For those who loved "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park"
by Padrino 
, Rosarito/Zihuatanejo, Friday, August 01, 2025, 15:12 (462 days ago)
My apologies as this has absolutely nothing to do with Zihuatanejo. However, for those who loved Tom Lehrer and his brilliant, irreverent lyrics and "maddeningly cheerful" tunes, here is a link to The New York Times obituary. I love to sing some of his lyrics to unsuspecting friends, family, and sometimes even total strangers. The result is usually laughter or attempts to call 911.
Tom Lehrer, Musical Satirist with a Dark Streak, Dies at 97
One of things that I have personally admired about this remarkable man is that he gave up a career in show business to concentrate on his academic career at MIT, Harvard, and the University of California. He then placed his entire collection of music in the public domain. In an era of shameless self-promotion and grift, this is a blast of pure fresh mountain air.
My favorite song was one he did for The Electric Company, the successor to Sesame Street. It is an inspired lesson on the power of Silent E.
We will miss you, Tom. Thank you for your contribution to the madness that is the human race.
Note: The New York Times article is good for 30 days from the date of posting.
For those who loved "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park"
by Talley Ho , Playa la Ropa, Friday, August 01, 2025, 20:57 (462 days ago) @ Padrino
The LA Times did a great obit on him, and we already are singing his songs around the house. RIP
For those who loved "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park"
by Timmac , Steilacoom, WA, Friday, August 01, 2025, 21:55 (462 days ago) @ Talley Ho
I was introduced to his music in 8th grade by my English teacher who played “When you are old and gray” for us, turning down the volume for the portion in the middle. Of course I immediately bought the record and fell in love with his music. We will be going to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival next week and have tickets to three Tom Lehrer tribute shows. For those of you that aren’t familiar with him, many of his songs are on YouTube. There is a FB group “Tom Lehrer Fan Club” that is packed with information and even has a couple of videos of him performing show tunes.
For those who loved "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park"
Ave Maria, gee it's good to see ya..doin the Vatican Rag...a Dr Demento standard by Lehrer.
Rights to his music
by Talley Ho , Playa la Ropa, Saturday, August 02, 2025, 10:41 (461 days ago) @ Yandosan
Again, read the LA Times obituary if you can get it.
Classy man, here is where his music is now:
In 2020, Lehrer announced through his website that he was making all of the lyrics he wrote available to download for free without further permission, whether or not they were published or retained a copyright.
Two years later he went further in relinquishing his rights, saying: “In short, I no longer retain any rights to any of my songs. So help yourselves, and don’t send me any money.”
Rights to his music
by Timmac , Steilacoom, WA, Saturday, August 02, 2025, 16:56 (461 days ago) @ Talley Ho
Again, read the LA Times obituary if you can get it.
Classy man, here is where his music is now:
In 2020, Lehrer announced through his website that he was making all of the lyrics he wrote available to download for free without further permission, whether or not they were published or retained a copyright.
Two years later he went further in relinquishing his rights, saying: “In short, I no longer retain any rights to any of my songs. So help yourselves, and don’t send me any money.”
Here’s the link. There are a few video and audio recordings in addition to lyrics and sheet music. Be aware, that you may acquire the same obsession I’ve had for 60+ years.
.Tom Lehrer music
--
-Tim McNair-
timmac@mac.com
