A Simple Desultory Philippic

Decades before Billy Joel gave us a musical rundown of the latter half of the 20th Century with "We Didn't Start the Fire," Simon offered this reference-filled view of the mid-1960s he was then in (the album was released in 1966). In it, Simon name-checks many of the major players in the day's culture, with a focus on music.

The past is often seen through rose-colored glasses. Many yearn for the 1950s, for instance, believing it was a cross between a Norman Rockwell painting and "Leave it the Beaver." Well, maybe... if you weren't a woman, gay, black, Irish, Jewish, Asian, or anything but a middle-class, middle-age Midwesterner who was white and male. The same could be said of the nostalgia for Victorian life, as discussed in Suzanne Vega's song "Last Year's Troubles."

Here, Simon discusses what life in like in a culture in which everyone is trying to outdo each other to be more "out-there." From the standpoint of the 21st Century, it may look freewheeling. From inside that vortex, however, Simon reports that it was simply dizzying: "I been Rolling Stoned and Beatled 'til I'm blind," he says, using stressed syllables to hint at the violent words in those names-- "stoned" and "beat."

The song is also a friendly dig at Dylan, Simon's main competitor. Simon imitates his musical style (mixing electric and acoustic guitars backed by an organ), his declarative vocals, and his "Subterranean Homesick Blues" style of free-associative songwriting.

Now, to explain the references themselves:
"Desultory" means non -linear, marked by non-sequiturs and a lack of a plan; a "Philippic" is a public denunciation or condemnation.

(For word lovers, or horse lovers, this is an interesting couple of words. The first comes from the circus acrobat who jumps from horse to horse. The second comes from a series of speeches made by Demosthenes against Philip of Macedon, father of Alexander the Great; the name "Philip" means "lover of horses.")

Norman Mailer was a writer who pioneered the idea of presenting facts in a narrative way known as "New Journalism."

Maxwell Taylor was a high-ranking but controversial US general, blamed by some for hiding the Joint Chiefs' views on Vietnam from JFK.

John O'Hara was an author who wrote novels about the class struggle, like "BUtterfield 8" (made into an Elizabeth Taylor film).

Robert McNamara was the Secretary of Defense during the Vietnam War. He is a highly controversial figure. The documentary Fog of War, about him, won an Oscar.

The Rolling Stones and Beatles were probably the most successful bands to come out of the "British Invasion," which came from England but was largely inspired by American blues.

Ayn Rand wrote Atlas Shrugged and The Fountainhead, which prefigured the "greed is good" idea with the concept of "enlightened self-interest." Her selfish philosophy, called "objectivism," is still popular.

Communist/left handed: Left-handedness has always been suspect; in fact, it is the source of the word "sinister." In the French Parliament, liberals sat on the left, and that is why the terms "leftist," "the left," and "left wing" mean "liberal." So it is no coincidence that liberals are easily mocked for associating themselves with the left hand... by the "right-minded" people on the "right wing."

Phil Spector was a music producer and recording engineer responsible for the "Wall of Sound" idea of making music that surrounded the listener and enveloped him. This is best exemplified by the Righteous Brothers songs "Heart and Inspiration" and "Unchained Melody." Always prone to violent outbursts, he was found guilty of murder in 2008.

Lou Adler is a producer and manager of many famous acts, including Jan & Dean, The Mamas & the Papas, The Weavers, Sam Cooke, The Temptations. He won two Grammys for producing Carole King albums, including her immortal Tapestry.

Barry Sadler was a marine who went into singing, recording the hit "Ballad of the Green Berets."

Lenny Bruce was the most important stand-up comic in the history of the genre, insisting on blunt honesty. He ran afoul of the law repeatedly for using "curse words" in public, and became a hero of Free Speech. He was posthumously pardoned by New York State (the first time that's happened) in 2003.

"Smoke a pint of tea": Let's assume this is a marijuana reference.

(Bob) Dylan was (and is) a towering figure in American music and culture, and may be the single most influential songwriter in world history. In 2009, documentary-maker Michael Moore quoted a verse of "The Times, They are A'Changin'" on Larry King's talk show, and Larry asked him if he (Moore) had written that song himself. Moore joked that it was, after all, an "obscure" song.

Dylan Thomas was a great Welsh poet, most known for his poem about fighting against death, "Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night," which contains the line "Rage! Rage against the dying of a light!"

"It's alright, Ma" and "Everybody must get stoned" are lines from the Dylan songs "It's Alright Ma (I'm Only Bleeding) and "Rainy Day Women No. 12 & 35"

Mick Jagger is the lead singer of The Rolling Stones. He once said "I'd rather be dead than singing "Satisfaction" when I'm 45." He is now 67 and not dead. At last report, however, he is still singing that song.

"Silver Dagger" is an old folk ballad covered by both Bob Dylan and folksinger Joan Baez.

Andy Warhol is famous for elevating commercial art to the status of high art. His own paintings were mostly very accurate line-drawings of celebrities and common objects, which were then covered in wild fields of color "outside the lines."

Roy Hallee is a highly regarded producer and engineer, who worked with S&G, but also
The Byrds, Laura Nyro, and Blood, Sweat & Tears.

Art Garfunkel actually had more of a role in S&G than most realize, especially in shaping their sound.

And, Albert, whom Simon tells he dropped his harmonica as the song fades? I have no idea. (An astute reader assured me it is producer Albert Grossman.)


Next song: For Emily, Wherever I may Find Her