Tom Paxton

[fox69]

"I Can't Help But Wonder Where I'm Bound"

"I Can't Help But Wonder Where I'm Bound"


It's a long and a dusty road, a hot and a heavy load
The folks I meet ain't always kind
Some are bad, some are good, some have done the best they could
Some have tried to ease my troublin' mind

And I can't help but wonder where I'm bound, where I'm bound
Can't help but wonder where I'm bound

I've been wanderin' through this land, doin' the best I can
Tryin' to find what I was meant to do
And the people that I see look as worried as can be
And it looks like they are wonderin' too

And I can't help but wonder where I'm bound, where I'm bound
Can't help but wonder where I'm bound

Now I had a little girl one time, she had lips like sherry wine
And she loved me till my head went plumb insane
But I was too blind to see she was driftin' away from me
And my good gal went off on a morning train

And I can't help but wonder where I'm bound, where I'm bound
Can't help but wonder where I'm bound

And I had a buddy way back home, but he started out to roam
And I hear he's out by Frisco Bay
And sometimes when I've had a few, his old voice comes a-ringin' through
And I'm goin' out to see him some old day

And I can't help but wonder where I'm bound, where I'm bound
Can't help but wonder where I'm bound

Well, if you see me passin' by and you sit and you wonder why,
And you wish that you were a rambler too
Nail your shoes to the kitchen floor, lace 'em up and bar the door
Thank your stars for the roof that's over you

And I can't help but wonder where I'm bound, where I'm bound
Can't help but wonder where I'm bound

 

[fox69]

"I Don't Want a Bunny-Wunny"

"I Don't Want a Bunny-Wunny"


President Carter got into his boat
Wasn't in a hurry, wanted to float
Think about the country
Think about sin
Along swum a rabbit
And he tried to climb in
And what did Jimmy say -
I don't want a bunny wunny
In my widdle wow boat
In my widdle wow boat in the pond
For the bunny might be crazy
And he'll bite me in the froat
In my widdle wow boat in the pond
I don't want a bunny wunny
In my widdle wow boat
In my widdle wow boat in the pond
For the bunny might be crazy
And he'll bite me in the froat
In my widdle wow boat in the pond
Look at him swimming
Look at him fly
Ears laid back and a gleam in his eye
Hissing through his front teeth
Swimming like a seal
If you were the President
How would you feel
You'd probably say
I don't want a bunny wunny
In my widdle wow boat
In my widdle wow boat in the pond
For the bunny might be crazy
And he'll bite me in the froat
In my widdle wow boat in the pond
President Carter saved the day
Splashed with the paddle
Rabbit swam away
Jimmy was a hero
Felt it in his bones
Said in the words of John Paul Jones
(Said in the words of John Paul Jones)
I don't want a bunny wunny
In my widdle wow boat
In my widdle wow boat in the pond
For the bunny might be crazy
And he'll bite me in the froat
In my widdle wow boat in the pond
I don't want a bunny wunny
In my widdle wow boat
In my widdle wow boat in the pond
For the bunny might be crazy
And he'll bite me in the froat
In my widdle wow boat in the pond
In my widdle wow boat in the pon

 

[fox69]

"I Followed Her Into The West"

"I Followed Her Into The West"


I followed her into the west
Where I had never been before
And never did she see me as
I stood there helpless by her door
Each day my resolution rose
And every day an oath I swore
Tonight I'll stand and be a man
Tonight I'll knock upon her door
And shaved and pressed, and cleaned and dressed
I'd start upon the quest once more
And each night ended as the rest
I could not knock upon her door
I paced my room and cursed myself
I swore that I would go no more
And as the sun was sinking low
I heard a knocking at my door
And standing there with food for me
Standing there my heart's delight
Who said, I thought you must be ill
I missed you at my door tonight
Now you must rest and you must eat
Your resolution to restore
And when these dishes you return
Be sure to knock upon my door

 

[fox69]

"I Give You The Morning"

"I Give You The Morning"


Ever again the morning creeps across your shoulders
Through he frosted window pane the sun grows bolder
Your hair flows down your pillow, you're still sleeping

I think I'll wake you now and hold you
Tell you again the things I've told you
Behold I give you the morning
I give you the day

Through the waving curtain wall the sun comes streaming
Far behind your flickering eyelids, you're still dreaming
You're dreaming of the good times, and you're smiling

I think I'll wake you now and hold you
Tell you again the things I've told you
Behold I give you the morning
I give you the day

Close beneath the window cill the earth is humming
Like an eager Christmas child, the day is coming
Listen to the morning's song, it's singing

I think I'll wake you now and hold you
Tell you again the things I've told you
Behold I give you the morning
I give you the day

Like an antique ballroom fan your eyelids flutter
Sunlight streams across your eyes, trough open shutters
Now I think you're ready for the journey

