Thread by @doctorow

Tom Lehrer is one of our great nerdy, comedic songwriters, a Harvard-educated mathematician who produced a string of witty, unforgettable science- and math-themed comedic airs with nary a dud.

buzzfeed.com/bensmith/tom-l…

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Now in his nineties, Lehrer remains both a political and scientific hero, sung the world round by geeks of every age. When my daughter was young, we taught her "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park."

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Undergrads at UC Santa Cruz would sign up for his math class just to learn freshman algebra from the "Wehrner Von Braun" guy.

Now, Lehrer has done something absolutely remarkable.

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In a note on his website, Lehrer has released the lyrics (and music, for those songs where he was the composer) into the public domain, warning fans to download the songs before 12/31/2024, when he says he will delete his site.

tomlehrersongs.com

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Only the lyrics to 96 songs are in the release; Lehrer cautions the accompanying music will appear later "with further disclaimers."

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But it's quite a list, including "Bright College Days," "The Elements," "Oedipus Rex," "Smut," "Wehrner Von Braun," "The Vatican Rag," and yes, "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park!"

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In his note, Lehrer urges us to make up our own tunes for these: "In particular, permission is hereby granted to anyone to set any of these lyrics to their own music and publish or perform their versions without fear of legal action."

eof/