Tom Paxton - Johnny Got A Gun Lyrics






Johnny's mum and dad both worked long hours
And they worked on the weekends too
Johnny was eleven, but they had no notion
Of what Johnny was going through
Johnny got pushed and Johnny got robbed
And it made him feel chicken to run
Big kids picked on Johnny every day
Till Johnny went and got him a gun
Johnny got a gun; he didn't bring it home
He covered it with rags and dirt
On his way to school he looked both ways
Then he hid it under his shirt
Johnny was afraid of going to school
There was always trouble in the halls
Fights in the boys' room, guns in the lockers
Little kids bouncing off the walls
Johnny was afraid of dying young
Everybody he knew had guns
So Johnny got a gun
And every little thing looked cool
First time Johnny flashed his gun
Everybody backed off fast
Everybody treated him differently, then
Johnny felt safe at last
Johnny had a gun and everybody knew
A everybody left him alone
Till he bumped a kid who was coming down the stairs
And the kid had a gun of his own
Kid pushed Johnny; Johnny went down
And the kid had something to say
Pulled his gun; Johnny shot first
And he blew the other kid away
The police came and they took away the gun
Said he wouldn't need a gun any more
Took him to the station, sat him in a chair
And his feet didn't reach the floor
Johnny was afraid of dying young
Everybody he knew had a gun
So Johnny got a gun
And every little thing looked cool
Johnny had a hearing plead self-defence
Prosecutor said, “No way”
Judge said, “You're eleven, but you kill like a man
And it's gonna be a long, long stay”
Johnny's mum and dad still work long hours
And knock on the unit door
They sit with Johnny in the visitor's room
And his feet don't reach the floor
Johnny was afraid of dying young
Everybody he knew had a gun
So Johnny got a gun
And every little thing looked cool
And his feet don't reach the floor





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Tom Paxton Johnny Got A Gun Comments
  1. J.... F....

    Thanks for posting - I’d not heard this one. He is an amazingly timeless singer songwriter .. this is still relevant in 2019, though it’s mostly knives in UK :’(

  2. d.... s....

    This song is unbelievably beautiful

  3. P.... C....

    Johnny's mum and dad both worked long hours, 
    They worked on the weekends too.
    Johnny was eleven, but they had no notion 
    Of what Johnny was going through.
    Johnny got pushed and Johnny got robbed 
    And it made him feel chicken to run.
    Big kids picked on Johnny every day, 
    Till Johnny went and got him a gun.

    Johnny got a gun, he didn't bring it home; 
    He covered it with rags and dirt.
    On his way to school he looked both ways, 
    Then he hid it under his shirt.
    Johnny was afraid of going to school;
    There was always trouble in the halls.
    Fights in the boys' room, guns in the lockers, 
    And little kids bouncing off the walls.

    [Cho:]
    Johnny was afraid of dying young;
    Everybody he knew had a gun.
    So Johnny got a gun, 
    And every little thing looked cool.

    First time Johnny flashed his gun,
    Everybody backed off fast.
    Everybody treated him differently, then. 
    Johnny felt safe at last.
    Johnny had a gun and everybody knew.
    Everybody left him alone.
    Till he bumped a kid who was coming down the stairs, 
    And the kid had a gun of his own.

    The kid pushed Johnny, Johnny went down,
    And the kid had something to say.
    Pulled his gun; Johnny shot first,
    And he blew the other kid away.
    The police came and they took away the gun;
    Said he wouldn't need a gun any more.
    Took him to the station, sat him in a chair,
    And his feet didn't reach the floor.

    [Cho:]

    Johnny had a hearing plead self defence, 
    Prosecutor said, "No way."
    Judge said "you're eleven, but you're killing like a man, 
    And it's gonna be a long, long stay."
    Johnny's mum and dad still work long hours, 
    And knock on the unit door.
    Sit with Johnny in the visitor's room, 
    And his feet don't reach the floor.

    [Cho:]
    Johnny was afraid of dying young,
    Everybody he knew had a gun.
    So Johnny got a gun,
    And every little thing looked cool.
    And his feet don't reach the floor.

    P.... C....

    Thank you for the lyrics!

    P.... C....

    Thanks for the lyrics!

  4. j.... w....

    dont take your guns to town take them to the city

  5. A.... L....

    Teacher: what did you guys bring to show and tell today?

    Johnny: You'll find out :)

  6. Z.... R....

    On this picture he looks like clayne crawford

  7. R.... P....

    Where can I buy this song

    R.... P....

    Rachel Perkins one of the comments says it is on Tom’s 1994 Album “Wearing the Time”

  8. K.... M....

    Gun ownership is not the issue. Misuse of tools, and people unable to properly handle their emotions are the problem. People who disparage their peers and who misguidedly hate themselves and lash out in retaliation are the problem.

