Songs of wrongful convictions are as old as country music, including Vernon Dalhart's The Prisoner's Song (1925) and Jimmie Rodgers's I'm Free from the Chain Gang Now (1933). The most famous early prison song is no doubt The Midnight Special, first recorded in 1934 by Huddie Ledbetter. Contrary to Alan Lomax, Lead Belly did not write the song; there are other versions in recordings dating back to the 1920s. The prisoner in The Midnight Special may not technically have been wrongly convicted, but a prison sentence ("Sugarland bound") for a "squabble" was certainly a miscarriage of justice for a Black man in Texas or Louisiana (Lead Belly did time in each state).
It seems that (somewhat) remorseful songs of deserved imprisonment are more recent, probably spurred by the outlaw image occasionally embraced by stars such as Merle Haggard and Johnny Cash. (Don't miss some Byrds in the 8th clip, and a special guest appearance at the bottom of the post.)
Interesting spoken intro, without the iconic guitar riff:
Here is the version the Byrds didn't perform -- much to MC Tompall Glazer's surprise -- in their one and only appearance at the Grand Ole Opry, when Gram Parsons insisted on singing "Hickory Wind" instead (more on that in a post next summer):
Nice selection to which I'd add these:
Haggard, "Sing Me Back Home"
https://youtu.be/5PEwBdCeINg
Cash & Mitchell "Long Black Veil"
https://youtu.be/VDsclKHb7Lo
Dylan, "Hurricane"
https://youtu.be/bpZvg_FjL3Q
McCann "Grace"
https://youtu.be/-w9MzFig9vs
Corries Loch Lomond
https://youtu.be/GXGVFJqSqqg
Posted by: Jake Marsh | December 31, 2022 at 02:51 PM
^^^^^^
Posted by: Hurricane | December 31, 2022 at 07:37 PM
A handful off the top of my head...innocent or arguably innocent:
Over the Hills and Far Away - Gary Moore
Jailbreak - AC/DC
Red Sector A - Rush
Eyes of a Stranger - Queensrÿche
Posted by: Red State Kulander | December 31, 2022 at 10:11 PM