Tom Lehrer at 90: a life of scientific satire | Hacker News Reader

Tom Lehrer at 90: a life of scientific satire

nature.com

190 pointsohjeez83 comments

A year and a half ago, an actor-singer friend of mine and I decided to give a concert of our personal favorite Tom Lehrer songs. Turnout was tremendous. The bulk of the audience was of that age where they would have been in high school or college when they first heard him, but there were plenty of older and younger people too. It's fantastic how his songs continue to resonate with people after so long.

The problem with performing Tom Lehrer's music nowadays is that your potential audience basically falls into two groups: those that know about Tom Lehrer, and know all the intros and lyrics by heart already, so they don't laugh quite as much anymore; and those who don't know about Tom Lehrer and don't get his humor.

Some of the humor is pretty timeless. But there's a lot where the political references will either make no sense at all or they're just not as funny absent the context of the time.

I found his nuclear war songs (We all go together, So long mom) have become politically relevant again.

I learned about Tom Lehrer through my parents, and lacked some of the context necessary to really enjoy some of his songs like MLF lullaby, whatever became of hubert, Alma, poisoning pidgeons in the park, etc - all of which deal with historical figures or events that have largely faded from public consciousness.

Hence, the songs I enjoyed as a child were ones that felt relatable and applicable at the time - and those (unfortunately?) still feel broadly relevant today :

"Who's next?" - nuclear proliferation

"Send the marines" - US military intervention

"national brotherhood week" - race relations

"pollution"

I had Tom Lehrer as a math professor in college (he taught 'Nature of Math' at UCSC). It was fun, and the birthday paradox was an extra credit problem. I basically took the course because as a kid I had listened to New Math and really wanted to hear more.

Ever saw that episode of "Hazel" that also made fun of "New Math"?

Would you happen to know what his thoughts were on the Cold War and the space race?

TBH I don't recall him making any political statements, or singing any songs during the class. Which was a real shame.

Was he a good teacher? I’ve enjoyed his witty banter between songs and always wondered how he’d be in front of a whiteboard.

He was fantastic. infectious enthusiasm.

Funny that Lehrer means teacher in German (and Yiddish)

Did he have any special teaching techniques that made learning ideas faster?

I’m his political opposite but find his body of work some of the most astounding I’ve ever heard. His melodies are timeless. He’s a near virtuoso on piano-if you take away the words, which are easily the best satirical lyrics in the English language-you will still have a great deal to enjoy. It is because of him that I simply can’t enjoy acts like the Capitol Steps or Owen Benjamin. Tom Lehrer simply said it all better six decades ago.

Not sure what you might mean by his 'political opposite'; he had no time for any institution - left or right - which took itself too seriously. Equally happy to target folk-music-activists, The US Army, National Brotherhood Week, the Catholic church, censors, or pigeons. I mean, he certainly presented himself as liberal-minded, but also hugely dismissive of performative progressivism in a way that's, frankly, somewhat conservative. So I'm confused where you would place yourself that is 'opposite' that. What is the opposite of 'irreverent'?

I read his politics somewhat differently, as instinctually an FDR-era liberal. No time for 1960s liberal posturing precisely because politics is serious.

I mean, irreverent too. But not as a substitute for commitment to a cause.

There also used to be a show on PBS--someone Baker maybe? Too common a name and too long ago for the Google to ferret it out. Very much in the Tom Lehrer vein but with very occasional exceptions, just not in the same class.

Could you be thinking of Mark Russell?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Russell

Yes. Not sure where Baker came from other than both being fairly common names. He could be pretty funny and I remember watching him fairly regularly. As far as I can tell, he doesn't seem to have ever gotten around to publishing a "best of" collection (which I would buy) although there are mentions of plans here and there.

It's interesting that Russell himself is 85. I always saw him as "the next generation Lehrer", but he is actually the same generation.

Are you thinking of Mark Russell (http://markrussell.net)?

