Tom Paxton

[fox69]

"Something In My Life"

"Something In My Life"


There is something in my life today
There is something that I'm sure is here to stay
It's all because of you, you know
And since you came my way
There is something in my life today
There is something that I'm sure you know
There is something in your smile that tells me so
And even as I say it, I can see the smile grow
With that something that I'm sure you know
How'd you like to hear my deepest secret
No one ever heard these words from me
Not from a lack of longing to say - I love you
But the words wouldn't come till you came to me
Now there's something so completely new
And it's all to do with love, and loving you
And everything is changing, now
In ways I never knew
Since I found myself in love with you
How'd you like to hear my deepest secretu
No one ever heard these words from me
Not from a lack of longing to say - I love you
But the words wouldn't come till you came to me
Now there's something so completely new
And it's all to do with love and loving you
And everything is changing, now
In ways I never knew
Since I found myself in love with you
Oh it’s all to do with loving you
Since I found myself in love with yo

 

[fox69]

"Spin And Turn"

"Spin And Turn"


Deep in the night a baby
Takes his first deep breath and cries
His momma’s tired and happy
Daddy’s head is in the skies
The fiddler resins up her bow
And the guitar tunes a string
The circle dancers part
To let another others join the ring
Spin and turn
Life goes on and on
Circles around the sun
Till the final dance is done
Spin and turn
We’ve been here and gone
Sing it with us now -
Spin and turn
Life goes on and on
Circles around the sun
Till the final dance is done
Spin and turn
We’ve been here and gone
Early in life the young man
Finds a woman who is wise
He takes her in his arms
And finds tomorrow in her eyes
They dance around the circle
Till the two of them are one
They do the dance of life
Until a new life has begun
Spin and turn
Life goes on and on
Circles around the sun
Till the final dance is done
Spin and turn
We’ve been here and gone
Old men telling children
Of the world when they were young
Children telling old men of their dreams
Mother, daughters, fathers, sons
Around and around, the circle runs
In streams
Till deep in the night an old man
Takes his final steps and sighs
Across the lake the music
Echoes to the midnight skies
While, deep within, the ancient song
Is rising in his breast
For him, the hour is late
And now it’s time he took his rest
Spin and turn
Life goes on and on
Circles around the sun
Till the final dance is done
Spin and turn
We’ve been here and gone
And deep in the night a baby
Takes her first breath and cries
Her momma’s tired and happy
Daddy’s head is in the skies
Spin and turn
Life goes on and on

 

[fox69]

"Standing On The Edge Of Town"

"Standing On The Edge Of Town"


I was born in the middle of this old town
About thirty-one years ago
I worked like a dog on the factory line
It's just about all that I know
Well, I was doing great, I never showed up late
I did all a man could do
Till I found a note in my pay envelope
Saying that's all she wrote for you
And I'm standing on the edge of town
Gonna get chilly when the sun goes down
Cardboard suitcase full of my clothes
Where I'm headin' just the good Lord knows
You know they got a machine where I used to stand
Just as funny lookin' as can be
Sayin', “Sorry boys, but you gotta go”
That meant Jimmy and Billy and me
Well, I guess I'm lucky cos I got no kids
And I'm one o' those bachelor men
But Jimmy's got four and Billy's got two
And I sure feel bad about them
And I'm standing on the edge of town
Gonna get chilly when the sun goes down
Cardboard suitcase full of my clothes
Where I'm headin' just the good Lord knows
Well, that machine is pretty and is fast as a devil
And it's just one thing that I see
You can bet the boss he didn't take no loss
It was Jimmy and Billy and me
And I'm standing on the edge of town
Gonna get chilly when the sun goes down
Cardboard suitcase full of my clothes
Where I'm headin' just the good Lord know

 

[fox69]

"Sully's Pail"

"Sully's Pail"


