After time in the Army Reserves, Paxton moved to New York City where he frequented the city's Greenwich Village coffeehouse circuit. His early success in Greenwich Village coffeehouses led to an ever-increasing circle of work. He made his professional debut at the Gaslight, the renowned folk haunt that also issued the singer's first album. In 1962 Gaslight Records would press 2,000 copies of his debut album, I'm The Man Who Built The Bridges.
Paxton also auditioned to join the Chad Mitchell Trio, but although he failed, the group enjoyed a 1963 hit with "The Marvelous Toy," one of Paxton's early songs. Paxton performed at the 1963 Newport Folk Festival, a performance that would be recorded-and released-by Vanguard Records. Paxton would go on to record a second album with Vanguard-at the Newport Folk Festival the following year - but his association with that record company lapsed, and it would not be until the year 2000 that Vanguard once again released a Tom Paxton album, Tom Paxton: Best of the Vanguard Years. In 1964 Paxton was signed to Elektra Records for whom he recorded his best-known work. Then in 1965 he made his first tour of the United Kingdom - the beginning of a still-thriving professional relationship that has included at least one tour in each of the succeeding years.
He and his wife Midge have been married since 1963 and have two daughters, Jennifer and Kate. All three women have served as inspiration for many of Paxton's songs. He now has three grandsons, Christopher, Sean, and Peter.
In addition to songwriting, Tom Paxton has written many critically acclaimed children's books, some of which were inspired by his songs for children.
He has performed thousands of concerts around the world in countries such as Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Hong Kong, Scandinavia, France, Italy, Belgium, Holland, England, Scotland, Ireland and Canada. Paxton enjoys a strong relationship with fans throughout the world. His songs have experienced enduring appeal, including modern standards such as "The Last Thing on My Mind" (perhaps Paxton's best-known song, it has been recorded by dozens of artists, including Judy Collins, Sandy Denny, Dolly Parton, and Porter Wagoner), "Ramblin' Boy", "Bottle of Wine", "Whose Garden Was This", "The Marvelous Toy", and "The Hostage" (which recounts the 1971 uprising at Attica State Prison).
In February 2002, Tom Paxton was honored with the ASCAP Lifetime Achievement Award in Folk Music. A few days later, he received three Wammies (Washington, DC, Area Music Awards); as Best Male Vocalist in the "traditional folk" and "children's music" categories, and for Best Traditional Folk Recording of the Year for Under American Skies (the duo album he made with Anne Hills in 2001). This was the first Paxton album to receive an award of any kind.
Paxton has been nominated four times for Grammy Awards in his career, all since 2002.
In 2004, the Martin Guitar Company introduced the HD-40LSH Tom Paxton Signature Edition acoustic guitar in his honor.
In 2005, Paxton received a Lifetime Achievement Award for Songwriting at BBC Radio 2's Folk Awards at London's Brewery Arts Centre.
In 2006, Paxton received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the North American Folk Music and Dance Alliance.
On January 22, 2007, Paxton was honored with an official UK Parliamentary tribute at the British House of Commons at the start of his 2007 United Kingdom tour.
On May 3, 2008, Paxton was honored with a special lifetime tribute from the World Folk Music Association, and a concert was held at the Rachel M. Schlesinger Concert Hall and Arts Center at Northern Virginia Community College, Alexandria Campus, in Alexandria, Virginia.
Jennifer Rabbit
Tom Paxton Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
(Tom Paxton)
Jennifer slept in her little bed
With dreams of a rabbit in her little head
Jennifer's rabbit, brown and white
Left the house and went to town one night
Along with a turtle and a kangaroo
And seventeen monkeys from the city zoo
They tried to drive it but they didn't get far
They all got tired and decided to go
To see the people in the picture show
Jennifer's rabbit, white and brown
Looked in the windows of the shops downtown
He found a dress for Jennifer to wear
And a pretty blue ribbon for her long blond hair
Then the rabbit and the turtle and the kangaroo
Bowed to each other like polite folks do
They went to a shop where the cookies are free
And they all had cookies and oolong tea
Then, "My!" said the turtle as the clock struck three
"The hour is growing very late for me."
