Crime and Punishment in Songs Trivia

1. Quickly written as a silly throw-away song, "Jailhouse Rock" has often been listed as one of the top 100 rock and roll songs of all time. Who had the original recording?

From Quiz He's in the Jailhouse Now

Answer: Elvis Presley

If anyone could make prison life sound like fun it would likely be Elvis. Jerry Leiber and Mike Stroller wrote the song for Elvis's third movie, "Jailhouse Rock" but his straight rock delivery sent the single (backed with "Treat Me Nice") to number one on the Billboard Hot 100 list.

From Quiz Without Consent

Answer: Sublime

Sublime were a popular ska-punk band from the 1990s. Their first hit tells the story of a man who raped a woman, then got sentenced to 25 years in prison, where he got raped by his cell mate and the guards ignored his screaming. This song is a warning to all potential rapists out there. Supposedly the band hated this song. However, many music fans love it. It was one of the most requested songs on Los Angeles's KROQ station and it was one of the most requested songs at Sublime's live shows. Personally, despite the band's hatred of this song, I think it's the best song they ever did.

From Quiz More Songs About Crime

Answer: Maxwell

"Bang bang Maxwell's silver hammer came down on his head. Bang bang Maxwell's silver hammer made sure he was dead." "Maxwell's Silver Hammer" has a catchy beat and happy sounding music, but the lyrics are, well, not too happy. Paul McCartney wrote it and wanted it on the "White Album." The rest of the Beatles decided it was even worse than "Revolution 9" and "Wild Honey Pie," so they kept it off the album. However, it ended up their album "Abbey Road," which has sold over 30 million copies worldwide.

From Quiz Songs About Crime

Answer: Tom Dooley

In 1866, Laura Foster was murdered. Her fiancee, Tom Dula, was blamed and ultimately hanged for the crime. A poet named Thomas C. Land wrote a song about this murder and hanging. The song went on to be covered by many musicians. The musicians who recorded the most well-known version of the song are one of my favorite musical groups: The Kingston Trio. Their version of the song became a number one hit in five different countries in 1958 and it propelled the Kingston Trio to superstardom. The Kingston Trio were one of the most popular musical groups in the world from 1958-1964, then the Beatles came to the U.S. and the Kingston Trio were forgotten. However, their influence is legendary, having been an influence on bands such as the Eagles, ABBA, the Bee Gees, and David Crosby. Some people believe that Dula wasn't actually the murderer. Foster had a cousin named Anne Melton, who once dated Dula and was jealous that Foster was engaged to Dula. Melton was tried for the crime and acquitted because Dula said she was innocent Some people believe that Melton was actually the killer and Dula was just sacrificing himself for her.

From Quiz Stealing The Show

Answer: Surfin' U.S.A.

"Surfin' U.S.A." uses the music from Berry's "Sweet Little Sixteen" (1958) and inadvertently helped keep Berry in the public eye, as when the Beach Boys released it, he was in prison for transporting a minor across state lines. "Surfin' U.S.A." mentions 16 surf spots in the lyrics, of which two are in Hawaii, (Waimea Bay and Sunset), one is in Australia, (Narrabeen) and the rest are in California.

From Quiz Big Star In The Big House Vol. 3

Answer: James Brown

Brown had several run- ins with the law before his spell in the big house but 1988 was a busy year for him. He was arrested in April for assault, in May on drugs and weapon charges and then again in September for the offences that led to his jail time. He served three years of his six year sentence. Brown died in 2006.

From Quiz Jailhouse Rock

Answer: Three

"Maxwell's Silver Hammer" was recorded by The Beatles for their 1969 "Abbey Road" album. Maxwell commits three murders in the song. First he kills Joan, then the teacher, then the judge. "Bang, bang, Maxwell's silver hammer Came down upon her head Do do do do do Bang, bang, Maxwell's silver hammer Made sure that she was dead"

From Quiz Lyrical Legalities

Answer: A Whiter Shade of Pale

"A Whiter Shade of Pale" is one of the most well known and popular Procol Harum songs, and it was also their debut single. It reached number one on the UK charts within a month of its release in May 1967 and stayed there for six weeks. Originally the song was credited to Gary Brooker (founder of the group) and Keith Reid (songwriter). In 2005, Matthew Fisher (former Procol Harum organist) filed a lawsuit, claiming he co-wrote the music for the song. His lawsuit was successful in July 2009, awarding him a share of future (but not past) royalties, dating from 2005 when he first filed suit. Contrary to the information contained on a number of websites, Fisher did not really wait 40 years to file suit - he made a number of attempts during the intervening years but was repeatedly advised that he didn't stand a chance.

