Lyr ADD: Last Thing on My Mind (Tom Paxton)

Subject: Lyrics Req:
From: Gallagher
Date: 19 Jan 97 - 12:40 PM

Found just a thread of "Last Thing On My Mind," sung by Judy Collins; *Recollections,* Elektra Records; '70s?. Digital tradition search patterns suggests that it may not be public domain. Need Words!! -- Slainte, Gallagher; e-mail: [e-mail].

---

Messages from multiple threads combined.
-Joe Offer-

Subject: Lyr Add: LAST THING ON MY MIND (Tom Paxton)
From: Ralph Butts
Date: 19 Jan 97 - 01:41 PM

Here's the Paxton version - he wrote it.

...Tiger

-------------------

THE LAST THING ON MY MIND
(Tom Paxton)

It's a lesson too late for the learnin',
Made of sand, made of sand.
In the wink of an eye my soul is turnin',
In your hand, in your hand.

CHORUS
Are you going away with no word of farewell?
Will there be not a trace left behind?
Well, I could have loved you better,
Didn't mean to be unkind,
You know that was the last thing on my mind.

As we walk on, my thoughts keep tumblin',
'Round and 'round, 'round and 'round.
Underneath our feet the subway's rumblin',
Underground, underground.

CHORUS

As I lie in my bed in the mornin',
Without you, without you.
Every song in my breast lies a-bornin',
Without you, without you.

CHORUS

You've got reasons aplenty for goin',
This I know, this I know.
For the weeds have been steadily growin',
Please don't go, please don't go.

CHORUS

---

Note from Joe Offer: this is more-or-less the version in the Digital Tradition. It is quite different from the Tom Paxton recording.
-Joe Offer, 30 Jan 2011-

Subject: RE: Lyrics Req:
From: Will
Date: 20 Jan 97 - 12:01 AM

I think that Rise Up Singing (The Sing Out book) has more verses, if you have access to a copy.

Subject: RE: Lyrics Req: So Fare Thee Well, My Own True Lov
From:
Date: 20 Jan 97 - 12:11 AM

I got this confused with the "Last Thing On My Mind." I think the "Fare Thee Well" song is also sung by Judy Collins on the "Recollections" Elektra album. All I recall is: "So, fare thee well, my own true love.... It's not the leaving that's grieving me, but my true love which I'm bound to leave behind." Sound familiar? Thanks, Gallagher

Subject: RE: Lyrics Req:
From: Jenny Smith
Date: 20 Jan 97 - 08:39 AM

I always thought it was "every song in my breast dies a-forming" in the 3rd verse. Seem to remember seeing it written down somewhere. My dad used to sing this song when I was very young.

Subject: RE: Lyrics Req:
From:
Date: 20 Jan 97 - 09:39 AM

To Gallagher:

The Clancy Bros. & Tommy Makem do a song with your lines. Look for The Leaving of Liverpool"

Bob Schwarer

Subject: RE: Lyrics Req:
From:
Date: 20 Jan 97 - 09:45 AM

To Bob:

I found it too, but the title is (I don't know why) "Leaving Liverpool". DT also has "Leaving of Liverpool" but it's completely other story.

Take care.

Subject: RE: Lyrics Req:
From: Susan of DT
Date: 22 Jan 97 - 07:47 PM

There are two Leaving of Liverpools (or more). One is traditional and one is a Bob Dylan version.

Subject: RE: Lyrics Req:
From:
Date: 22 Jan 97 - 08:12 PM

Oh it's fare thee well my darlin' true, I'm leavin' in the first hour of the morn; is the start of Bob Dylan's "Farewell" copyright 1963

Subject: Last thing on my mind
From: Mrrzy
Date: 05 Jun 02 - 09:56 AM

Search function didn't want to search, so there is likely a thread already on this, sorry. But is it MADE of sand or MAID of sand?

