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That Was the Year That Was
 
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That Was the Year That Was [LIVE]

Tom Lehrer
4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (50 customer reviews) More about this product

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Frequently Bought Together

That Was the Year That Was + Songs & More Songs by Tom Lehrer + An Evening Wasted With Tom Lehrer
Price For All Three: $30.97

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  • This item: That Was the Year That Was ~ Tom Lehrer

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  • Songs & More Songs by Tom Lehrer ~ Tom Lehrer

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  • An Evening Wasted With Tom Lehrer ~ Tom Lehrer

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Product Details

  • Audio CD (April 12, 1990)
  • Original Release Date: 1965
  • Number of Discs: 1
  • Format: Live
  • Label: Reprise / Wea
  • ASIN: B000002KO7
  • Also Available in: Vinyl
  • Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (50 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.com Sales Rank: #2,096 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

    Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

    #2 in  Music > Miscellaneous > Comedy > Classic Comedy
    #4 in  Music > Miscellaneous > Comedy > Comedic Music > Novelty Music

Listen to Samples

To hear a song sample, click on "Listen" by that sample. Visit our audio help page for more information.
 
1. National Brotherhood Week
2. MLF Lullaby
3. George Murphy
4. Folk Song Army
5. Smut
6. Send the Marines
7. Pollution
8. So Long, Mom (A Song for World War III)
9. Whatever Became of Hubert?
10. New Math
11. Alma
12. Who's Next?
13. Wernher Von Braun
14. Vatican Rag

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
Harvard-educated mathematician by trade and sociopolitical humorist and satirist by avocation, ivory tickler Tom Lehrer sang irreverent ditties that both outraged and delighted listeners during his on-again, off-again heyday of public performance in the late 1950s through the 1970s. Perhaps best known for his "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park," Lehrer combined razor-sharp wit with dry delivery inspired by everything from vaudeville and ragtime to whimsical show tunes and faux folk. Though a tad dated, Lehrer's wickedly pointed That Was the Year That Was is as good a representation of the mid-'60s American social and political climate as any. Recorded live in 1965 and composed largely of songs from the contemporaneous NBC series That Was the Week That Was, the album takes on boho Americana ("The Folk Song Army"), censorship ("Smut"), and the atomic bomb ("Who's Next"). Devilishly funny as well are the outstanding "Vatican Rag" and the puzzle that is "New Math." --Paige La Grone

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Customer Reviews

50 Reviews
5 star:
 (43)
4 star:
 (6)
3 star:
 (1)
2 star:    (0)
1 star:    (0)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
4.8 out of 5 stars (50 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars A Review Wasted With Kori Frazier, September 29, 2000
By Kori Frazier (Kent, OH United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
After hearing "An Evening (Wasted) With Tom Lehrer," I thought, "Whoa! This is funny as hell! It just can't get better than this!" Well, it can. The bottom line is, if you did not enjoy An Evening Wasted With Tom Lehrer, you will certainly, undeniably, and most definitely not enjoy "That Was The Year That Was." Of the three albums released by this maniac this is unquestionably the best.

Last year, I took a course at school titled Western Civilization. During the last half of the year, we discussed the majority of the events that Mr. Lehrer sings about on this album (one of my teacher's lessons included in our World War II unit even contained a lecture of which countries "got the bomb, and that was okay, 'cause the balance of power is maintained that way, who's next?"). The background information I gathered through this course helped me to better understand the lyrics to the songs, thereby making me roll on the floor laughing my posterior end (I am writing this on a school computer and therefore can't say the "correct" word) off. "National Brotherhood Week" has become an anthem for my CD player, as have "So Long Mom (A Song For World War III)", "New Math", and my very most personal favorite, "The Vatican Rag."

So, calling all comedy, music, and political satire fans everywhere--if you've got some spare time you are just dying to waste, check it out!"

