<P> "The Elements" is a song by musical humorist and lecturer Tom Lehrer, which recites the names of all the chemical elements known at the time of writing, up to number 102, nobelium . It was written in 1959 and can be found on his albums Tom Lehrer in Concert, More of Tom Lehrer and An Evening Wasted with Tom Lehrer . The song is sung to the tune of the Major - General's Song from The Pirates of Penzance by Gilbert and Sullivan . </P> <P> The song is also included in the musical revue Tom Foolery, along with many of Lehrer's other songs . </P>

When did tom lehrer write the elements song