Tom Paxton (born October 31, 1937) is an American folk singer-songwriter who has had a music career spanning more than fifty years. In 2009, Paxton received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. He is noteworthy as a music educator as well as an advocate for folk singers to combine traditional songs with new compositions.
Paxton's songs have been featured in the following movies: A Time for Burning (1966), Jennifer on My Mind (1971), Demolition Man (1993), The Family Man (2000), North Country (2005), and Spike (2008).
Paxton's song "Going to the Zoo" was included in an episode of Monty Python's Flying Circus entitled "It's the Arts (or: Intermission)" (Season 1, episode 13; aired January 11, 1970; recorded January 4, 1970). "Going to the Zoo" was also featured on an episode of Sharon, Lois & Bram's Elephant Show entitled "Zoo" (Season 1, Episode 9; aired, November 5, 1984). His song "Lyndon Johnson Told the Nation" was included in an episode of American Experience entitled LBJ (1991). "The Last Thing on My Mind" was included on Bravo Profiles Dolly Parton: Diamond in a Rhinestone World (aired September 6, 1999). A brief clip of Paxton was shown during the 51st Grammy Awards telecast on February 8, 2009, which announced his Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. He contributed original music for the short drama The Price of Art (2007; released June 5, 2009).
Discography
I'm the Man That Built the Bridges [live] (Gaslight, 1962) Ramblin' Boy (Elektra, 1964) Ain't That News! (Elektra, 1965) Outward Bound (Elektra, 1966) Morning Again (Elektra, 1968) The Things I Notice Now (Elektra, 1969) Tom Paxton 6 (Elektra, 1970) The Compleat Tom Paxton [live in June 1970 at the Bitter End nightclub, Greenwich Village, Lower Manhattan, New York City] (Elektra, 1971) How Come the Sun (Reprise, 1971) Peace Will Come (Reprise, 1972) New Songs for Old Friends [live] (Reprise, 1973) Children's Song Book (Bradleys, 1974) (reissued in the U.S. ten years later under the title The Marvelous Toy and Other Gallimaufry (Cherry Lane / Flying Fish, 1984)) Something in My Life (Private Stock, 1975) Saturday Night (MAM, 1976) New Songs from the Briarpatch [live] (Vanguard, 1977) Heroes (Vanguard, 1978) Up and Up (Mountain Railroad, 1979) The Paxton Report (Mountain Railroad, 1980) Bulletin (Hogeye, 1983) Even a Gray Day (Flying Fish, 1983) Tom Paxton in the Orchard (Cherry Lane Records, 1984) One Million Lawyers and Other Disasters (Flying Fish, 1985) A Paxton Primer (Pax, 1986) Folksong Festival 1986 (Pax, 1986) And Loving You (Flying Fish, 1986) Balloon-alloon-alloon (Sony Kids' Music, 1987) Politics Live [live] (Flying Fish, 1988) The Very Best of Tom Paxton (Flying Fish, 1988) In The Orchard [live] (Sundown Records, 1988) Storyteller (Start Records Ltd, 1989) It Ain't Easy (Flying Fish, 1991) A Child's Christmas (Sony Kids' Music, 1992) Peanut Butter Pie (Sony Kids' Music, 1992) Suzy Is a Rocker (Sony Kids' Music, 1992) Wearing the Time (Sugar Hill, 1994) Live: For the Record [live] (Sugar Hill, 1996) A Child's Christmas/Marvelous Toy and Other Gallimaufry (Delta, 1996) A Car Full of Songs (Sony Kids' Music, 1997) Goin' to the Zoo (Rounder, 1997) I've Got a Yo-Yo (Rounder, 1997) The Best of Tom Paxton (Hallmark, 1997) Live in Concert [live] (Strange Fruit, 1998) Fun Animal Songs (Delta, 1999) Fun Food Songs (Delta, 1999) A Car Full of Fun Songs (Delta, 1999) I Can't Help But Wonder Where I'm Bound: The Best of Tom Paxton (Rhino, 1999) Best of the Vanguard Years (Vanguard, 2000) Stars in Their Eyes (Cub Creek Records, 2000), duet with Mark Elliott Live From Mountain Stage [live] (Blue Plate, 2001) Under American Skies (Appleseed and Koch International, 2001) Ramblin' Boy/Ain't That News! (Warner Strategic Marketing, 2002) Your Shoes, My Shoes (Red House, 2002) Looking for the Moon (Appleseed, 2002) American Troubadour (Music Club, 2003) Best of Friends [live on February 16, 1985, at Holsteins folk club, Chicago, Illinois] (Appleseed Recordings, 2004) (originally taped for broadcast by WFMT's The Midnight Special radio show by its host, Rich Warren) The Compleat Tom Paxton (Even Compleater) [live] (Rhino Handmade, 2004) Outward Bound/Morning Again (Wea/Rhino, 2004) Live in the UK [live] (Pax, 2005) Live at McCabe's Guitar Shop [live] (Shout Factory, 2006) Comedians and Angels (Appleseed, 2008) Redemption Road (Pax Records, 2015) Boat in the Water (Pax Records, 2017) Live at Portland, Oregon, November 7, 2017 (2018) with The Don Juans The Essential (Apple Music, 2019) Live! (Bandcamp, 2019) with The Don Juans Rabbit (Misra, 2022) with Buffalo Rose