I think I'll wake you now and hold you
Tell you again the things I've told you
Behold I give you the morning
I give you the day

 

[fox69]

"I Lost My Heart On A 747"

"I Lost My Heart On A 747"


I lost my heart
On a 747
Halfway to heaven
Passing over Des Moines
Her looks were smart
I met her in the aisle
She gave me her smile
I knew our futures we’d join
There in the middle of a spicy movie
Starring Natalie Wood
We made our vows together
Cutting our steaks as best we could
My love
Removed her earphones
And told me in her dear tones
She had to powder her nose
She pushed and shoved
Through a dozen stewardesses
Handing out their addresses
And a-straightening their hose
Time flew
I knew something had gone wrong
Where was my love
She’d been gone too long
I searched
But I couldn’t find Diana
When we landed in Havana
Not a trace could I see
I asked around
Interest couldn’t have been keener
And everyone had seen her
And she was looking for me
Knocking madly on the powder room doors
Tears were in my eyes
Excepting three or four masculine roars
I heard no answering cries
I searched
And I must have looked for hours
‘Til Kennedy tower
Gave permission to land
Farewell to the future we planned
Fighting madly in the baggage claim
Just like World-War Two
I thought I heard her calling my name
But I lost my love and my baggage, too
She’s gone
Now we’ll never fly united
A promise unrequited
No future to join
Our love
Is on a 747
Halfway to heaven
Passing over Des Moines

 

[fox69]

"I Thought You Were An Arab"

"I Thought You Were An Arab"


I thought you just got off of the plane
Desert sand still in your shoes
And the sand was probably Virginia Beach
And you were from Newport News
I thought you were an Arab
I saw the desert in your eyes
I thought of asking for a job in Abu Dhabi
'Til you sprang a big surprise
You handed me the money
That’s what a real Arab does
So I thought you were an Arab
And all the time you were the fuzz
I thought you were an Arab
Desert Caliph or a sheik
I thought I'd be your friend in Congress
You'd be grateful, what a terrible mistake
You handed me the money
And that was all I saw
So I thought you were an Arab
And all the time you were the law
Abdul was kinda obvious
Now that I kinda think it through
The way you spoke American without an accent
Sure reflected well on you
When you handed me the briefcase filled of cash
I accepted with a wink
You can catch it on the evening news you rat
Now I'm headed for the clink
I thought you were an Arab
When you were really apple pie
You had a little shopping list of Congressman
And prominent upon the list was I
I smiled for the camera
I couldn't see it from my seat
So I thought you were an Arab
And all the time you were the heat
You were Lawrence of the FBI
You really played it to the hilt
There'll be no mercy back in Jersey
When you tell 'em how the fatal milk was spilt
I thought you were Kings of the fabled East
All you really were was bums
I got caught with my hand in the cookie jar
Now my hand is full of crumbs
I thought you were an Arab
I saw the desert in your eyes
I thought of asking for a job in Abu Dhabi
'Til you sprang a big surprise
You handed me the money
That’s what a real Arab does
So I thought you were an Arab
And all the time you were the fuzz
I thought you were an Arab
And all the time you were the fuzz

 

[fox69]

"I Was Beautiful"

"I Was Beautiful"


I was beautiful, my Jackie told me so
But that was long ago, and far away
But I was beautiful; he was my soldier boy
We had one taste of joy, then they sent him away
And I was terrified, I sat up half my nights
The radio said the fights were terrible, many were slain
And then, that golden day, I answered the telephone
My soldier boy was home, home safe again
And we went to the pictures, and we went to the sea
We had a life of our own to live, my Jackie and me
Oh, the summers came and went, and the children grew
I was still beautiful to him and love was still new
We were older now, the children moved away
Then came the longed-for day when Jackie retired
At first, he seemed content, he did some gardening
There was a garden swing that he rewired
But as the time went by, he seemed to drift away
He found it hard to pay attention, his memory grew dim
The kids all rallied ‘round, they loved their daddy so
He didn’t seem to know, they were strangers to him
Though we’d been to the pictures, and we’d been to the sea
We’d had a life of our own to live, my Jackie and me
Oh, the summers had come and gone and the children grew
I was still beautiful to him and love was still new
I was terrified and I was all alone
The children had their homes; I know that’s life
And my soldier boy, who used to kiss my hands
Now fails to understand that I’m even his wife
He sits and stares at me, and there is nothing there
He doesn’t seem to care what happens to him or to me
But I was beautiful; he was my soldier boy
We had our taste of joy in my own memory
But did we go to the pictures; did we go to the sea
Did we have a life of our own, my Jackie and me
Oh, the summers came and went, and the children grew
Was I ever beautiful to him
Was love ever new
Was I ever beautiful to him
Was love ever new