I've a thing or two ta tell ya that I think you ought to know
About that rusty bucket Sully carries down below
You're not the first one stranger, that has laughed at Sully's Pail
You're the only one that's laughing now, the rest has heard this tale
Sure, when we was young and had some, had ten years in the game
Old Sull, he had a partner and Jim Reilly was his name
They had knocked about together, Bingham, Butte, and Coeur D'Alene
And they brawled in every bar-room from Ely to Fort McLean
Now me and old Ted Johnson, sure you'll not remember him
We was working at the Rarus had a stope with Sull and Jim
The four of us together, we was working side-by-side
That's how I chanced to be there on the night Jim Reilly died
Well, the blastin' had been easy, it was coming out like sand
And we was muckin' out the ore, those days we mucked by hand
And we was nearly finished, and I hadn't heard a sound
But something must have happened, for Jim Reilly yelled - bad ground
When we headed for the timb'ring, Sully must've took a spill
For when we looked back in there, he was pinned beneath his drill
The ceiling, it was groaning now, all set to drop the lid
And Sully, pinned beneath his drill, was sobbing like a kid
Well, there's men can watch their partners die, not throw their lives away
But Reilly wasn't one of them, he wasn't built thatway
As soon's he seed what happened, “Hey, hold on there, Sull!” he cried
And before he had the words out, he had thrown the drill aside
They come around the ore car, Reilly wearing a big grin
Guess he never knew what happened when the hanging wall caved in
Sully reached the timb'ring, his face as white as chalk
And Reilly, two yards back of him, caught fifteen tons of rock
That day Sully's pail was buried, he ate from Reilly's pail in tears
And he's carried that same bucket now for more than twenty years
So, you can laugh at Sull because he's mean and drinks a lot
But don't laugh at Sully's bucket, that's the only friend he's got

 

[fox69]

"Susie Most Of All"

"Susie Most Of All"


Wish I had a nickel, wish I had a dime,
Wish I had Susie and Susie had time to play.
Susie had time to play.
Thing about Susie, Susie can play all day.

Up in Minnesota, down in Tennessee,
Trying to find a woman who's trying to find me, oh, my.
Trying to find me, oh, my.
Thing about Susie, Susie made time fly by.

Susie feels like dancing any old time of the day.
Susie takes my troubles and shoos them, shoos them away.

English muffin, Texas toast.
What I like about Susie most of all,
Susie most of all.
When I'm down, she gives me a telephone call.

Susie feels like dancing any old time of the day.
Susie takes my troubles and shoos them, shoos them away.

Grant took Richmond; Caesar took Gaul.
I'll take Susie and Susie is all I need.
Susie is all I need.
Thing about Susie, happiest guarantee.
Thing about Susie, happiest guarantee.

 

[fox69]

"Suzy Is A Rocker"

"Suzy Is A Rocker"


Suzy is a rocker
She is good at soccer
You should see her pass
And you should see her score
Get the ball to Suzy
She will drive ‘em woozy
Get the ball to Suzy
And she’ll score one more
We have a soccer team
We yell, we shout and scream
We run from end to end
Till we can run no more
We’re running back and forth
We’re running south and north
Sooner or later, though
You know we’re gonna score
‘Cause
Suzy is a rocker
She is good at soccer
You should see her pass
And you should see her score
Get the ball to Suzy
She will drive ‘em woozy
Get the ball to Suzy
And she’ll score one more
There on the rocks and grass
We run and jump and pass
We chase the rolling ball
We are a flying blur
We go through thick and thin
We know the way to win
We find where Suzy is
And get the ball to her
‘Cause
Suzy is a rocker
She is good at soccer
You should see her pass
And you should see her score
Get the ball to Suzy
She will drive ‘em woozy
Get the ball to Suzy
And she’ll score one more
We played last Saturday
It was a rainy day
All of the other guys
Were twice as big and tall
They laughed at us until
I passed the ball to Bill
He spun around and then
Our Suzy got the ball
Yeah
Suzy is a rocker
She is good at soccer
You should see her pass
And you should see her score
Get the ball to Suzy
She will drive ‘em woozy
Get the ball to Suzy
And she’ll score one more
Get the ball to Suzy
And she’ll score one more

 

[fox69]

"Talking Pop Art"

"Talking Pop Art"


Well I went out for a walk last week,
I passed a shop they call a boutique.
Fancy Dresses of every size, fancy wigs to pop your eyes.
Bracelets, diamond rings, stuff for women too.