"Not at all," said the rabbit. "If you give me a chance,
I'll lead all the monkeys in a hula dance!"
So they danced all night and the moon danced too
Then the rabbit and the turtle and the kangaroo
Jumped into bed and closed their eyes
And were fast asleep before the sun could rise
And Jennifer slept in her little bed
With dreams of a rabbit in her little head
Copyright Tom Paxton
recorded by Tom Paxton
filename[ JENNRABB
MC
The song "Jennifer's Rabbit" by Tom Paxton tells a sweet story about a girl named Jennifer and her adventure-loving rabbit. The song takes place in Jennifer's dreams as she falls asleep with the image of her rabbit in her mind. The rabbit, along with a turtle and a kangaroo, decide to go on a ride on an old street car. They try to drive it themselves but fail to do so. Later, they all went to see the picture show, and the rabbit looked for a pretty dress and a beautiful ribbon for Jennifer.
The song's lyrics are playful and imaginative, it paints a vivid picture of a dreamland filled with fantastic creatures and a world where animals can talk and interact with each other. Paxton delivers the story in a gentle and lullaby-like tone, making it a perfect bedtime story for children. The moral of the story could be interpreted as the importance of camaraderie, adventure, and friendship.
Line by Line Meaning
Jennifer slept in her little bed
Starting off the story, Jennifer went to sleep in her small bed.
With dreams of a rabbit in her little head
Jennifer dreamed of a rabbit in her head while she was sleeping.
Jennifer's rabbit, brown and white
Jennifer had a rabbit that had white and brown fur.
Left the house and went to town one night
That rabbit left her house and went to the town overnight.
Along with a turtle and a kangaroo
The rabbit alongside a turtle and a kangaroo proceeded to the town.
And seventeen monkeys from the city zoo
Moreover, seventeen monkeys from the city zoo joined them as well.
They went for a ride on an old street car
Together, they took a ride on an old street car.
They tried to drive it but they didn't get far
However, they couldn't drive it further after they tried to.
They all got tired and decided to go
As they got tired of it, they decided to go elsewhere.
To see the people in the picture show
They went to see people in the picture show.
Jennifer's rabbit, white and brown
On the way, the rabbit saw a dress and a pretty blue ribbon for Jennifer to wear.
Looked in the windows of the shops downtown
While they were going through downtown, the rabbit looked into shop windows.
He found a dress for Jennifer to wear
The rabbit found a dress for Jennifer to wear.
And a pretty blue ribbon for her long blond hair
Additionally, he found a pretty blue ribbon for her long blonde hair.
Then the rabbit and the turtle and the kangaroo
The rabbit, the turtle, and the kangaroo did a polite bow to each other.
Bowed to each other like polite folks do
They did this just like polite people would do.
They went to a shop where the cookies are free
They went to a shop that served free cookies.
And they all had cookies and oolong tea
They all had free cookies and oolong tea there.
Then, "My!" said the turtle as the clock struck three
At three o'clock, the clock struck, and Turtle said, "Oh my."
"The hour is growing very late for me."
Turtle thought it was getting too late for him.
"Not at all," said the rabbit. "If you give me a chance,
The rabbit, however, didn't think so and said there was still plenty of time.
I'll lead all the monkeys in a hula dance!
The rabbit decided to lead all the monkeys in a hula dance.
So they danced all night and the moon danced too
The moon and all of them danced throughout the night.
Then the rabbit and the turtle and the kangaroo
After a lot of dancing, they all went to bed.
Jumped into bed and closed their eyes
They all jumped into bed and went to sleep.
And were fast asleep before the sun could rise
They fell asleep quickly, even before the sun came up.
And Jennifer slept in her little bed
Finally, Jennifer was sleeping in her own small bed.
With dreams of a rabbit in her little head
Jennifer slept with dreams of her rabbit in her head.
Contributed by Ellie E. Suggest a correction in the comments below.