 

[fox69]

"I'm Bound For The Mountains And The Sea"

"I'm Bound For The Mountains And The Sea"


If you can't come along, Love, then you must stay behind
You're bound to say farewell to me
I must bid you goodbye, though I hate to see you cry
But I'm bound for the mountains and the sea
Fare thee well, for I'm bound for the mountains and the sea

It's so hard to explain, why I'm leaving once again
It's nothing that I haven't done before
It ain't much, I guess, but the thing I love the best
Is rambling this land from shore to shore
In this land, rambling this land from shore to shore

I have walked, I have thumbed, I've rode buses, I've rode trains
I've ridden a time or two in a silver plane
When I think of where I've been, I just have to go again
Just to see if everything is still the same
In this land, just to see if everything is still the same

So it's fare thee well, my dear, and I must be on my way
There's many a thing I want to do and see
I'm a mighty restless man in a mighty restless land
And I'm bound for the mountains and the sea
I'm bound for the mountains and the sea

 

[fox69]

"I'm Changing My Name To Chrysler"

"I'm Changing My Name To Chrysler"


Oh the price of gold is rising out of sight
And the dollar is in sorry shape tonight.
What the dollar used to get us
Now won't buy a head of lettuce.
No, the economic forecast isn't bright.

But amid the clouds I spot a shining ray.
I can even glimpse a new and better way.
I've demised a plan of action,
Worked it down to the last fraction,
And I'm going into action here today.

[Chorus:]
I am changing my name to Chrysler,
I am going down to Washington, D.C.
I will tell some power broker
What they did for Iacocca
Will be perfectly acceptable to me.
I am changing my name to Chrysler,
I am headed for that great receiving line,
And when they hand a million grand out
I'll be standing with my hand out,
Yes sir, I'll get mine.

When my creditors are screaming for their dough
I'll be glad to tell them all where they can all go.
They won't have to scream and holler,
They'll be paid to the last dollar,
Where the endless streams of money seem to flow.
I'll be glad to tell them what they can do.
It's a matter of a simple form or two.
It's not just remuneration, it's a liberal education!
Ain't you kind of glad that I'm in debt to you?

[Chorus]

Since the first amphibian crawled out of the slime
We've been struggling in an unrelenting climb.
We were hardly up and walking before money started talking,
And it said that failure is an awful crime.
Well, it's been that way a millenium or two,
But now it seems that there's a different point of view:
If you're a corporate titanic and your failure is gigantic,
Down in Congress there's a safety net for you.

[Chorus]

 

[fox69]

"I'm The Man That Built The Bridges"

"I'm The Man That Built The Bridges"


I'm the man that built the bridges
I'm the man that laid the track
I'm the man that built this country
With my shoulders and my back
I'm the man that built the power dams
Oiled all the cars
And I laid down the cornerstone
For this great land of ours
I cleared the rocks and timber from the wild New England shore
And I laboured long and hard to make it grow
I fought the savage Indian and I raised a family
I built the first log cabins and I raised a family

Told King George and all his Redcoats where to go
I'm the man that built the bridges
I'm the man that laid the track
I'm the man that built this country
With my shoulders and my back
I'm the man that built the power dams
Oiled all the cars
And I laid down the cornerstone
For this great land of ours
I'm the boy that drove the wagons when the people headed west
Dug canals and pulled the barges on their way
I built and ran the factories, cut the timber for your homes
Drove the oxen when I cut and baled the hay
I'm the man that built the bridges
I'm the man that laid the track
I'm the man that built this country
With my shoulders and my back
I'm the man that built the power dams
And oiled all the cars
And I laid down the cornerstone
For this great land of ours
I built the old sod shanties and I raised the prairie towns
And I made the railroad run from sea to sea
I raised and drove the cattle to feed a growing land
And the mining towns are there because of me
I'm the man that built the bridges
I'm the man that laid the track
I'm the man that built this country
With my shoulders and my back
I'm the man that built the power dams
And oiled all the cars
And I laid down the cornerstone
For this great land of ours
Well, I stoked the mighty furnaces and rolled the flamin' steel
I operated oil rigs and wells
And when the country needed them, I built the planes and tanks
To send the tyrants down to fry in hell
I'm the man that built the bridges
I'm the man that laid the track
I'm the man that built this country
With my shoulders and my back
I'm the man that built the power dams
Oiled all the cars
And I laid down the cornerstone
For this great land of ours
Well, my face may not be pretty and my clothes are not the best
And there ain't no big shots in my family tree
But if you're wonderin' who it was that made this country great
You don't have to look no further, it was me
I'm the man that built the bridges
I'm the man that laid the track
I'm the man that built this country
With my shoulders and my back
I'm the man that built the power dams
And oiled all the cars
I laid down the cornerstone
For this great land of ours