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16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars It is as timely today as in 1966, May 23, 1999
By A Customer
I recall listening the songs of Tom Lehrer while I was in junior high school and how we would annoy the teachers by singing the 'elements' song on school field trips. After graduating from high school, Tom Lehrer was always in the background thanks to the talented DJ's of a local radio station. But it was not until the Beirut tragedy that I really stopped to think about Dr. Lehrer. This is not to be considered disrespectful of those that were ordered into Lebanon. Not long after those Marines were killed, I pulled out my LP and listened to it, really listened to it. His songs were still as potent and relevent 16 years after he recorded them. Besides the Marines, Hubert Humphery had recently died, pollution was the big topic what with the fairly recent removal of lead from gasoline, the question of did Isreal really have the bomb? (They did, and South Africa would soon have one as well.) And President Reagan was walking a fine line between peace and WW III, forcing the Soviet's hand in Europe that would bring the Berlin Wall crashing down by the end of the decade. I have played this and every other Tom Lehrer song to my family, to my friends, and to my neighbors. We all agree, 33 years later, this is still, one must have CD. Major Michael K. La Violette, Armor, US Army.
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13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Still crazy after all these years..., April 9, 1997
By A Customer
I remember sitting in junior high school, singing Mr. Lehrer's songs in music class (I should mention that I went to private school). His music, though written a few decades ago,is still timely and still musical and outrageously funny. A review he often quotes from the New York Times: "Mr. Lehrer's muse is not fettered by such inhibiting factors as taste." My own extremely Catholic grandmother cried in her laughter while listening to the "Vatican Rag." My boyfriend can't believe some of the lines in "National Brotherhood Week", a song which still applies to all such weeks in these less than brotherly United States. Tom Lehrer's music is well worth the twelve dollars requested here. END
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing how much of this is NOT dated, 50 yrs on...
I was first introduced to this album about twenty years ago, but have since lost my cassette copy. Hearing the CD again now I enjoy it as much as I did then. Read more
Published 1 month ago by F. T. Cook

5.0 out of 5 stars humor that is still very funny and meaningful today
For those of us who loved political satire in late '50's and '60's it is such a joy to know that Tom Lehrer is still with us on CD. Read more
Published 4 months ago by S. J. Woodburne

5.0 out of 5 stars Tom Lehre
If you like Tom Lehre, The CD is a Must!! Add it to your collection.
Published 15 months ago by Leonard Waller

5.0 out of 5 stars Tom Lehrer's humor
I have the LP of this so I wanted the cd-once you hear these songs,you may never get them out of your head. I just love this cd!!!!
Published 18 months ago by Anna Lehr

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic Recordings
I just about wore out the 33 1/3 record my roomate had in college of these recordings. Almost every song written in 1965 is as relevant today as it was then. Read more
Published 20 months ago by Ron Thompson

4.0 out of 5 stars That Was New Math That Was
Tom Lehrer's CD "That was the Year that was" has one song that gets to the heart of what is wrong with maths teaching - teaching for 'understanding' by creating contrived and... Read more
Published 21 months ago by John E. Baker

5.0 out of 5 stars Great fun
Recently our youngest son told us he was teaching his daughter So long Mom, I'm Off to Drop the Bomb. Read more
Published on May 20, 2007 by Anne H. Lee

5.0 out of 5 stars TW3 Lives!
1965 is looking better every year when one can go back and enjoy Tom Lehrer. Some songs are specific to the date but others (like "Alma") can be enjoyed forever. Read more
Published on March 29, 2007 by Cynthia Manley

5.0 out of 5 stars That Was the Year That Was
This is a superb collection of Tom Lehrer's most memorable songs: funny and smart, sparing none and satirizing all.
Published on March 24, 2007 by Peter E. Nelson

5.0 out of 5 stars This CD never goes out of style!
I first heard this album in the late sixties and purchased it for the sake of nostalgia. Hard to believe how timely his satire continues to be today. Read more
Published on February 20, 2007 by Wendy O

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