Well I didn't want to see no more,
I slipped inside the grocery store.
I took down a can of beans, I pulled a dollar out of my jeans.
A fella said "Hold it, that'll be three hundred dollars"

Well a feather could've knocked me down,
I mean, I knew this was a high priced town.
But this was getting hard to take, I said "What the hell do you get for steak?"
He looked surprised, said "It isn't just a can of beans, It's a work of art"

Now I see what the poor man means,
He's proud of that little can of beans.
I didn't hear what else he said, I had my eyes on a loaf of bread.
"White bread four-hundred dollars; Three for a thousand"

Well just about then a crowd came in,
And pickin's must've been pretty slim.
Because in just a minute, or three, or four,
They'd cleaned out that whole grocery store.
They bought brooms,
Fought over watermelons,
One fella put down a pickle. Said "I don't know much about art,
But I know what I like"

Well as I stood there wonderin' why,
Two little fellas came cruising by.
Little tight suits, little black ties,
One of them looked at me and said "My how rustic, I bid a thousand"
I said "I beg your pardon"
"It speaks, I bid five thousand"

So here I stand in a Superman suit,
And everybody says I'm cute.
I tried to tell them but they would not see,
So they hang their hats and coats on me.
Well a job's a job.
Still if I had my preference, I'd rather be Batman

 

[fox69]

"Talking Vietnam Potluck Blues"

"Talking Vietnam Potluck Blues"


[Spoken:]
"Ahhh...
Let's do that again
Do you believe that?"

Well, when I landed in Vietnam
I hardly got to see Saigon
They shaped us up and called the roll
and off we went on a long patrol
Swappin' lies, swattin' flies,
Firin' the odd shot here and there

The Captain called a halt that night
And we had chow by the pale moon light
A lovely dinner they'd planned for us
With a taste like a seat on a crosstown bus
Some of the veterans just left theirs layin' in the can
For the Viet Cong to find
Deadlier than a land mine
Hmmmm...

Naturally somebody told a joke
And a couple of the fellows began to smoke
I took a whiff as the a cloud rolled by
And my nose went up like an infield fly
The Captain, this blonde fellow from Yale looked at
me and said "What's a matter wit chu, baby?" [ghetto dialect]

Well I may be crazy, but I think not;
I swear to God that I smell pot!
But who'd have pot in Vietnam?
He said, "Whaddaya think you been sittin' on?"
These funny little plants...
Thousands of 'em.
Good God Almighty!
Pastures of plenty!

So we all lit up and by and by
The whole platoon was flyin' high
With a beautiful smile on the Captain's face
He smelled like midnight on St. Mark's Place
Cleanin' his weapon,
Chantin' sumpin' about Hari Krishna, Hari Krishna

The moment came,
As it comes to all
When I had to answer nature's call
I was stumbing around in a beautiful haze
When I met a little cat in black pj's
Rifle; ammo belt; BF Goodrich sandals
He looked up at me and said "What's a matter wit chu, baby?"
[sounding just like the Captain had]

He said we're campin' down the pass
And smelled you people blowin' grass
And since, by the smell, you're smoking trash
I brought you a taste of a special stash
Straight from Uncle Ho's victory garden
We call it Hanoi Gold.

So his squad and my squad settled down
Passin' lovely stuff around
All too soon it was time to go
The Captain got on the radio
Said "Hello headquarters?, Helloo, ahh, Headquarters?
We have met the enemy and he has been smashed!"

