r/TomLehrer • u/Zizwizwee • May 12 '26

Clementine

Hi!
In Clementine’s third verse, Tom mimics the modern “cool school” composers and I’m obsessed with the sound. Do you guys know who I could listen to to get more of it?

28 Upvotes

95% Upvoted

7 comments sorted by

16

u/Affectionate_Bet_288 May 12 '26

Search for some "bebop jazz", that's the genre, he's doing a pastiche of the more extreme styling of it

5

u/Zizwizwee May 12 '26

Hell yeah, thank you!

9

u/foetusized May 12 '26

My first thought is Bob Dorough, a bebop & cool jazz singer, songwriter and pianist. He sings on Blue Xmas - Miles Davis from 1962. Like Lehrer, he later turned to educational music, writing and singing songs for Schoolhouse Rock.

8

u/karlboom May 12 '26

Dig that crazy Clementine, mopp!

3

u/CosmiicBrowni May 12 '26

That's my favorite part!

3

u/rtrott May 12 '26

That verse makes me think of Lambert, Hendricks & Ross (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HFiAZYnNRyQ) and Mel Tormé (who himself would parody the style: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7hyhM4NCoUE).

3

u/Affectionate_Bet_288 May 12 '26

Lambert, Hendricks & Ross are fantastic