From Quiz Shooting up the Charts

Answer: Reno

The lyrics state "I shot a man in Reno just to watch him die. When I hear that whistle blowing, I hang my head and cry". Cash composed "Folsom Prison Blues" while still in the army in Germany. He watched a movie titled "Inside the Walls of Folsom Prison" (1951) and while writing the lyrics he tried to think of the most evil reason someone would have for killing another person. He released the single while he was with Sun Records in 1955. The song became increasingly popular when Johnny Cash performed concerts in prisons in the sixties.

From Quiz Musical Mayhem

Answer: Mary

The Everly's requested we "Take a Message to Mary" but not to tell her of the jail time being served due to the "shot from a careless gun." After almost 20 years off the music charts the boys had a 1984 hit "On the Wings of a Nightingale" which was written by Paul McCartney.

From Quiz Tragedy in Songs, Part 7: Criminals and Prison

Answer: Green

Delia Green, 1886-1900, was a girl murdered by her fifteen-year-old lover on Christmas Eve. The killer, Mose Houston, served twelve years for the crime. The song 'Delia's Gone' is attributed to folk singer 'Blind Blake' Higgs, and has been covered by Johnny Cash and Pete Seeger.

From Quiz Child Abuse in Popular Music

Answer: Down With the Sickness

This portion was cut from the song on radio airplay, and can only be heard on the unedited CD.

From Quiz Music's Crimes and Punishments

Answer: jailhouse rock & jail house rock

His third film 'Jailhouse Rock' premiered in Memphis on October 17, 1957 and quickly went to number 5 at the box office

From Quiz Songs involving crime

Answer: Skid Row

from '18 and Life'

From Quiz He's in the Jailhouse Now

Answer: Hurricane

Dylan wrote the song about middleweight boxer Rubin "Hurricane" Carter, who, along with another man, was convicted of a triple murder in New Jersey in 1966. Dylan and Jacques Levy co-wrote the song in 1975 after several allegations were made that Carter did not receive a fair trial. The success of the song caused a retrial, at which Carter was again found guilty. Finally, in 1985, a federal judge overturned the verdict, citing racism and concealing of evidence as factors.

From Quiz Murderous Music!

Answer: Georgie was killed in a random attack

He was attacked by a group of men, in 1974. The gang's aim was to 'roll some innocent passer-by'. It is not clear in the lyrics whether the perpetrators were brought to justice. The song, off the album, 'A Night on the Town', reached Number Two on the UK charts, but did not perform as well on the other side of the Atlantic.

From Quiz Without Consent

Answer: Decemberists

Although Colin Meloy calls himself a hard-core feminist, early in his career he wrote songs about rape. One of these songs was "Odalisque" on the Decemberists' album "Castaways and Cutouts." An odalisque is a female sex slave in Turkey. The Decemberists song tells the story of a woman who tried to escape the harem, but she was caught, and the story does not end well. To make matters worse, the line "Lazy lady had a baby and a sweet sound it made" is repeated twice in the song. Presumably, the first time, it's talking about how the odalisque's mother unwillingly had her as that part of the song tells the back story of the odalisque. When the line is repeated at the end of the song, it likely implies that just as her mother did, the odalisque gave birth to another daughter she unwillingly had, and possibly it goes on and on like this forever.

