Breaking news (Feb. 10) from the Associated Press (note that this thread started last Fall!)

Paxton Honors Firefighters With Song Email this Story

02/10/2002 4:40 PM EST

CARSON CITY, Nev. (AP) - Add Tom Paxton to the long list of artists who have written a tribute to the firefighters who answered the call at the World Trade Center.

"I didn't want to write a song about it," the folk singer-songwriter-author said. "I thought, 'No way. This is over my head.' And then I kept thinking about those firemen trapped in the towers and a phrase kept running through my head. I decided I could handle it and the phrase in my head became the chorus of 'The Bravest.'"

He performed it during a concert Saturday night.

"They must have seen it coming as they turned to face the fire/They sent us down to safety then they kept on climbing higher. Now every time I try to sleep I'm haunted by the sound/Of firemen bounding up the stairs while we were running down."

Paxton's songs include "The Marvelous Toy,""I Can't Help but Wonder Where I'm Bound,""The Last Thing on My Mind," and "Ramblin' Boy."