    I was bullied for years in school as a result of my physical disability. I always blamed the bully, I never blamed myself, nor did I ever get the urge to massacre entire classrooms for the ignorance of a select few. This generation, regretfully MY generation, is rife with uneducated and sanctimonious people. Legislation changes nothing. If it's not gunfire, it's going to be something else that draws blood.

    My bullies later saw their lives go to hell in a handbasket. Karma is a real bitch.

  9. T.... G....

    Johnny Got his gun is also a famous anti war book from WW1 by Dalton Trumbo where the narrator describes waking up in a war hospital without an intact face or arms and legs

    T.... G....

    i was wondering wether there was a connection between the two

  10. S.... P....

    Johnny's mum and dad both worked long hours,
    They worked on the weekends too.
    Johnny was eleven, but they had no notion
    Of what Johnny was going through.
    Johnny got pushed and Johnny got robbed
    And it made him feel chicken to run.
    Big kids picked on Johnny every day,
    Till Johnny went and got him a gun.

    Johnny got a gun, he didn't bring it home;
    He covered it with rags and dirt.
    On his way to school he looked both ways,
    Then he hid it under his shirt.
    Johnny was afraid of going to school;
    There was always trouble in the halls.
    Fights in the boys' room, guns in the lockers,
    And little kids bouncing off the walls.

    [Cho:]
    Johnny was afraid of dying young;
    Everybody he knew had a gun.
    So Johnny got a gun,
    And every little thing looked cool.

    First time Johnny flashed his gun,
    Everybody backed off fast.
    Everybody treated him differently, then.
    Johnny felt safe at last.
    Johnny had a gun and everybody knew.
    Everybody left him alone.
    Till he bumped a kid who was coming down the stairs,
    And the kid had a gun of his own.

    The kid pushed Johnny, Johnny went down,
    And the kid had something to say.
    Pulled his gun; Johnny shot first,
    And he blew the other kid away.
    The police came and they took away the gun;
    Said he wouldn't need a gun any more.
    Took him to the station, sat him in a chair,
    And his feet didn't reach the floor.

    [Cho:]

    Johnny had a hearing plead self defence,
    Prosecutor said, "No way."
    Judge said "you're eleven, but you're killing like a man,
    And it's gonna be a long, long stay."
    Johnny's mum and dad still work long hours,
    And knock on the unit door.
    Sit with Johnny in the visitor's room,
    And his feet don't reach the floor.

    [Cho:]
    Johnny was afraid of dying young,
    Everybody he knew had a gun.
    So Johnny got a gun,
    And every little thing looked cool.
    And his feet don't reach the flo

  11. P.... ....

    very good song!

  12. D.... P....

    Whoa, how timely relevant.

    D.... P....

    Any American who is a decent honorable person, willing register as a gun owner, free of malice, mental problems, serious antisocial issues and not on a terrorists list should be able to buy and own hunting guns and home protection arms like hand guns or rifles. I have no problem with that all. I do have a problem with the military style weapons designed for only one thing massive and lethal killing. They are not hunting guns or home protection guns, they are and were designed as killing machines on a very large scale. I actually have been thinking of applying for a gun registration and getting trained in firearms. We live in chaotic times. Be well.

    D.... P....

    Dano Pierce thanks for taking the time to reply, I agree with you completely.

    D.... P....

    Gun ownership is not the issue. Misuse of tools, and people unable to properly handle their emotions are the problem. People who disparage their peers and who misguidedly hate themselves and lash out in retaliation are the problem.

    I was bullied for years in school as a result of my physical disability. I always blamed the bully, I never blamed myself, nor did I ever get the urge to massacre entire classrooms for the ignorance of a select few. This generation, regretfully MY generation, is rife with uneducated and sanctimonious people.

    My bullies later saw their lives go to hell in a handbasket. Karma is a real bitch.

    D.... P....

    I so agree with you especially whit eh line "MY generation, is rife with uneducated and sanctimonious
    people." I was also bullied horribly is JH & HS and I don't remember anyone trying to stop it or address its. It was so public the bullying and harassment. Did not teachers, peers or other school staff see this? I was different, not good in sports, a foster kid being moved around and in different schools. I never even thought of killing anyone except myself and twice tried by thankfully failed at that. I am at a loss today as I see that bullying is so fashionable and bigotry so prevalent. Kids are bombarded with violence in games and media. The4y now see it as the way to deal with life. I was a teacher for 21.7 years and I saw how kids were changing. and affected by violence and the media.

    D.... P....

    Wow some of the people in this thread are very uneducated. I'll leave it up to you guys to decide for yourselves if I'm talking about you or not.

  13. S.... S....

    Well done America

  14. H.... S....

    dum ass

  15. k.... ....

    So basically the moral of the story is Johnny shouldn't have had a gun because if he didn't the other guy who pulled a gun on Johnny would just have murdered Johnny. I think this song says more on his view of the criminal justice system.

    k.... ....

    Maybe the moral is that the war on users of the 'wrong' drugs has been empowering violent people and violent culture for generations.

    k.... ....

    And making inner city schools unsafe and disorderly places to learn for generations.

    k.... ....

    But >both< kids are Johnny, really...

    k.... ....

    I think that's Tom's point here.. "Johnny" used his gun only in defense..yet still killed sooner or later.

  16. a.... w....

    Deep song and sad too.

  17. V.... P....

    I'm curious whether Janie's Got a Gun was written with awareness with this one

    V.... P....

    Janies got a gun was written about a girl with an abusive father.

    V.... P....

    I believe the girl's abusive father gave her a gun of her own. They lived across from a school which she shot up and murdered children decades before Columbine occurred. Her reasoning was, "because she was bored."

    V.... P....

    +Edie Barry I don't like Mondays by the boomtown rats.

    V.... P....

    @Ed Andres
    I knew there was a song out there about that incident. Even if they were alive at the time, most people don't recall that school shooting and I know about it now only because I read about it within the last ten years. The case wasn't much covered by the press as were UT, Columbine and the others. That's right – the girl's reasoning was, “because she didn't like Mondays.” Yep, that's the kind of girl that needed a gun... thanks Dad. Thanks for reminding me Ed. 🔫🙇 😮

  18. T.... K....

    My name is johnny and i like to kill people

    T.... K....

    +TheShady Knight Video games don't count.

    T.... K....

    My name is Johnny; Johnny Pissoff.... Ed Sanders and the Fugs

  19. N.... B....

    Tom still turns them out

  20. K.... V....

    and the shit still rolls on  so sad

  21. T.... M....

    Does Johnny hang himself at the end?  :'(

    T.... M....

    "His feet don't reach the floor" because he's just a kid with short legs.  At least I think that's what Tom Paxton meant
    .He does get a long stint in prison.

    T.... M....

    He is sitting in a chair and because he is young and short his feet don't touch the ground.

    T.... M....

    @Jack Lawson listen to the very end again. He's not in the chair at that point I don't believe.

    T.... M....

    +Tia Weist
    Johnny had a hearing plead self defence, 
    Prosecutor said, "No way."
    Judge said "you're eleven, but you're killing like a man, 
    And it's gonna be a long, long stay."
    Johnny's mum and dad still work long hours, 
    And knock on the unit door.
    Sit with Johnny in the visitor's room, 
    And his feet don't reach the floor.
    Johnny was afraid of dying young,
    Everybody he knew had a gun.
    So Johnny got a gun,
    And every little thing looked cool.
    And his feet don't reach the floor.
    Would make sense in the song but.. Don't think he hung himself, or at least I don't see the clues you mean in here...

    T.... M....

    It could be interpreted that way.

  22. m.... ....

    Ok, so we know what the problem is, let's sing about a solution. And don't be stupid and say outlaw guns, that's not an option...

    m.... ....

    I didn't, I checked 

    m.... ....

    Sorry you need to look more closely at the origins of the 2nd. It dates from a time when the biggest enemy you faced was us the Brits. It was the British Government in the form of the King that was the biggest threat, that's why you had a War of Independence.

    m.... ....

    The 2nd was meant for any tyrannical government. So, before you ignorant anti gunners spew any more shit about not needing it, read up on the Battle of Athens, 1946. This was the very reason for the 2nd. Not just the British. Certainly not hunting or sport shooting. So sick of uneducated fools trying to talk about something they don't have the slightest clue about.

    m.... ....

    no, it's not

    m.... ....

    Create a new culture whole cloth, one that actually respects human life.

  23. C.... L....

    S...O....S......... help me

  24. D.... R....

    This was on the 1994 album "Wearing the Time", though it was written and performed much earlier. Not sure if there's an earlier recording.

  25. D.... M....

    2 Months later..

  26. s.... ....

    yes, panarchist specifically.

  27. a.... ....

    Is this coming from a libertarian?

    a.... ....

    you got the first 5 letters right

    a.... ....

    not likely by a libertarian, it makes too much sense

    a.... ....

    @Robert Walker and to think they are our brightest.

    The world's doomed.

  28. s.... ....

    This song should be an indictment against public schools, not guns.

    s.... ....

    superhoga This is your brain on burgers

  29. J.... ....

    thanks so much for this. cannot think of a song he ever wrote which isn't great hearing now. we memorized his songs back in high school I remember..

  30. a.... ....

    What album is this from?

  31. s.... ....

    Sounds like Fire on High by ELO.

  32. P.... L....

    I had not heard this one before - very good. Thanks for posting.

  33. E.... ....

    More Tom please