Capitol Steps still has something to contribute:

http://www.capsteps.com/lirty/

http://www.capsteps.com/lirty/jaula.html

There is not much pop culture from the 1950s that is just as fresh today as then, but Lehrer’s work is remarkable for its staying power.

National brotherhood week is a good example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CgASBVMyVFI

You don't need to know any history, but it probably helps if you went to a public school or had siblings.

The great thing about the song is, it works well as a satire of a completely plausible, well-intentioned but absurd event whether or not you're aware of the historic National Brotherhood Week.

https://www.pri.org/stories/2018-02-21/whatever-became-natio...

Oh my god that was an actual thing?

It might actually be a thing in the future.

Be grateful that it doesn't last all yeaaar....

It's the epitome of evergreen, most political satire has no staying power at all, you'd have to be born into that time to get it, by contrast Tom Lehrer's stuff is as fresh as it was when he wrote it.

Try Spotify’s playlist under Decades > 1950s. It’s excellent and I stumbled into some great new-to-me music.

I've actually always rather liked "oldies" (which I guess is still a specific genre category). The better Chuck Berry, Elvis Presley, Buddy Holly, etc. is still good music.

His songs are fantastic. My favorite line is the bleak description of graduation: "soon we'll be out amid the cold world's strife / soon we'll be sliding down the razor blade of life".

However, the thing that I love the most is how he chose to live his life.

He didn't go on long tours, stay up all night to try to finish the next album, try to put his math skills to use on wall street, or otherwise chase wealth and fame.

He turned it all down to do what he enjoyed the most: faffing about with his hobbies, teaching math, and writing clever songs when he felt like it.

And that is exactly why he is one of my greatest idols, too.

Tom Lehrer is funny as hell, and his Elements Song is genuinely useful as an educational tool. Werner Von Braun is hysterical, MLF Lullaby is too (and scary), and Poisoning Pigeons In The Park still makes me cry laughing. Some of his life performances are up on YouTube, and I can’t recommend them enough!

I was always partial to “Be Prepared.”

My favorite Tom Lehrer song is probably New Math.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=UIKGV2cTgqA

With its clever lyrics and rapid fire delivery it sounds like it could have come out last year and not fifty years ago.

I love his song "Who's Next?", about nuclear war: especially how it starts and ends, haha

> First we got the bomb and that was good

> Cause we love peace and motherhood

> Then Russia got the bomb, but that's O.K

> Cause the balance of power's maintained that way!

...

> ...We'll try to stay serene and calm

> When Alabama gets the bomb!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oRLON3ddZIw

And to stay in the mood: the "uplifting end": "We Will All Go Together When We Go" and "So Long, Mom (A Song for World War III)"

And since he wrote the "Who's next" the list did grow longer, I wasn't completely aware of, for example, "NATO nuclear weapons sharing states":

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_states_with_nuclear_we...

Designated nuclear weapon states: China, France, Russia, United Kingdom, United States

Other states with nuclear weapons: India, North Korea, Pakistan

Presumed to have nuclear weapons: Israel

NATO nuclear weapons sharing states: Belgium, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Turkey

Formerly possessing nuclear weapons: Belarus, Kazakhstan, South Africa, Ukraine (Lehrer mentioned South Africa in the song).

"(Mommy,) I'll look for you when the (WW III) war is over, an hour and a half from now!"

"MLF Lullaby" is another absolute gem.

Eee-eegypt wants to get one, too - just to use on you-know-who.

So Israel’s getting one for self defense - «The Lord’s our shepherd, says the psalm - but just in case - we’d better get a bomb!»

Tom Lehrer still makes me laugh until I cry after more than twenty years of exposure.

Tsk, tsk!

So Israel's getting tense. Wants one in self-defense.

"The Lord's our shepherd," says the psalm, but just in case, we'd better get a bomb!

