The fact that he's just died at 97 inevitably means that most or many here would not have heard him. He was a very funny satirist of his times, mostly by way of song, accompanied by himself at the piano. Here is part of an eulogy from Conservative Woman:
"Oh, the Protestants hate the CatholicsAnd the Catholics hate the ProtestantsAnd the Hindus hate the MuslimsAnd everybody hates the Jews!"
"GREAT satire, like great art, is ageless because it says something about the eternal nature of things. Tom Lehrer, the greatest living musical satirist until his death a week ago aged 97, captured the sad truth of anti-Semitism in 1965 when he wrote National Brotherhood Week. The song recognises that a lot of people don’t like each other; ‘why can’t everyone just get along?’ is such a facile question. Lehrer’s satire is more honest, as in the liner notes to his album An Evening Wasted With Tom Lehrer: ‘If, after hearing my songs, just one human being is inspired to say something nasty to a friend, or perhaps to strike a loved one, it will all have been worth the trouble"
