OCT 20, singable satire: Tom Lehrer Sings "RHYMING BINOMIALS, M to Z"

 PARODY SONG-LYRICS

ORIGINAL SONG: "The Elements", Tom Lehrer, 1959.  

PARODY COMPOSED: Dr. G.H. and Giorgio Coniglio,  2015. This song is the fifth of nine in the series on Word-Pairs. You can find the links to the lyrics of the previous songs at the bottom of the post. Also, our prior exploration of this theme resulted in a lexicon of rhyming binomials on this site as displayed here.

EXPLANATION: For discussion of binomials specifically and word-pairs in general, check an earlier post on this blog-site by clicking here. 

Most binomial pairs are not rhyming

The inherent music of language is an important element in the toolkit of parodists. When all of this began, I used Tom Lehrer’s format to sing a nonsense-song about irreversible binomials. The current offering highlights pairs in which the 2 elements rhyme, e.g. ‘make or break'. Specific cases may border on cliché, but delight us with their musical quality. Sneak a peek!

UKULELE and GUITAR-FRIENDLY LINK: Our whole series of songs can be found in a friendly format for ukulele (and guitar)-players on our sister blog "SILLY SONGS and SATIRE", with chord-charts and helpful performing suggestions. Click HERE to proceed to this site.

There’s make or break, and move and groove, neither or either, mash- and mish-

And meet and greet, and meter-feed, and moans and groans, and meat or fish.

It’s my way or the highway, metes and limits, also leer and peer

Obama and Osama, and the news and views, both near and dear.

An ocean of devotion, moon in June -it’s grouped with-  odds and sods 

An Okie from Muskogee, onward upward, also nod and prod

And pedal to the metal, a man with a plan, no pain - no gain 

And slump or hump, and scrimp or primp, there’s pump and dump, and planes and trains.

There’s red or dead, and rough and tough, and rude and crude, and rain in Spain

And Seven and Eleven, stash and dash, and stain you can’t explain

And slice and dice, and shake and bake, and surf and turf, and scowl and frown

And shop ‘til drop, and slim and trim, saggy and baggy, town and gown.

Son of a gun, and thrills and chills, and sine and cosine, twine and line   

And twirl and swirl, and use or lose it, weed and feed, and wine and dine.

Whale of a tale, wham bam and thank you, wary chary, wheel and deal

And wear and tear, and yeas and nays, and zoot suit, and religious zeal.

There’s likely umpteen others, but so far I can’t imagine them

They’d spread across the alphabet from a-ardvark to zymogen!

Funny (rhyming) money
Loonie and Toonie