This is probably my favorite line in all of Tom Lehrer's work. It's so sharp, the rhyme is surprising but phonetically perfect. And it's delivered right at the most musically interesting part of the song. I probably laughed for minutes the first several times I heard the song.

Speaking of rhyme, I mutilated it, didn’t I? It should be «So Israel’s getting tense, wants one for self defense...»

I haven’t listened to that song in months; think I’ll put it on now. (My absolute Lehrer favourite, together with Wernher von Braun, National Brotherhood Week and New Math)

Once all the Germans were war-like and mean.

But that couldn’t happen again.

We taught them a lesson in 1918 and they’ve hardly bothered us since then!

I'm actually getting a pretty solid Sondheim "Into the Woods" vibe.

I do enjoy the fact that now that common core is catching on, people are whining in almost the exact same way that people did 50 years ago.

>sounds like it could have come out last year

Except the 'new math' is now quite old math. 1960s math maybe.

We were still doing "new math" in the 1970s when I was in grade school, though. It is interesting how much of the "common core" seems inspired by it.

And, as Common Core shows, even if the past doesn't quite repeat itself it certainly rhymes.

My favorite Lehrer story is... every one of them, really.

It's been a consistent of my life, every good friend I've had already knows all the words to all the Tom Lehrer songs. And enjoys singing them while drunk.

My parents... who are only slightly younger than Tom Lehrer... think he speaks too fast, think he's too disrespectful, or just don't get the humor. I get that he was successful -- but I think classic example of someone born a little too soon.

Anyway, if someone could put Tom Lehrer and Stephen Colbert together for an interview I'd be pretty happy.

===

Good atricle from 2000.

* 'When Kissinger won the Nobel peace prize, satire died' | Global | The Guardian || https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2000/jul/31/artsfeatures...

===

Some of my favorite songs... but you can't go wrong, and they're all on YouTube.

* Tom Lehrer: Smut (concert live) (1965) - YouTube || https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7jARdWfJulo

* Tom Lehrer: Alma (concert live) (1965) - YouTube || https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QL6KgbrGSKQ&list=RDQL6KgbrGS...

* Tom Lehrer - Wernher von Braun - with intro - widescreen - YouTube || https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kTKn1aSOyOs

For those fans of Lehrer's political satire, may I mention someone I regard as his spiritual successor in some ways, Tim Minchin, and his Peace Anthem for Palestine:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3UO6YlkYNJQ

I love Tim Minchin, but I see him as somewhat angrier in tone than Lehrer.

Was listening to "I got it From Agnes" just the other day - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R6qFG0uop9k

That aspect of his humour however seems noticeably absent from this article. You'd have thought "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park" would at least get a mention - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yhuMLpdnOjY

49 comments without mention of Lobachevsky?

And who deserves the credit? And who deserves the blame? Nikolai Ivanovitch Lobachevsky is his name!

I have lots of TL on an old disk, but this is the one I still listen to. A good primer on Russian cities as well as a hilarious, brilliant and pithy song.

> And who deserves the credit? And who deserves the blame? Nikolai Ivanovitch Lobachevsky is his name!

It's a song about plagiarism... and it's all ripped off I mean borrowed from a Danny Kaye routine. Many levels.

Well it's in the article.

My Dad used to see Tom Lehrer perform in San Francisco when I was a kid and had all of his records. My older brother and I loved them. Sliding down the razor blade of life, ouch!

I was surprised to read in the article that my Dad's old friend Lou Branscomb performed with Tom Lehrer.

Does anyone know of any similar artists who sing in Spanish? I've been trying to practice my Spanish lately, and it would be awesome to do that while listening to someone similar to Tom Lehrer.

Different musical style, and sometimes cruder humor, but you might enjoy Les Luthiers: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dcx_Ovi9A4g&list=PL2nrB3BJrZ...

Tom Lehrer is pretty unique, I'm not aware of anybody in any other language that even comes close to the cutting edge of his wit and the quality of the delivery. What's really surprising is how small the body of his public work is given the recognition of his name. That's a pretty good indication of the level of quality.