 

[fox69]

"Talking Watergate"

"Talking Watergate"


I was coming home pretty late one night, singing a song and about half-tight, I was young and my friend and I had
me a pretty good date. I was fiddling around with the front door key, when a weird looking fellow stepped up to me and
said: “Tell me buddy, if this ain’t the Watergate.”
I said it was, and with a grin on his face, he said, “I always wanted to see this place. I hear it’s just the nicest place
in town. And me and my friends are dying to see if it’s all that it’s cracked up to be.” So I said, “Come on in, and I’ll show
you around.” They seemed to love my guided tour ‘til we stopped outside of a certain door and one of my new-found friends
said, “Lookie here.”
“’T is the Democratic office, if I ain’t wrong, to help to keep our country strong.” And he blinked his eye to hold
back a heartfelt tear. He looked kinda shy and shuffled his feet and said no tour would be complete if we didn’t go in and
have a look around.
I don’t know how but the door swung wide and we were all sneaking inside, laughing and giggling and trying not to
make a sound.
We all split up and I was on my own. A couple of the boys were playing round with the phones and I saw
somebody; he was fiddling at a big shot’s desk. They were opening drawers, going through files, made me happy just to see
their smiles ‘til somebody new said, “Hold it, you’re under arrest.”
It took all night to make my bail and as I left the D.C. jail a man stepped out of a long black limousine. He said,
“Get in son, and if you do, we’re gonna take good care of you,” and he flashed the biggest roll of bills I ever seen. He said,
“Get in son, and if you do, we’re gonna take good care of you. Hey, we’re gonna stick with you through thick and thin.” He
drove through traffic like a scalded bird, throwing money out the window to the common herd. We pulled up to the White
House door and walked right in.
Well gosh, I couldn’t believe my luck, this fellow says I can call him Chuck. He says that I am to stick with him
wherever he went. I took off my hat to make a bow and he said there wasn’t any time for that now and he opened the door
and there stood the President.
I started shaking around the knees but he threw me a football to put me at ease. I threw it back and he threw it
back again. A tape recorder was playing real loud the sound of a cheering football crowd ‘til he turned it off, took off his
helmet and said amen.
He smiled at me and he said Bob just told me you’re doing a real fine job and I wanna put an end to all your fears.
You’ve got some friends and that’s worth knowing, when the going gets tough the tough get going, and we’ll stick with you
if they put you away for years.
I said it made me feel so proud, just to hang around with this great crowd, with John and Bob and Mitch and all the
rest. And even though no jail was fun, I knew that justice would be done. And they laughed so hard the tears rolled down
their chest. Oh, ain’t it great what friends can do, they say I’ll be out in a year or two and they’ll get me a real nice job that
pays real well. Yeah, they taught some useful things to me and now that I’m going on TV, they taught me how to smile and
lie like hell.

 

[fox69]

"Thank You Republic Airlines"

"Thank You Republic Airlines"


Flying through the Michigan skies with a song in my innocent heart
I placed myself in professional hands, masters of the traveler's art
When I opened my guitar case at the end of a beautiful flight
I'm sure you can imagine my feelings, as I beheld this beautiful sight
Thank you, Republic Airlines, for breaking the neck on my guitar
I arrived to do a concert with the Kingston Trio
Opened my guitar case with a smile - con brio
Thank you, Republic Airlines, what a joy to the musician you are
What a zest you've added to pedestrian skies
It was boring to be flying where the wild goose flies
But the tedium was broken by the wonderful surprise
When you broke the neck on my guitar
Thank you, Republic Airlines, for treating my instrument with care
There can be no greater happiness for the musician
Than to find his instrument in this condition
Ho-ho, Republic Airlines, in the firmament of travel, you're the star
For you treat each piece of baggage like a child of your own
When you come across an instrument, it's dropped like a stone
May you waken every morning with a new broken bone
Like you broke the neck on my guitar
Well, I've been traveling most of my life, and the thrill is a long time gone
And the sight of another DC 10 just fails to turn me on
But I feel my heart start pounding when I get to the baggage claim
And when I see how you handled my instrument, the thrill is still the same
Thank you, Republic Airlines, for splintering the neck on my guitar
My guitar case was so strong that nothing could go through it
Way to go Republic, only you could do it
Crash bang, Republic Airlines, in the field of demolition, you'll go far
For you took it as a challenge when I checked in mycase
And you saw the fragile stickers glued all over the place
May a team of mad flamenco dancers do to your face
What you did to the neck on my guitar
There could no satisfaction greater than if
You should be the next to go the way of Brani