This is in the song that goes like this here:
It's a lesson too late for the learning
Made of sand, made of sand
In the wink of an eye my soul is turning
In your hand, in your hand

CHO: Are you going away with no words of farewell? Can there be not a trace left behind?
I could have loved you better, didn't mean to be unkind
You know that was the last thing on my mind.

You got reasons aplenty for going, this I know...
For the weeds have been steadily growing, please don't go...

CHO

As I lie in my bed in the morning, without you...
Each song in my breast dies a-bornin', without you...

CHO

---

Messages from multiple threads combined.
-Joe Offer-

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Last thing on my mind
From: Sorcha
Date: 05 Jun 02 - 10:05 AM

Tom Paxton, Mrzz; thread here. I used Forum Search under Quick Links.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Last thing on my mind
From: Sorcha
Date: 05 Jun 02 - 10:07 AM

And the DT entry says "made".

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Last thing on my mind
From: kendall
Date: 05 Jun 02 - 10:25 AM

Tom Paxton will be at Old Songs this June 28, 29 & 30.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Last thing on my mind
From: Mrrzy
Date: 05 Jun 02 - 11:13 AM

OK, thanks. So, what is made of sand? The lesson? What does that mean? Ephemeral?

Subject: RE: Lyrics Req:
From: Mrrzy
Date: 05 Jun 02 - 11:54 AM

Conversation about this on this new thread.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Last thing on my mind
From: Mrrzy
Date: 05 Jun 02 - 11:55 AM

I've linked that other thread back to this one. I'm trying to consolidate...

Subject: RE: Lyrics Req: Last Thing on my Mind
From: Hrothgar
Date: 05 Jun 02 - 10:50 PM

???????????????? Led me up a garden path.

If you want to consolidate something made of sand, add a little cement and water.

:-))

Subject: RE: Lyrics Req: Last Thing on my Mind
From: Mrrzy
Date: 06 Jun 02 - 08:50 AM

Thanks for putting these threads together joe clones! And everybody else, ignore the above link which originally came here from another thread.

I still don't get the Made of sand bit.

Subject: RE: Lyrics Req: Last Thing on my Mind
From: Steve in Idaho
Date: 06 Jun 02 - 11:52 AM

There's an old joke in psychiatric circles about houses made of sand.

Neurotics live in them, psychotics build them, and social workers collect the rent.

Actually in this part of the country when someone builds, or participates in life, in something made of sand the wind and rain will render it useless in very short order. So "Made of Sand" to me is this love/relationship is not made of substance - but simply a dreamers wish. This song has always engendered in me a feeling of hoplessness - someone not having their life very well together and their relationship is worse because of it.

Steve

Subject: RE: Lyrics Req: Last Thing on my Mind
From: Deda
Date: 06 Jun 02 - 12:02 PM

I think you have to tie it to the previous line -- the lesson comes too late, and it's made of sand, i.e. it can never last. It suggests to me that we don't learn what we need to from love relationships -- or at least that the songwriter doesn't think he did in this instance. Part of the whole tenor of the song is along these lines: "I know the whole thing was my fault, I know I'm impossible -- please don't go, please don't go." I think it's very poignant, a beautiful song -- as Tom Paxton tends to turn out.

Subject: RE: Lyrics Req: Last Thing on my Mind
From: Genie
Date: 06 Jun 02 - 09:15 PM

Tiger, are you sure that's the order of the verses as Tom wrote them? PP&M leave out the subway verse but end with the "...lie in my bed in the morning..." verse. RUS has all 4 verses and also ends with that verse, but has the "...subway..." verse 3rd. I thought the correct order was
• "...lesson too late..."
• "...subway rumbling..."
• "...reasons aplenty..."
• "...lie in my bed..."

Any definitive answers? [Not that folks won't sing 'em in whatever order they darn well please, anyway, mind you...]

Genie

PS, re the "made of sand" allusion, I always connected it with sand castles and sand sculptures at the beach [ephemeral] or with the Biblical parable of the wise man building his house on the rock and the foolish man building his house on the sand [unstable, precarious].

