfaces-20141118-11ozw7.html|archive-date=November 18, 2014}}{{efn|The chemical is mistakenly believed to have aphrodisiac properties for females — in reality it does so for men, and its effects can lead to toxicity, poisoning, and death.{{cite journal|title=Poisoning from 'Spanish fly' (cantharidin)|date=September 14, 1996|pages=478–483|first=DJ|last=Karras|author2=Farrell SE, Harrigan RA, Henretig FM, Gealt L|volume=14|issue=5|journal=American Journal of Emergency Medicine|issn=0735-6757|oclc=08996781|pmid=8765116|doi=10.1016/s0735-6757(96)90158-8}}{{cite book|title=Lewis' Dictionary of Toxicology|page=222|first=Robert Alan|last=Lewis|chapter=Cantharidin; Cantharidin poisoning|year=1998|isbn= 978-0849363177|publisher=CRC Press}}{{cite news|url=http://www.realclearscience.com/2013/02/12/039spanish_fly039_aphrodisiac_causes_erection_death_251458.html|access-date=November 22, 2014|title='Spanish Fly' Aphrodisiac Causes Erection, Death|first=Esther|last=Inglis|date=February 12, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130213220046/http://www.realclearscience.com/2013/02/12/039spanish_fly039_aphrodisiac_causes_erection_death_251458.html|archive-date=February 13, 2013}}}} Cosby said he first learned about the substance at age 13.

{{Blockquote

|text="'You know anything about Spanish fly?' 'No, tell me about it.' 'Well there's this girl Crazy Mary, you put some in her drink man, she, 'Haaaaaaaaaaaaah'.' From then on, any time you see a girl. 'Wish I had some Spanish fly.' Go to a party, see five girls standing alone. 'Boy, if I had a whole jug of Spanish fly I'd light that corner up over there.' Haaa-ha-ha."{{cite news|access-date=November 22, 2014 |url=https://vancouversun.com/health/Bill+Cosby+joked+about+drugging+women+1969+standup+routine/10392079/story.html |agency=The Washington Post |work=The Vancouver Sun |title=Bill Cosby joked about drugging women in 1969 standup routine |first=Soraya Nadia |last=McDonald |date=November 18, 2014 |archive-date=November 22, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141122224004/http://www.vancouversun.com/health/Bill%2BCosby%2Bjoked%2Babout%2Bdrugging%2Bwomen%2B1969%2Bstandup%2Broutine/10392079/story.html |url-status=dead }}

|author=Bill Cosby

|title="Spanish Fly"

|source=It's True! It's True! (1969)