Gerhard Kreisler, who sings in German, is from the same time and every bit as witty and creative musically.

In a weird turn of events, when he lived in the U.S. Kreisler must have crossed paths with Lehrer, as they both became famous for a waltz with the same title — Kreisler's "Tauben vergriften" and Lehrer's "Poisoning pigeons in the park". It's not clear who copied from whom.

You'd think that if Kreisler was the one visiting the US he must have seen Lehrer perform in English rather than that Kreisler would have been visited by Lehrer to see him perform in German?

That said, given his last name it is very well possible that Lehrer visited Germany and that he speaks/understands German.

Interesting!

Edit: Looking some more it seems that Lehrer's version is from 59 and Kreisler's from 63.

Sorry to nitpick but his name is Georg Kreisler ;) But apart from that I very much agree.

Flanders and Swann, a British duo of a similar era, are the closest I know of. A different (and generally slightly gentler) kind of humour, but also evergreen and excellently performed.

Madeira m'Dear?, All Gall, The Gas Man Cometh, Bedstead Men, A Song of Patriotic Prejudice, and (especially) Twenty Tons of TNT are some personal favourites.

Mani Matter comes close for me, if not in the delivery but definitely in the lyrics. But his songs are in Swiss German (Bernese actually), so not as accessible for as many people (and I also grew up with his songs so I might be a bit biased).

I also thought of Mani Matter immediately. And I think you are selling him short. I love Lehrer's songs, but IMO Matter's lyrics even surpasses them in wit and poetical talent. His public body of work is more extensive, too. Shame really, that potentially only a few million people understand them.

I just listened to "I han es Zündhölzli azündt" I can't quite make out the lyrics though I get the general gist of it. It's not quite German, enough to see why it reminds you of Tom Lehrer, similar dry in delivery and self accompanied. Wished I understood it better.

I've just found the common German translation:

http://www.songtexte.com/uebersetzung/mani-matter/i-han-es-z...

It's a modern day version of the horseshoe story.

I figured as much from listening to it, thank you for finding the words to the song, it's a lot easier to read than to hear for my non Swiss-German attuned ears.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kabarett - i think he is in the tradition of/was inspired by German Cabaret music of the nineteen twenties - that came with a lot of political satire and gallows humor (I guess it is very hard to translate this humor, so it stays withing Germany).

Disclaimer: I can't say if this is really an influence or just a similarity.

It's pretty amazing. 4 albums that are 50 to 60 years old at this point.

Maybe Leo Maslíah.

Discovered his works in college while rummaging the internet for the book 'In Search of Beauty' on Non Euclidean Geometry. The Lobachevsky song is one the funniest songs I ever heard.

Link to the book for anyone looking for a light hearted reading on the history of Non Euclidean Geometry https://mirtitles.org/2013/04/30/in-the-search-for-beauty-sm...

Here enjoy all of the live Tom Lehrer performances

https://www.youtube.com/user/6funswede/videos

It turns out there was a reason, cows were out of season, and one of the hunters wasn't insured!

Who's next?

Not an obituary, note this

(I was very sad before clicking in)

Yeah, I only saw "Tom Lehrer" and "90" and that was my first sad thought then.

Honestly I had no idea he was still alive. I had always assumed he died a few decades ago.

The liner notes from his three-disc anthology ask you to kindly pass rumors like that on to the IRS.

He's alive and kicking:

https://www.buzzfeed.com/bensmith/tom-lehrer?utm_term=.lem7A...

He just gave the whole gig up and adamantly refused to be pulled out of musical retirement. A couple of times a group I was involved with back in school (long time ago) got a professor who knew him very well to try to get him to do a concert but no dice.

Sorry! I just used their headline and didn't add anything.

That's the normative thing to do in HN, so it's their fault, basically

Yeah that's one scary way to start a headline.

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