Decoding the lyrics of Paul Simon’s most intensely barbed song
Without a doubt, Paul Simon is one of the greatest songwriters of this generation.
Ever since he was young, Simon has been working out different ways that he could use music and lyrics in a bid to explore every facet of human emotion. No matter what feeling you are looking for, whether it’s happiness, sadness, or something in the midst of those two extremes, Paul Simon has it covered.
The majority of the time, Simon has always been quite upfront with his lyricism. He doesn’t tend to be one of those writers who hides behind serious metaphors, and instead likes to look you right in the eye when he shakes your hand. If he’s sad, he’ll say as much, if he’s angry, you’ll know, and so on and so on.
Of course, even the greatest creative minds have a tendency to deviate from their set routine, and that’s what Paul Simon did with his interestingly put together song ‘A Simple Desultory Philippic (Or How I Was Robert McNamara’d Into Submission)’, which is a lyrical maze of hidden references that, on the face of it, don’t make a load of sense.
Fans have spent plenty of time dissecting the lyrics and working out what the song is about. They dig and dig, but the truth is, there may not be much of a hidden meaning to explore. When Paul Simon put the track together, he did so with the intention of the words having a relatively comedic effect. He admitted in an interview that when he put the lyrics together, he was thinking of the comedian Lenny Bruce.
“I was having fun,” he said. “I thought it would be funny to use those unusual words ‘desultory’ and ‘philippic’, in a song title, and I also wanted to sneak in some Lenny Bruce, who was my favourite comedian. That line, ‘How I Was Robert McNamara’d Into Submission’ is pure Lenny.”
The song consists of lyrics where Simon names a number of different figures saying that he has been some kind of iteration of that person. When a lot of people heard it for the first time, they believed that he was mocking Bob Dylan. Simon has since refuted these claims, saying that he could never successfully imitate Dylan because his voice isn’t well suited enough to do so. You can understand where people were coming from though, as the song certainly has a hint of ‘Subterranean Homesick Blues’.
“One of my deficiencies is my voice sounds sincere,” he said. “I’ve tried to sound ironic. I don’t. I can’t. With Dylan, everything he sings has two meanings. He’s telling you the truth and making fun at the same time.”
You can certainly understand where these Dylan comparisons came from, as the lyrics are pretty freely associated with one another, and Paul Simon seems to mimic his vocals too. However, given that this song was originally written for a Paul Simon solo project, it’s also likely we are just hearing Simon attempt to take on some more experimental lyrics.
If we are taking the literal definition of the title, “Desultory” means for somebody to lack purpose, enthusiasm, plans or consistency. Equally, “Philippic” is a bitter attack on some, particularly a verbal one. Simon seems to stay close to these themes throughout the track, as a lot of people he names are controversial political figures who played a big part in wars and controversy.
Lines such as “I’ve been Norman Mailered, Maxwell Taylored,” refer to the anti-communist author who described himself as a “left-conservative” and a US Army Officer who was partly responsible for involving the US in the Vietnam War. Similarly, “John O’Hara” was another author who had well-known conservative views; meanwhile, “McNamara” was a US Secretary of Defence who was also responsible for getting America involved in the Vietnam War.
The allusion to War is also heard in the film title, which seems to pay homage to Stanley Kubrick’s doomsday adjacent classic, Dr Strangelove Or: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love The Bomb. Of course, this too is a piece of work that combines comedy and war, as Simon noted when he compared his writing style to that of Lenny Bruce.
All of these figures have some elements in common, but then Simon continues to confuse the listener by mentioning bands like the Rolling Stones and The Beatles. The track was written in 1966 when both bands were at their peak, so whether Simon is referring to their influence, or the commonly held opinion that both bands had “Sold out” is tricky to say.
Simon’s offering on this lengthy odyssey remains a barbed selection of references, each of which has loose connections but that can still remain somewhat confusing. The disjointed nature of the track made many believe it was a jab at Dylan, but whether this was or wasn’t the case remains to be seen. The lyrical maze that unfolds throughout this track reflects Simon’s ability to both write from a place of honesty and transparency, but also shroud his songs with metaphor. He remains one of the most exciting songwriters to ever pick up a pen and whistle a tune.
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