}}

Cosby further elaborated on his attempts to find Spanish fly in his book Childhood,{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/lifestyle/bill-cosby-timeline/|newspaper=The Washington Post|title=Timeline: Bill Cosby|date=November 22, 2014|first=Emily |last=Chow|author2=Mitch Rubin|author3=Caitlin Moore|author4=Veronica Toney|author5=Chloe Coleman|author6=Anne Farrar}}{{cite news|via=NewsBank|title=Author Cosby draws from 'child within'|work=The Columbus Dispatch|location=Ohio|date=October 11, 1991|first=George|last=Myers Jr.|page=12F|quote=He uses them to mouth the dramas of childhood, and ventures a bit beyond, recounting the saga of his search for Spanish Fly}}{{cite news|via=NewsBank|title=Cosby Happy He Never Grew Up|work=Tulsa World|date=December 22, 1991|first=Don |last=Harral |page=D6|quote=Others include his first crush, his search for Spanish Fly, and making up outrageous lies to get away with things.}} published in 1991 by Putnam.{{Cite book | last1 = Cosby | first1 = Bill | title = Childhood | year = 1991 | publisher = Putnam | location = New York | isbn = 978-0-399-13647-4 | oclc = 23650310 | pages = [https://archive.org/details/childhood00cosb/page/170 170–173] | url-access = registration | url = https://archive.org/details/childhood00cosb/page/170 }} In its review of the book, The Columbus Dispatch noted Cosby's story about Spanish fly "ventures a bit beyond" childhood. Dayton Daily News wrote that Spanish fly is described in Cosby's book as a type of "wonder drug".{{cite news|page=7C|via=NewsBank|title=Bill Cosby's 'Childhood' won't leave you laughing|work=Dayton Daily News|location=Ohio|date=November 3, 1991|first=D.L.|last=Stewart|quote= investigating the possibilities of the all-time greatest wonder drug in mankind's history: Spanish fly.}} In a 1991 interview with Larry King, Cosby again joked about usage of the drug on women.{{cite news|first=Lisa|last=Belkin|url=https://news.yahoo.com/cosby-uproar-proves-how-much-we-ve-changed-194710596.html|work=Yahoo News|date=November 21, 2014|access-date=December 2, 2014|title=What the Cosby uproar says about how far we've come|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141121115757/http://news.yahoo.com/cosby-uproar-proves-how-much-we-ve-changed-194710596.html|archive-date=November 21, 2014}} In 1994, Greensboro News & Record reported that Cosby told a story about how, in his youth, he had tried to purchase Spanish fly from a member of the military, and how it had turned out to be cornstarch.{{cite news|via=NewsBank|page=D1|work=Greensboro News & Record|title=Three cheers for Cosby|date=January 20, 1994|first=Leigh|last=Pressley|quote=Cosby, now 56, was known for spinning outrageous stories and playing pranks, such as putting a .45 bullet into a furnace in shop class and buying cornstarch from a sailor who told him it was the aphrodisiac Spanish Fly.}}

The 1969 story by Cosby recounting his quest to find Spanish fly received renewed attention in 2014, after multiple women came forward to publicly accuse him of past incidents of sexual assault and rape against them.{{cite news|url=http://www.eonline.com/news/599098/remember-when-bill-cosby-had-an-entire-comedy-routine-about-drugging-women-s-drinks-listen|access-date=November 22, 2014|title=Remember When Bill Cosby Had an Entire Comedy Routine About Drugging Women's Drinks? Listen!|last=Nessif|first=Bruna|date=November 18, 2014|work=E! Online|archive-date=November 22, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141122223234/http://www.eonline.com/news/599098/remember-when-bill-cosby-had-an-entire-comedy-routine-about-drugging-women-s-drinks-listen}} According to accounts by the women, Cosby utilized drugs to subdue them prior to the asserted acts of violation by the comedian. The "Spanish Fly" track from the album was re-discovered and publicized in 2014 by The Village Voice.{{cite news|url=http://www.ebony.com/black-listed/entertainment-culture/audio-surfaces-of-bill-cosby-joking-about-spanish-fly-981#axzz3Jq4gOdpY|work=Ebony|access-date=November 22, 2014|title=Audio Surfaces of Bill Cosby Joking About Spanish Fly|date=November 18, 2014|issn=0012-9011|archive-date=November 22, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141122222801/http://www.ebony.com/black-listed/entertainment-culture/audio-surfaces-of-bill-cosby-joking-about-spanish-fly-981#.VHEOVIvF_iU}}{{cite news|access-date=November 22, 2014|url=http://blogs.villagevoice.com/runninscared/2014/11/heres_the_1969_bill_cosby_routine_about_wanting_to_drug_womens_drinks.php|work=The Village Voice|date=November 17, 2014|first=Alan|last= Scherstuhl |title=Here's the 1969 Bill Cosby Routine About Wanting to Drug Women's Drinks|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141122023317/http://blogs.villagevoice.com/runninscared/2014/11/heres_the_1969_bill_cosby_routine_about_wanting_to_drug_womens_drinks.php|archive-date=November 22, 2014}} Ebony described the unearthing of the audio as "unfortunate timing", given the accusations by women that Cosby had drugged them prior to sexual assault. The Boston Globe wrote: "Cosby had an entire stand-up routine about drugging women's drinks with 'Spanish fly' back in 1969; that it got laughs then says a lot about how views can shift in 45 years."{{cite news|access-date=November 22, 2014|url=https://www.bostonglobe.com/arts/theater-art/2014/11/20/bill-cosby-conundrum-why-did-look-away-long/2YTejl6WfvRkiIIzP5ZMyN/story.html|work=The Boston Globe|title=Why did we ignore Bill Cosby allegations for so long?|first=Ty|last=Burr|date=November 21, 2014}} The comparison between the routine and women's subsequent accusations of drug-facilitated sexual assault received additional coverage from other publications, including the International Business Times,{{cite news|access-date=November 22, 2014|url=http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/serial-rapist-bill-cosbys-audio-reveals-comedian-joked-about-drugging-women-1475482|work=International Business Times|title='Serial Rapist' Bill Cosby's Audio Reveals Comedian Joked About Drugging Women|first=Maria|last=Khan|date=November 18, 2014|archive-date=November 22, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141122224458/http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/serial-rapist-bill-cosbys-audio-reveals-comedian-joked-about-drugging-women-1475482}} the Chicago Sun-Times,{{cite news|access-date=November 22, 2014|url=http://entertainment.suntimes.com/television/listen-bill-cosbys-1969-riff-drugging-womens-drinks/|work=Chicago Sun-Times|title=Listen: Bill Cosby's 1969 riff on drugging women's drinks|first=Tersa|last=Budasi|date=November 18, 2014|archive-date=November 18, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141118213818/http://entertainment.suntimes.com/television/listen-bill-cosbys-1969-riff-drugging-womens-drinks/}} The Washington Post,{{cite news|newspaper=The Washington Post|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/bill-cosbys-legacy-recast-accusers-speak-in-detail-about-sexual-assault-allegations/2014/11/22/d7074938-718e-11e4-8808-afaa1e3a33ef_story.html|title=Bill Cosby's legacy, recast: Accusers speak in detail about sexual-assault allegations|access-date=November 23, 2014|date=November 22, 2014|first=Manuel|last= Roig-Franzia|author2=Scott Higham|author2-link=Scott Higham|author3=Paul Farhi|author4=Mary Pat Flaherty|author4-link=Mary Pat Flaherty}}

