Mathematician and musician Tom Lehrer, who rose to fame in the late 1950s and early 1960s with his witty, satirical, often political songs, passed away yesterday at age 97.
Lehrer largely stepped away from the musical spotlight in the 1960s – though he created a number of songs for the PBS children’s educational series The Electric Company in the early 1970s – in order to return to teaching. His music was a staple of The Dr. Demento Show, and in recent years, he chose to place all of his songs and performances into the public domain.
Dammit. This one hurts. His music was such a big part of my teen years and beyond. Through many years, I still find it enjoyable and useful to reference his material.
I was thinking about him just the other day and wondering how he was faring – I knew he was very old.
Rest in peace, good sir. Your life really mattered to me.
Political satire became obsolete when Henry Kissinger was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
He must have been apoplectic about today’s politics.
Being a Gilbert and Sullivan fan (and a nerd) when I was a kid, I memorized “The Elements” when I was in elementary school. Along with all his other songs…
My introduction to Tom Lehrer was actually due to The Electric Company, and the songs he created for that show, particularly “Silent E” and “L-Y.”
It wasn’t until I was in college, in the 1980s, that I discovered more of his music, thanks to Dr. Demento, and a neighbor in my dorm who had two of Lehrer’s old albums – I recorded those onto cassette tapes, and listened to them for years.
I have tried, and failed, to memorize it, but it’s still one of my very favorite nerdy songs.
I like to think he still enjoyed poisoning pigeons in the park even into his later years. For a guy who stepped out of the musical limelight before I was born, I have to thank Dr. Demento for making sure I became familiar with a great many of his songs. 97 is a good run.
I loved The Electric Company, and never thought about looking up their songs. I just looked at the videos for both of these and I remember “Silent E” quite well, but I don’t remember “L-Y” at all.
I found a website with a bunch of his songs and I’ll be listening to more of them in the next weeks. So glad he shared his talents with us.
When I was five, a friend’s father used to play Lehrer, and it seems the words could ring true again! And of course who can forget the Electric Company?
If you visit American city,
You will find it very pretty.
Just two things of which you must beware:
Don’t drink the water and don’t breathe the air.
When I met the man, in the seventies, who later became my EX husband, one think I can remember fondly is that he introduced me to three things, Monty Python, Reuben sandwiches, and most especially Tom Lehrer. I love every song, but my favorite is still Alma.
I hadn’t been thinking of him recently, but yeah, you nailed my experience. had some of the records, memorized most of the songs, and as yet another disciple of Demento, kept hearing them long after Lehrer had stepped away from the limelight.
Despite ending his recording career 60 years ago, you could always find his albums available in record stores. Most novelty songs have a lifespan measured in months.
I remember him making an acidic comment about Trump, but can’t find it.
To think that his Boy Scouts’ song “Be Prepared” popped up yesterday while I was playing my iPod on shuffle. It must have been an omen.
Be prepared
And be careful not to do
your good deeds
when there’s no one watching you
If you’re looking for adventure
of a new and different kind
And you come across a Girl Scout
who is similarly inclined
Don’t be nervous, don’t be flustered, don’t be scared
Be prepared!
I used to provide the intermission music for a classic movie series at a local theater. For Dr. Strangelove, four of the songs I picked were by Tom Lehrer: MLF Lullaby; So Long, Mom (a Song for World War III); We Will All Go Together When We Go; and Who’s Next.
Years ago I met an Australian couple who were fans of Tom Lehrer. They told me that his records were once banned in Australia, but people would smuggle them in to sell them in secret.
My high school chemistry teacher was delighted when I played The Elements for him. It was in the mid-70s, and looking back, it’s a bit surprising that he didn’t already know it.
I was thinking that he appeared on That Was The Week That Was, but apparently not, at least he’s not mentioned on IMDb. So I guess my first exposure was one of his records when I was in high school. I only ever managed to memorize the first chorus (verse?) of The Elements, plus the last four lines of the second. I can still do them correctly to this day. I only became a G&S fan a few years later, so when his intro referred to “a possibly recognizable tune,” I didn’t. Recognize it, that is.
I knew so many of the songs by heart, including the intros, that I stopped listening quite a few years ago. Recently, I re-visited them, and to my dismay I didn’t really like most of them any more. There was a lot of clever lyrics and piano work, but there was a lot of bitterness and cheap shots too. These threads are usually very eulogistic, so perhaps I shouldn’t mention that. It’s not that I now think that the songs were not good, because they were, but the times and my life have evolved past that point, I guess, and I am no longer a good audience for them.