Subject: RE: Lyrics Req: Last Thing on my Mind
From: raredance
Date: 06 Jun 02 - 09:44 PM

In "Ramblin' Boy and other songs by Tom Paxton" (1965 Oak Publications) The verse order is what Genie lists above.

rich r

Subject: RE: Lyrics Req: Last Thing on my Mind
From: Amos
Date: 06 Jun 02 - 09:51 PM

The lesson is made of sand, meaning of no substantive value here, because it was recognized too late by a dumb shmuck with a case of testosterosis who was too self involved to recognise what he had, what he might have had, what he was losing by not learning it, and so on and so forth... It isn't as though this is a new story, guys!!

A

Subject: RE: Lyrics Req: Last Thing on my Mind
From: Genie
Date: 07 Jun 02 - 04:14 AM

Ya wouldn't be sayin' that us'ns has been over-analyzing the metaphor, now, would ya, Amos?
§;- )

Subject: ADD Chords: Last Thing on my Mind
From: GUEST,frankyz
Date: 07 Jun 02 - 07:33 AM

This is what i got with chords, i hope this helps

Last Thing on My Mind
  by Tom Paxton
  
  4/4 time
  
  Verse 1:
         |A         |D           |A      |D
  It's a lesson too late for the learning,
          |A  |E        |A   |A
  made of sand, made of sand.
         |A         |D             |A     |D
  In the wink of an eye my soul is turning
          |A  |E        |A   |A
  In your hand, in your hand.
  
  Refrain:
          |E     |E          |D          |A
  Are you going away with no word of farewell,
             |A       |A           |E   |E
  Will there be not a trace left behind?
    |A                   |D               |A           |A
  I could have loved you better, I didn't mean to be unkind
  |D                     |D              |A           |A
  You know That was the last thing on my mind.
  
  Verse 2:
  You've got reasons aplenty for going.
  This I know, this I know.
  For the weeds have been steadily growing.
  Please don't go, please don't go.
  
  Repeat Refrain
  
  Verse 3:
  As I lie here in bed in the morning
  without you, without you.
  Every song in my breast dies a borning
  without you, without you.
  
  Repeat Refrain twice
  

Subject: RE: Lyrics Req: Last Thing on my Mind
From: GUEST,frankyz
Date: 07 Jun 02 - 07:34 AM

Sorry that didn`t come out the way it was supposed to, but it is easy to work out.

Subject: RE: Lyrics Req: Last Thing on my Mind
From: Mrrzy
Date: 07 Jun 02 - 09:24 AM

I've never heard the subway verse before. Does anybody sing that or is it only in the original?

Subject: RE: Lyrics Req: Last Thing on my Mind
From: Steve in Idaho
Date: 07 Jun 02 - 10:15 AM

Mrrzy - I've always sang it the way Genie has it down and the Subway verse included.

Steve

Subject: Lyr Req: 'The last thing on my mind'
From: retrancer
Date: 17 Feb 07 - 03:03 PM

unsure about everything except part of the chorus as follows

"I could have loved you better
Didnt mean to be unkind
you know that was the last thing on my mind.

chords appreciated as well - btw this site is fantastic!!!!!

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: 'The last thing on my mind'
From: dick greenhaus
Date: 17 Feb 07 - 03:10 PM

If you enter [last thing] --the square brackets mean that you're looking for a phrase, rather than two disconnected words] you'll see it.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: 'The last thing on my mind'
From: Seaking
Date: 17 Feb 07 - 03:18 PM

(G)It's a lesson too (C)late for the (G)learnin'
(C)Made of (G)sand, (D)made of 9G)Sand
In the wink of an (C)eye my soul is (G)turnin'
(C)In your hand, (D)in your hand.



