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.
The Willing Conscript
Tom Paxton Lyrics
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And I've just arrived in camp
I've come to wear the uniform
And join the martial tramp
And I want to do my duty
But one thing I do implore
You must give me lessons, sergeant
To do my job obediently
Is all that I desire
To learn my weapon thoroughly
And how to aim and fire
To learn to kill the enemy
And then to slaughter more
Oh, I'll need instruction, sergeant
For I've never killed before
Now, there are rumors in the camp
About our enemy
They say that when you see him
He looks just like you and me
But you deny it, sergeant
And you are a man of war
So you must give me lessons
For I've never killed before
Now, there are several lessons
That I haven't mastered yet
I haven't got the hang of
How to use the bayonet
If he doesn't die at once
Am I to stick him with it more?
Oh, I hope you will be patient
For I've never killed before
And the hand grenade is somethin'
That I just don't understand
You've got to throw it quickly
Or you're apt to lose your hand
Does it blow a man to pieces
With it's wicked, muffled roar?
Oh, I've got so much to learn
Because I've never killed before
Well, I want to thank you, sergeant
For the help you've been to me
You've taught me how to kill
And to hate the enemy
And I know that I'll be ready
When they march me off to war
And I know that it won't matter
That I've never killed before
I know that it won't matter
That I've never killed before
The Willing Conscript is a satirical commentary on the experience of a new recruit in the army. The lyrics reflect the mindset of a young man who has no prior experience with warfare and is eager to learn how to kill in order to fulfill his duty. The opening lines of the song reveal the singer's enthusiasm to join the army and his belief in the necessity of warfare. However, he makes it clear to his sergeant that he will need guidance on how to kill, as he has never done it before.
As the song progresses, the lyrics reveal the singer's increasing apprehension and confusion regarding the act of killing. He expresses his fears about using a bayonet and the unpredictable nature of hand grenades. Nevertheless, the sergeant dismisses these concerns and continues to instruct him on how to fight and hate the enemy.
Line by Line Meaning
Oh sergeant, I'm a draftee
I am a conscript and have just arrived at the military base.
And I've just arrived in camp
I am new to this military base.
I've come to wear the uniform
I want to serve my country.
And join the martial tramp
And be part of the military.
And I want to do my duty
I want to fulfill my responsibilities as a soldier.
But one thing I do implore
But I need your help.
You must give me lessons, sergeant
I need guidance from you, sergeant.
For I've never killed before
I don't have any experience of killing someone.
To do my job obediently
I want to perform my duty as instructed.
Is all that I desire
All I want is to perform my duty well.
To learn my weapon thoroughly
I want to be trained well in the usage of my weapon.
And how to aim and fire
And be able to aim and fire accurately.
To learn to kill the enemy
I want to learn how to kill the enemy.
And then to slaughter more
I want to be able to kill more than one enemy.
Oh, I'll need instruction, sergeant
I need your guidance, sergeant.
Now, there are rumors in the camp
I have heard rumors in the military base.
About our enemy
About the enemy we will be fighting.
They say that when you see him
They say that the enemy looks like us.
He looks just like you and me
That the enemy looks like a normal person.
But you deny it, sergeant
But you are saying it's not true, Sergeant.
And you are a man of war
You are experienced in warfare.
So you must give me lessons
So, I need your training, sergeant.
Now, there are several lessons
There are many things I need to learn.
That I haven't mastered yet
Things that I am yet to learn.
I haven't got the hang of
I am not good at.
How to use the bayonet
Using a bayonet is difficult for me.
If he doesn't die at once
If the enemy doesn't die immediately.
Am I to stick him with it more?
Do I need to use the bayonet more times?
Oh, I hope you will be patient
I hope you will be patient with me.
And the hand grenade is somethin'
I don't understand how to use hand grenades.
That I just don't understand
I am confused about how to use it effectively.
You've got to throw it quickly
You need to throw it immediately.
Or you're apt to lose your hand
Otherwise, it can cause severe injury to you.
Does it blow a man to pieces
Can it cause a man to explode?
With its wicked, muffled roar?
With a loud and scary sound?
Oh, I've got so much to learn
There is so much I need to learn.
Because I've never killed before
Because I don't have any experience in killing.
Well, I want to thank you, sergeant
I want to thank you for your help, Sergeant.
For the help you've been to me
For guiding me.
You've taught me how to kill
You have trained me to kill.
And to hate the enemy
And to have hatred towards the enemy.
And I know that I'll be ready
I am confident that I will be ready.
When they march me off to war
When I go to fight a war.
And I know that it won't matter
I know that it won't be a problem.
That I've never killed before
That I don't have experience in killing.
I know that it won't matter
It won't be an obstacle for me.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, RESERVOIR MEDIA MANAGEMENT INC
Written by: TOM PAXTON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind