Subject: Tom Paxton's lyrics From: GUEST,honest frankie Date: 13 Aug 06 - 10:49 PM Hello all, I found the lyrics online to tom Paxton's classic song "Last thing on My Mind" (the original -not the parody) and came across the line "in my mind each song line a'borning. Is a'borning even a word? |
Subject: RE: Tom Paxton's lyrics From: Sorcha Date: 13 Aug 06 - 10:55 PM It's a rather standard contraction. |
Subject: RE: Tom Paxton's lyrics From: Peace Date: 13 Aug 06 - 10:55 PM "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." In the context of the song the meaning is clear. Was it a word? Probably not. Is it now? You bet. |
Subject: RE: Tom Paxton's lyrics From: Peace Date: 13 Aug 06 - 11:11 PM a·born·ing (-bôrnng) adv. While coming into being or being created: "Our own revolutionary war almost died aborning through lack of popular support" William Randolph Hearst, Jr. adj. Coming into being or being created. I sit corrected by the on-line dictionary. (The shame of it all . . . .) |
Subject: RE: Tom Paxton's lyrics - dies a-bornin' From: Little Hawk Date: 14 Aug 06 - 01:57 AM A nice song. I got fed up with it after I heard it done for about the 587,000th time by the 536,000th performer. That can happen with some songs, unfortunately. |
Subject: RE: Tom Paxton's lyrics - dies a-bornin' From: Big Al Whittle Date: 14 Aug 06 - 02:26 AM True enough, but two salient points:- 1) Many acoustic musicians have paid for the weeks groceries by playing that song, so many of us owe Tom Paxton one for that. 2) Even if Adolf Hitler had been the only one to use the words "a-bornin' " - I'd still say, he's TOM "----ING" PAXTON - don't criticise, watch and learn. |
Subject: RE: Tom Paxton's lyrics - dies a-bornin' From: GUEST,Tunesmith Date: 14 Aug 06 - 03:21 AM I always wondered about that word. I've certainly never heard it outside the lyrics of that song. |
Subject: RE: Tom Paxton's lyrics - dies a-bornin' From: Strollin' Johnny Date: 14 Aug 06 - 07:49 AM But even if you've never heard it before, even if Tom had invented it himself, when you hear it for the first time it sounds so right, and you immediately know exactly what it means. Marvellous bit of wordsmithery! S:0) |
Subject: RE: Tom Paxton's lyrics - dies a-bornin' From: GUEST,honestfrankie Date: 14 Aug 06 - 09:44 AM Hello, Well that was interesting. I've actually found three or four prior uses of the word and have an idea aborning that I may have to use this word in a new song. |
Subject: RE: Tom Paxton's lyrics - dies a-bornin' From: GUEST,Russ Date: 14 Aug 06 - 10:02 AM Tom wrote the song a long time ago. He and his generation (including me) are literate in an old-fashioned sort of way. At that time and in that place, "a-borning" would not have been particularly obscure. I knew what he meant and assumed everybody else singing along knew too. |
Subject: RE: Tom Paxton's lyrics - dies a-bornin' From: Jim Dixon Date: 17 Aug 06 - 10:44 PM Google Book Search gives 1790 hits on "aborning". |
Subject: RE: Tom Paxton's lyrics - dies a-bornin' From: Whistler7 Date: 18 Aug 06 - 01:30 AM Forms like a-bornin' were common usage in older "rustic" forms of English. Lots of traditional songs use them. Lines like "We'll go no more a-roving" and "Three maids a-milking" abound. Even though Tom Paxton's song also has modern references like "Underneath my feet the subway rumbling," the old usage of a-bornin' gives it a nice traditional feel, no? |
Subject: RE: Tom Paxton's lyrics - dies a-bornin' From: open mike Date: 18 Aug 06 - 02:37 AM even if not -- poetic license give tom the permit to mold words to say to us what he will...and bless his heart for saying what he says! |
Subject: RE: Tom Paxton's lyrics - dies a-bornin' From: kendall Date: 18 Aug 06 - 07:04 AM Robert Burns and Shakespere both made up words. Poetic license. |
Subject: RE: Tom Paxton's lyrics - dies a-bornin' From: Stilly River Sage Date: 18 Aug 06 - 10:50 AM Open Mike and Kendall beat me to it. Poetic license is a wonderful thing. SRS |
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