[Cho:]
Are you (D)going away with no(C) word of (G)farewell?
Will there (C)be not a (G)trace left (D)behind?
Well, I (G)could have loved you (C)better,
Didn't (G)mean to be (Em)unkind.
You (G)know that was the (D)last thing on my (G)mind.

You've got reasons a-plenty for goin'.
This I know, this I know.
For the weeds have been steadily growin'.
Please don't go, please don't go.

[Cho:]

As we walk on, my thoughts are a-tumblin',
Round and round, round and round.
Underneath our feet the subways rumblin',
Underground, underground.

[Cho:]

As I lie in my bed in the mornin',
Without you, without you.
Every song in my breast dies a bornin',
Without you, without you.


Lyrics by Tom Paxton

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: 'The last thing on my mind'
From: Bernard
Date: 17 Feb 07 - 03:48 PM

9G sand, eh?

;o>

I've got a recording of Tom singing that live at the Newport Folk Festival around 1965...! He sounds so young...!

Arguably his best and best-known song...

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: 'The last thing on my mind'
From: Amergin
Date: 17 Feb 07 - 03:51 PM

I don't know, Bernard....that song of his bout the killer bunny rabbit attacking Jimmy Carter is quite poignant.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: 'The last thing on my mind'
From: Bernard
Date: 17 Feb 07 - 04:05 PM

And the Ballad of Wayne Bobbitt...!!

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: 'The last thing on my mind'
From: North/South Annie
Date: 17 Feb 07 - 06:26 PM

Hey Seaking you bet me to it. How're you doing anyway - PM me/see you at Miskin

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: 'The last thing on my mind'
From: retrancer
Date: 17 Feb 07 - 06:41 PM

awesome, thankyou!

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: 'The last thing on my mind'
From: catspaw49
Date: 17 Feb 07 - 10:36 PM

Actually, I'm pretty partial to............

I'M CHANGING MY NAME TO CHRYSLER
(Tom Paxton)

Oh the price of gas is rising out of sight,
And the dollar is in sorry shape tonight
What the dollar used to get us, now won't buy a head of lettuce
No the economic forecast isn't bright
But amidst the clouds I spot a shining ray,
I can even glimpse a new and better way
And I've devised a plan of action, worked it out to the last fraction
And I'm going into action here today

cho: I am changing my name to Chrysler, I am going down to Washington DC
I will tell some power broker what they did for Iacocca
Would be certainly acceptable to me
I am changing my name to Chrysler, I am headed for that great
receiving line
And when they hand a million grand out I'll be standing with my hand
out
Oh yes I'll get mine

When my creditors are screaming for their dough,
I'll me proud to tell them all where they can go
They won't have to scream and holler, they'll be paid to the last dollar
Where the endless streams of money seem to flow
I'll be glad to tell them all what they can do,
It's a matter of a simple form or two
It's not just renumeration, it's a liberal education,
Aren't you kind of glad that I'm in debt to you
cho:

Since the first amphibians crawled out of the slime
We've been struggling in unrelenting grime
We were hardly up and walking, when money started talking,
And it's sad that failure is an awful crime
Well it's been that way for a millenium or two
But now it seems there's a different point of view
If you're a corporate titanic, and your failure is gigantic,
Down in Congress there's a safety net for you
cho:

...................OR MAYBE........................

I THOUGHT YOU WERE AN ARAB
(Tom Paxton)

I thought you just got off of the plane
Desert sand still in your shoes
The sand was probably Virginia Beach
And you were from Newport News

I thought you were an Arab
Saw the desert in your eyes
I thought of asking for a job in Abu Dabi
'Til you sprang that big surprise.

You handed me the money
Just like an Arab does
So I thought you were an Arab
And all the time you were the fuzz.

I thought you were an Arab
Desert Caliph or a sheik
I thought I'd be your friend in Congress
You'd be grateful, what a terrible mistake.

You handed me the money
And that was all I saw
So I thought you were an Arab
And all the time you were the law.