{{cite news|access-date=November 22, 2014|newspaper=The Washington Post|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2014/11/18/audio-of-bill-cosby-joking-about-drugging-women-resurfaces/|title=Audio of Bill Cosby joking about drugging women resurfaces|date=November 18, 2014|first=Soraya Nadia |last=McDonald}} Philadelphia Daily News,{{cite news|work=Philadelphia Daily News|access-date=November 22, 2014|url=http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/trending/Bill-Cosby-joked-about-drugging-womens-drinks-in-1969.html|title=Bill Cosby joked about drugging women's drinks in 1969|date=November 18, 2014|first=Nick|last=Vadala|publisher=Philly.com}} and CNN.{{cite news|work=CNN|url=http://www.cnn.com/2014/11/17/showbiz/bill-cosby-new-accuser-allegation/|access-date=November 22, 2014|title=Woman accuses Bill Cosby of sexually assaulting her decades ago|first=Jethro|last= Mullen |author2=Eliott C. McLaughlin|date=November 18, 2014|archive-date=November 22, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141122023315/http://www.cnn.com/2014/11/17/showbiz/bill-cosby-new-accuser-allegation/}} With regards to the "Spanish Fly" piece, The Washington Post wrote, "in hindsight one of his riffs seems particularly insensitive."

Track listing

All material written by Bill Cosby.

;Side one

It's the Women's Fault – 5:25
Helicopters – 1:40
Ants Are Cool – 1:05
Burlesque Shows – 2:25
The American Gambler – 1:10
Shoelaces – 1:00
Spanish Fly – 2:55

;Side two

Mr. Ike & The Neighborhood TV Set – 4:45
Foreign Countries – 14:00

"It's the Women's Fault" begins with a re-telling of the routine "The Apple" from Cosby's previous album, To Russell, My Brother, Whom I Slept With (1968).