I have so many songs running through my head right now! Mostly country songs, but a few popular songs as well. By the way, looking back at some old episodes of AMW on YouTube, I noticed that there was a segment about the 1998 murder of David Schullman in Nashville. Willie Nelson, Tanya Tucker and Loretta Lynn were all interviewed about the murder of their friend. I think that the killers were caught in 2001, but I wonder if John Walsh ever mentioned that the case was finally resolved?
1)
I Fought the Law (1960) - Written by a frequent collaborator with Buddy Holly, the song was first performed by Buddy Holly and the Crickets. The song was covered six years later by The Bobby Fuller Four. Whenever I hear this song on the radio, I may not remember the lyrics very well, but I
always remember the chorus:
“I fought the law and the law won.” 
2)
Poncho and Lefty (1972) - Written by American country music singer/songwriter, Townes Van Zandt, this song was allegedly inspired by the exploits of the Mexican revolutionary, Pancho Villa, and became one of Van Zandt’s most well-known songs. Although several other country artists have covered
Pancho and Lefty since then, it topped
Billboard’s country charts in 1983 when Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard included the song on their duet album. I don’t usually feel much sympathy for criminals, but sometimes I
do catch myself feeling bad for their circumstances.
3)
The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia (1972) - Although Bobby Russell wrote the lyrics and composed the music, he was initially reluctant to record a demo himself because he just wasn’t comfortable with it. Because music producers and publishers couldn’t really classify the song’s genre either, they had some difficulty marketing the song. Liza Minnelli and Cher were considered to record the song; but Cher’s then-husband and manager Sonny Bono reportedly refused it, concerned that the lyrics might offend Cher’s Southern fans. I have to admit:
“Don’t trust your soul to no backwoods Southern lawyer, ‘cause the judge in the town has blood stains on his hands.” does sound just a tad scandalous.
Russell’s then-wife Vicki Lawrence - yes,
that Vicki Lawrence - thought the song had potential; so she recorded the song herself and performed it after she became a regular cast member of
The Carol Burnett Show. On the final episode of the show’s sixth season - March 24, 1973 - Ms. Burnett actually surprised Ms. Lawrence by presenting her with an
RIAA gold record in recognition of the song having sold more than a million copies. I had
no idea that Ms. Lawrence was such a versatile performer!
Despite the initial wariness of recording and marketing the song, it still garnered quite a bit of crossover appeal on the music charts. It peaked at No. 6 on the Easy Listening chart, and peaked at No. 36 on
Billboard’s Hot Country Singles chart, and spent two weeks at No. 1 on the
Billboard’s Hot 100 chart. As a matter of fact,
Billboard ranked
The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia as the No. 11 song for 1973.
The song has also been covered by country music artists Tanya Tucker and Reba McEntire as well. Ms. Tucker’s version - featuring different lyrics and an alternate timeline - was included on the soundtrack of the 1981 movie, ‘The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia’. I have only heard Reba McEntire’s cover of
The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia. The music video for this song came out in 1991, and I listened to it all the time.
4)
I Shot the Sheriff (1973) - Bob Marley wrote the song and performed it with his band, The Wailers. Allegedly, Marley had initially wanted to say:
“I shot the police”. He decided to change the lyrics to
“I shot the sheriff” instead, because he was concerned that the government might take issue with his portrayal of a governmental agency.
The lyrics: “
I shot the sheriff, but I did not shoot the deputy” sound to me like the narrator of the song has been arrested with someone, but that he’s giving a conflicting account of the incident. The song was also covered in 1974 by Eric Clapton.
I Shot the Sheriff certainly is a great song, but looking back over my list, I seem to like a lot of songs that advocate for vigilante justice! 😂
5)
Bohemian Rhapsody (1975) - Freddie Mercury wrote this song and performed it with his band, Queen. To be honest, I don’t think that I have ever listened to the entire song. In my opinion, at six minutes long, this isn’t just a song, it’s an epic! Allegedly, Mercury consolidated three separate songs that he was writing at the time, and played the resulting version for his bandmates.
