Mailbag, and Why Tom Lehrer is Cool

I've been going through some mail from you, dear readers. Thanks for writing, and sorry that I haven't replied right away.

It seems that a lot of people have been hitting this site looking for info on the mysterious nature of Prof. Shahabuddin's death (google gives priority to sites hosted at an edu). I am sorry to say, I know nothing more than what Columbia has chosen to make public.

There is also the usual stream of mail, along the lines of "Mets rock! You suck! Let's go Mets!" And, similarly, "Go Redsox! You Suck! Boston Rocks!" Regarding this, I will say only that I am sad to acknowledge that the Beckett acquisition has positioned Boston to be in serious contention for a very long time. And, I only wish that NY teams had the resources and the foresight to make such trades.

Finally, a lot of friends and a few strangers want to know what "the deal is" with Tom Lehrer. I've already come to terms with the fact that nobody really knows who Tom Lehrer is, but I will do you this favor once, and expound on the topic some more.

The easiest way to begin is simply to acknowledge that Tom Lehrer is a genius. Mr. Lehrer's songs are brilliant on many levels. First, they are extremely hilarious. The jokes really are laugh-out-loud funny. Also, because the jokes are so clever, witty, sophisticated, and well crafted, they don't get old. They are equally funny the 2nd time around and the 100th time around, and so on. Next, the tunes are particularly fun and catchy, and Mr. Lehrer plays them very well. Finally, the rhymes are so skillful and exceptional, that after just a few verses, you are convinced that Mr. Lehrer is really and truly a master of the English language. In addition, the delivery and the performance are just flawless. Mr. Lehrer's diction is impeccable, as is his sense of timing.

Tom Lehrer manages to be both cool and dorky at the same time. The sick and the macabre themes throughout his songs make him so morbid and cool. The Ivy League wise-ass jokes and math references make him so dorky. It's a perfect combination.

Granted, there are other performers who exhibit one (or sometimes, a few) of these qualities. For example - the Dead Kennedys have socially significant lyrics, but you have no idea what the hell they are saying; the soundtrack from "Oklahoma" is very melodic, but it's not too funny; Victor Borge plays the piano, but doesn't have too many interesting rhymes; Eminem enunciates fairly well, but the joke is usually pretty dumb; Jon Stewart is witty and sophisticated, but alas, doesn't sing or rhyme or play the piano. Tom Lehrer is the only performer who encompasses all these qualities, so it's no surprise that his songs and quips are still funny, some fifty years after he composed them.

That's why, out of the 20 gigs of music in my pocket, I keep listening to the same 40 songs over and over and over again.