So far my courthouse experience has been a tremendously fascinating bore (yes, it's possible). So to amuse myself, as I often do, I have created a playlist to make jury duty just a little bit more festive. I will leave out some of the songs just because I'm slightly embarassed that they exist on my iPod, let alone purposefully selected them to listen to whilst traveling to, from, or killing time in between sessions. Some are right on the nose, others are more metaphorical, and some just fit the mood of being trapped in a room with complete strangers who only have in common a random civic obligation.
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| Yep. Hot. |
1. "Prison Bound" by Social Distortion
The namesake of the compilation. Mike Ness makes prison almost sound sexy. Which from what I understand, it most certainly is not.
2. "Police on My Back" by The Clash
This always makes me think of 80s youth causing
mayhem and frolicking through the streets of London, being chased by
ineffectual British Bobbies.
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| This is what happens when you google "British Bobbies." Doesn't exactly inspire fear of authority. Just giggles. |
3. "Policy of Truth" by Depeche Mode
We discussed at length whether witnesses can be
trusted to tell the truth or not. The result of that debate was that we would
hope so, but people lie all the time. Whether lying under oath on penalty of
perjury, or lying to themselves about what they want to have seen. Truth is so
subjective, it's scary.
4. "Two Points for Honesty" by Guster
Along those same lines, I have to respect a witness
admits something that portrays themselves in a less than positive light. This
song also keeps popping up randomly on my shuffle and I always forget how
pretty it is.
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| Oh Kingston Trio. With your sweet harmonies and matching shirts. |
5. In the Jailhouse Now by The Kingston Trio
My dad used to listen to this old school folk group
all the time when I was growing up. It’s also on the O Brother Where Art Thou
soundtrack, but there’s far too much yodeling in that one.
6. "Criminal" by Fiona Apple
So. Messed. Up. And yet so good. I'm not a Fiona
Apple fan, (I just want to slap her in the face with a two-foot hoagie of
pretentiousness) but you can deny how brilliant this song is. It's also hot in
a confusing and wrong way.
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| Epic. |
7. Folsom Prison Blues by Johnny Cash
You knew this was coming. Johnny Cash also makes prison sound awesome.
8. "My Bad Reputation" by Joan Jett
Yes, this song is way over-played, even to this
day. But whatever, it kicks ass.
9. "My Bloody Valentine" by Good
Charlotte
Just a tad embarrassing, but Goof Charlotte was my
jam junior and senior year of high school. So earnest yet disturbing. I remember singing this at the top of my lungs while driving Stan home. RIP Stan.
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| Florence is just so damn ethereal. I'm not entirely convinced she's human. |
10. "My Boy Builds Coffins" by Florence
and the Machine
Every so often I will hear a song from Flo that I
never noticed before and it never fails to change my life. Ok, total
exaggeration. But she is phenomenal. And this song makes you think about
mortality all philosophical-like. (Also can you tell I chose the last three
songs by going in alphabetical order down my iPod?)
11. "Cry Me a River" by Justin Timberlake
This may seem like an odd choice, but I was getting
so sick of my peers going through selection who spouted all these sob stories
to get out of jury duty. There was a pregnant full-time student who mentioned
she had to reschedule a midterm to be there, and I didn't hear her complaining.
Suck it up guys!
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| I dig this. I think I need a life-sized version in my foyer to discourage any would-be wrong-doers. |
12. If It Hadn't Been for Love by Adele
I've never heard anyone talk about this song. It
gets overshadowed by Adele's numerous monster hits. But this broken down,
badass blues burner gets to me. I think I was a scorned woman in another life.
13. Hard Knock Life by Jay-Z
Jay-Z is not my usual cup o’ musical tea, but I’ve
always gotten a kick out of sampling show tunes from a musical about a little
ginger girl for a supposed ghetto anthem. I heard he’s also doing the music for
a reboot of Annie. This should be interesting.
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| Makes me laugh every time. |
14. Janey's Got a Gun by Aerosmith
Aerosmith takes me back to my childhood as well. I
don’t think I really understood this song back in the day though. Guess that’s
a good thing. High five for Janey though.
15. It's Too Late to Apologize by One Republic
Hehe, get it?
| Panic! At the Disco. Douuuuucches. Yes, it's possible to hate the band yet love their music. |
16. Build God, Then We'll Talk by Panic! At the
Disco
Catchy and kind of gross. Makes you want to dance,
then take a shower. I was obsessed with this song when I lived in France and was dating the French Creeper. If this song reminds you of your significant other for some reason, you really need to end it.
17. Tha Crossroads by Bone Thugs-N-Harmony
I don’t know why I picked this one, but I dig it. It's like a peaceful resolution. Even if the name of the group pisses me off for grammatical reasons.
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| Marcy Playground. So. Much. Angst. |
18. Sex and Candy by Marcy Playground
Another weirdly sexy, sinister song that makes you
want to shower after. I loved this vestige of 90s angst.
19. I Hung My Head by Johnny Cash
This song is uber-depressing and dark, and gives me
the chills every time I hear it. God bless Johnny Cash, man.
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| Cage the Elephant has a wicked sense of humor. |
20. Ain't No Rest For the Wicked by Cage the Elephant.
One of the best hooks as well as awesome
tongue-in-cheek lyrics. Just listening to it makes me feel like a badass.
21. I'm a Man of Constant Sorrow from the O Brother
Where Art Thou Soundtrack
If you don’t love this song, then there’s something
wrong with you. That’s just the truth.
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| Love it. |
Oh, and by the way, he was guilty. And kind of an asshole.
Also, the District Attorney looked exactly like B.D. Wong. And there's not a damn thing wrong with that.
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