The lyrics:
“Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy? Caught in a landslide, no escape from reality” are really powerful. I can’t tell whether the narrator is suffering from some sort of mental disorder; has witnessed something traumatic or if he’s actually committed some terrible crime that he felt he had to go on the run for.
6)
Don’t Lose my Number (1985) - Written by a frequent collaborator with Phil Collins, Collins first recorded the song and included it on his album ‘No Jacket Required’. The song is about a troubled young man named Billy, who has seemingly disappeared after either witnessing or participating in something highly illicit or illegal. The narrator hopes that even if Billy has fled or gone into hiding, he will still find a way to contact the narrator for help. Whether this is a song that advocates for the aiding and abetting of fugitives, I don’t know, but I think this song is more about protecting a potential witness for trial.
7)
Janie’s Got a Gun (1989) - Steven Tyler and Tom Hamilton - from the American rock band, Aerosmith - wrote this song together. It describes how a young woman plans to get revenge for childhood abuse. Tyler had read a
Time Magazine article and
then
watched a
48 Hours episode about the rise of gun violence and parental child abuse in America. He also recalled many of the personal stories he had heard about during his time in rehab.
These were all topics that Tyler found so frightening, that he felt that he needed to sing about them. I think that the music video for this song is really thought-provoking. I have always thought that the desire for revenge was relatively fleeting; and never quite as satisfying as one might think. Having said that, I definitely think that sexual predators and other types of criminals deserve to be punished for what they do!
8)
Ol’ Red (1990) - This song was first recorded by country music singer George Jones. Kenny Rogers covered it three years later, and Blake Shelton recorded his own version in 2001. I first heard Shelton’s version.
The narrator of the song is an inmate at a prison farm in southern Georgia. He is serving a sentence of 99 years for a crime of passion; committed after he discovered his wife having an affair with another man. Presumably, this discovery led to the murder of either one or both of them.
After some period of time, the narrator begins to formulate a daring escape plan. It involves a sympathetic prison guard; the narrator’s cousin; and Ol’ Red, the prison warden’s prized bloodhound. This is certainly a memorable song. Listening to it, I couldn’t help but feel sympathy for the narrator and almost wish that he would be able to escape from prison. 😂
9)
The Thunder Rolls (1991) - Co-written by country music artist Garth Brooks, this song was originally pitched to Tanya Tucker. Ms. Tucker was unable to record it, so the song was subsequently shelved for approximately four years - until Brooks recorded it himself in 1995. The song describes how a husband and wife each deal with the husband’s suspicious or philanderous behavior. Late one night, the couple’s marital issues escalate towards a thunderous resolution.
As I think I’ve said before, while the majority of the songs on this list seem to advocate for vigilante justice; I absolutely don’t support this particular form of justice. Although the thought of punishing someone who has wronged me is certainly satisfying in one sense; I honestly don’t think that I could do anything that would ultimately hamper my life in any way.
10)
Runaway Train (1993) - Written by Dave Pirner - the lead singer of the American alternative rock band, Soul Asylum - during a time when Pirner was going through a period of personal turmoil. I enjoyed watching the music video for this song. The American version of this video featured a number of different fictional characters - all of whom were traumatized by something. Interspersed with the fictional storyline, were pictures of real missing people - mostly children from different areas of America. Approximately 26 children from the video were eventually located.
11)
My Blue Angel (1993) - I don’t suppose that this song is specifically about crime or criminals, but the music video by Aaron Tippin portrays undercover police officers conducting a criminal sting operation.
12)
Beer For my Horses (2002) - Written by a frequent collaborator with Toby Keith, this song was recorded by Keith and Willie Nelson. While the song expresses frustration with an ineffectual justice system’s inability to address crimes such as theft, abuse, and
“gangsters doing dirty deeds”,
it portrays law enforcement in a very positive way.
