I had heard Fred Wedlock's version of "Vatican Rag" and Paul Downes and Phil Beer doing "Masochism Tango". So I went out and invested a couple of quid in "An Evening Wasted With Tom Lehrer". It was money very well invested. The other recordings quickly followed into my collection. The only other songwriter who made me laugh nearly as much was Shel Silverstein. Other than the Jewish names and the fact that they both wrote funny songs, they had little in common. Lehrer had the sharper rhymes and crueller satirical edge while Silverstein cast an affectionate eye over the absurdities of a series of oddballs and outcasts. In any event, I agree with all the tributes to Lehrer, which have preceeded this post. He is absolutely unique.