John McCutcheon and Tom Paxton have been pals for decades, but it was COVID and Zoom that turned them into a songwriting team. Now a hundred songs later, they have gathered fourteen for their first joint recording, the aptly titled Together.

What happens when two of folk music’s most beloved and prolific songwriters join forces? Songs about history, the news, baseball, cowboys, America, love, the remembered, the forgotten, and more all come to the musical fore.

Gathering John’s familiar crew of supporting musicians (fiddle wizard Stuart Duncan, keyboardist Jon Carroll, bass player JT Brown, as well as special guest, Country Music Hall of Famer Charlie McCoy), the arrangements are compelling, the production pristine, and the performance stunning.

In his own words: “Tom Paxton and I started writing together early on during the pandemic and, with seemingly endless time on our hands, we tackled all manner of subjects and ideas. This one started out as a pretty standard love song. But, often, along the way, one of us will say, ‘Wait a minute, what if this turned left instead of right?,’ and we’ll bravely go down that blind alley. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. Tom was particularly enamored of the way the ending comes out of left field to the listener, a real surprise. He breaks into a big grin every time the end of verse three rolls around. One of the great joys of songwriting teamwork is to see your partner so delighted with the final result. Doesn’t get any better…” – John McCutcheon

1. Ukrainian Now
2. This Campfire
3. Do the Work
4. Invisible Man
5. Same Old Crap
6. In America
7. Letters from Joe
8. The Fan
9. Complete
10. Everything
11. Life Before You
12. Christmas in the Desert
13. Prairie Star
14. Together

The album opens on the impassioned Ukrainian Now and the gently countrified This Campfire and they are followed by a cool jazzy underbelly within Do the Work, the durable Invisible Man, and then come the jocular Same Old Crap, the heartwarming immigrant story within In America and then Paxton goes acoustic for his touching Letters from Joe.

Along next is the more diligently sculpted The Fan and the artistically hued Complete and they are in turn seamlessly backed by the embracing Everything, the Celtic-hued Life Before You, the seasonal tale of Christmas in the Desert, before rounding out on the indulgent Prairie Star, coming to a close on the heartfelt, impassioned finale Together.

From inauspicious beginnings, John McCutcheon has emerged as one of our most respected and loved folksingers. As an instrumentalist, he is a master of a dozen different traditional instruments, most notably the rare and beautiful hammer dulcimer. His songwriting has been hailed by critics and singers around the globe. His thirty recordings have garnered every imaginable honor including seven Grammy nominations.

With producing, instructional writing and grassroots political activism to his credit, John feels most comfortable in live performance. People of every generation and background seem to feel at home in a concert hall when John McCutcheon takes the stage. Whether in print, on record, or on stage, few people communicate with the versatility, charm, wit or pure talent of John McCutcheon.

Tom Paxton has become a voice of his generation, addressing issues of injustice and inhumanity, laying bare the absurdities of modern culture and celebrating the tenderest bonds of family, friends, and community. Paxton has been an integral part of the songwriting and folk music community since the early 60’s Greenwich Village scene, and continues to be a primary influence on today’s “New Folk” performers.

His place in folk music is secured not just by hit records and awards, but by the admiration of three generations of fellow musicians. An internationally recognized and loved cultural figure, he has always chosen goodwill over commercial success.

Tom Paxton & John McCutcheon - Life Before You [Official Music Video]

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