Abdul was kinda obvious
Now that I kinda think it through
The way you spoke American without an accent
Sure reflected well on you.

When you handed me the briefcase full of cash
I accepted with a wink.
You can catch it on the evening news you rat
Now I'm headed for the clink.

I thought you were an Arab
When you were really apple pie
You had a little shopping list of Congressman
And prominent upon the list was I.

I smiled for the camera
I couldn't see it from my seat
So I thought you were an Arab
And all the time you were the heat.

You were Lawrence of the FBI
You really played it to the hilt
There'll be no mercy back in Jersey
When you tell 'em how the fatal milk was spilt.

I thought you were Kings of the fabled East
All you really were was bums
I got caught with hand in the cookie jar
Now my hand is full of crumbs.

Spaw

Subject: DT Corr: Last Thing on My Mind (Tom Paxton)
From: Joe Offer
Date: 31 Jan 11 - 01:54 AM

The version in the Digital Tradition is what I would call discombobulated. The verses are in a strange order and dying songs are lying, and the "as we walk on" verse doesn't really make sense. The post above from Ralph Butts appears to have been taken from the DT somehow. It has many of the same mistakes, but it's not an exact copy.

Here's my corrected transcription:

THE LAST THING ON MY MIND
(Tom Paxton)

It's a lesson too late for the learning,
Made of sand, made of sand.
In the wink of an eye my soul is turning,
In your hand, in your hand.

CHORUS
Are you going away with no word of farewell?
Will there be not a trace left behind?
Well, I could have loved you better,
Didn't mean to be unkind,
You know that was the last thing on my mind.

As we walk, all my thoughts are a-tumblin',
'Round and 'round, 'round and 'round.
Underneath our feet the subway's rumblin',
Underground, underground.

CHORUS

You've got reasons aplenty for goin',
This I know, this I know.
For the weeds have been steadily growin',
Please don't go, please don't go.

CHORUS

As I lie in my bed in the morning,
Without you, without you.
Each song in my breast dies a-borning,
Without you, without you.

CHORUS


Source: Ramblin Boy and other songs by Tom Paxton, Oak Publications, 1965.

The "as we walk" verse does not appear on any of the Paxton recordings I listened to.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Last Thing on My Mind (Tom Paxton)
From: Genie
Date: 03 Feb 11 - 02:43 PM

Note that an important error in the version posted at the beginning of this thread has been corrected in Joe's last post.

"Each song" in the singer's breast DIES a-borning (not "lies"). Big difference.

That's a correction that needs to be made in the DT.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Last Thing on My Mind (Tom Paxton)
From: Tootler
Date: 03 Feb 11 - 08:03 PM

The song was first recorded on the "Ramblin Boy" Album and only contained three verses:

1) It's a lesson too late for the learning
2) You've got reasons a-plenty for going
3) As I lie in my bed in the morning

Joe's transcription above is as he sang it on that album. I am now on my third copy of the album. The first one I wore out (literally), the second one my brother borrowed and took it to sea with him and he either lost it or it was stolen (I think the latter, but it was many years ago). I found my present copy relatively recently released as a CD together with "Ain't that news". Still one of my favourite albums after all these years.

I believe the "As we walk, my thoughts are a-tumbling" verse was written later. I did once see something about the addition of the fourth verse but I can't remember what it was.

When I last went to see him a couple of tours back, he sang a parody which he had heard on an earlier tour over here.

I met this girl in a folk club
Like you do, Like you do
I bought her a drink and we chatted
Wouldn't you, wouldn't you?

And after the show she took me back to her flat
As she said we were two of a kind
And she played me every record Tom Paxton ever made
And that was the last thing on my mind!

He also told a story about his daughter. When she was at St Andrews University someone sang the song at the University folk club one night. She told the singer afterwards that her father had written it and the singer insisted that it was traditional Scottish. When she told him who her father was, his response was something like "Hmmm! Well maybe he did"