Song of the Week: A Simple Desultory Philippic (or How I Was Robert McNamara’d into Submission)

Another look at Paul Simon this week with his work on Parsley, Sage, Rosemary & Thyme (1966) in Simon and Garfunkle, but originally published the year prior on The Paul Simon Song Book, which was released only in the UK. This is an interesting view because what we get from the song “A Simple Desultory Philippic” is a young and angry Paul Simon full of spirit and vigor, ready to take on anyone, even Phil Spector. It is Phil Spector that has finally brought this article to publish, as today, it is announced that he passed away at 81 years-old. We will take a better look at who Phil Spector was in “Phil Spector Resurrected,” but now, we listen to the song and hear what he tells us.

This is a cultural attack against the mainstream and crushing fascists against the free way of life, starting from the top of the chain, Lyndon B. Johnson, President of the United States (1963–1969), not just named in the song but is the name of the song in the UK version and the opening of the song is spoken: “A Simple Desultory Philippic Or How I was Lyndon Johnson’d Into Submission.” Paul tells us about his heroes, allies and foes in music, art and politics.

Influencers listed in the song are:

1965:

Lyndon Johnson, President of the United States (1963–1969)
Union Jack, flag of the United Kingdom
Jack Kerouac, American novelist
John Birch, American Baptist missionary and martyr; namesake of American politically right-wing John Birch Society active in that period
Larry Adler, noted harmonica player
Walt Disney, American film producer
Diz Disley, British jazz guitarist
John Lennon, member of The Beatles
Krishna Menon, Indian politician
Walter Brennan, American actor
Cassius Clay, American boxer, later known as Muhammad Ali
James Joyce, Irish writer and poet
Rolls-Royce British luxury car maker
Tom Wilson, record producer who produced several of Bob Dylan’s ’60s LPs, Simon & Garfunkel’s début album, and the electric version of “The Sound of Silence“
Barry Kornfeld, second guitarist on Simon and Garfunkel’s Wednesday Morning, 3 A.M. album

1966:

Norman Mailer, American writer
Maxwell Taylor, American soldier and diplomat
John O’Hara, American writer
Robert McNamara, American political figure (U.S. Secretary of Defense at the time)
Phil Spector, record producer
Lou Adler, record producer
Barry Sadler, U.S. Army Green Beret and American musician
Roy Halee, Simon and Garfunkel’s record producer

In both:

The Rolling Stones, British rock group
The Beatles, British pop and rock group
Ayn Rand, novelist and philosopher
Art Garfunkel, American singer, Paul Simon’s partner in Simon and Garfunkel
Dylan Thomas, Welsh poet and writer – as opposed to Bob Dylan, American singer and songwriter
Lenny Bruce, American comedian
Mick Jagger, frontman of The Rolling Stones
“Silver Dagger“, nineteenth-century folk song largely associated with Joan Baez
Andy Warhol, American visual artist