blog/sharing-the-stage-with-tom-paxton

Tom Paxton is, for me, one of the great American songwriters. One reason is longevity. He has been writing good meaningful songs for nearly 60 years. Another reason is versatility. Tom writes love songs, humorous songs, children’s songs, and political songs with equal passion and compassion. Another thing is the accessibility of his songs. When you finish listening to a Tom Paxton song you never have to ask, “What was that all about?”

Perhaps most important Paxton songs have strong heartbeats. He writes lovingly and clearly about what it means to be human and we are all better for it.

I am including three of Paxton's songs in this blog. The first is “Marvelous Little Toy” recorded by The Chad Mitchell Trio over 50 years ago. The second is Paxton singing his song “The Bravest.” It is, with the possible exception of Alan Jackson’s “Where Were You (When The World Stopped Turning), the best song I have ever heard written about 9/11. The third song is Johnny Cash singing “Can’t Help But Wonder Where I’m Bound” from his album “Aint No Grave” that was released after Cash’s death.

As I said in the last post: thank you, Tom, for continuing to give voice to our better angels.