From Quiz More Songs About Crime

Answer: Blaze of Glory

"I'm what Cain was to Abel, Mr. Catch-Me-If-You-Can." Cain was Abel's murderer, therefore if you're what Cain was to Abel, you'd be a murderer. Bon Jovi wrote this song because Emilio Estevez asked him if he could use "Wanted Dead or Alive" for the movie "Young Guns 2." Bon Jovi refused, because "Wanted Dead or Alive" is really about life as a touring band, not really a song about crime. Instead, Bon Jovi wrote "Blaze of Glory" specifically for the movie. "Blaze of Glory" was a number one hit in the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, and it charted in the top 20 in several other places.

From Quiz Songs About Crime

Answer: 99 to Life

"99 to Life" is an interesting song. At first it leads you to believe that the narrator just broke up with his girlfriend because she cheated on him("I'm broken-hearted, I'm a broken man. Driven by anger, on that night I ran. I had me a woman, I thought she'd be true."). Then you learned that she died, and the narrator may have been wrongfully blamed for her death ("Now she's gone and left me, you know her life is through. Lonely weekends, baby lonely nights. The judge he gave me 99 to Life"). Then finally, the narrator admits that he did it ("I killed my baby, I killed her with my knife"). Social Distortion have sold more than three million albums worldwide, making them one of the best-selling punk rock bands of all time. Most of their songs are about hard times. Singer/songwriter Mike Ness has said that he had a rough childhood and he's lucky to be alive and not in prison while many of his friends ended up in prison or dead.

From Quiz Stealing The Show

Answer: Willie Dixon

"Whole Lotta Love" was recorded for the band's 1969 album "Led Zeppelin II" and listed the songwriters as the four members of the band, however similarities were noted right from the start between this track and "You Need Loving" (1966) by Small Faces, which was in turn a very thinly veiled reworking of the Muddy Waters hit "You Need Love" (1962), written by Willie Dixon. Dixon eventually sued Led Zeppelin in 1985 and the band settled out of court and gave Dixon a songwriting credit on all future releases. Strangely, Dixon never sued Small Faces, although as Zeppelin vocalist Robert Plant said, "You only get caught if you're successful."

From Quiz Big Star In The Big House Vol. 3

Answer: Paul McCartney

McCartney was arrested at the Tokyo airport after flying in to begin a tour of Japan with Wings. He has also been arrested for cannabis possession in Sweden, Scotland, USA and Barbados and is a long time advocate of cannabis legalisation. In 2015, after almost 50 years of smoking cannabis, he decided to quit in order to set a good example to his grand children.

From Quiz Lyrical Legalities

Answer: John Fogerty

John Fogerty became involved in a lawsuit brought about by Saul Zaentz who owned the rights to Creedence Clearwater Revival songs. Zaentz claimed Fogerty's song "The Old Man Down the Road" sounded too much like the CCR song, "Run Through the Jungle". Both songs were written by John Fogerty. The case set a legal precedent when the judge ruled that an artist cannot plagiarise himself. Fogerty claims he successfully demonstrated in court that the two compositions were not the same. The incorrect answer options are derived from a quote by Fogerty: "I proved that, no, I didn't copy myself, I invented something new that really sounds a lot like me. Do you find fault with Elvis for sounding like Elvis? When McCartney sounds like McCartney or Dylan sounds like Dylan? No one else ever had to go through that."

From Quiz Musical Mayhem

Answer: He made up stories about Bobby's crush

We learn in "Stayin' In" that "he was saying things that weren't true about her, so I let him have it in the cafeteria." Song made number 33 on the U.S. Billboard charts in 1961. Before they both became successful in the music industry Bob Dylan played piano in Bobby's band.

From Quiz Tragedy in Songs, Part 7: Criminals and Prison

Answer: Indiana

'Indiana Wants Me' hit number five on the U.S. Billboard, and number two in the UK. It deals with a young man who's on the run after killing a man who insulted his wife. The song includes police sirens in the background. When the song was first played on the radio, motorists reported pulling over, thinking that there was an emergency vehicle behind them.

From Quiz Prison and Jailhouse Songs

Answer: Tijuana

"Tijuana Jail" reached number 12 on the charts in 1959. Denny Thompson composed this Kingston Trio hit about an ill-fated trip to Mexico. The boys get locked up for gambling and write to ask friends to send their bail to the Tijuana jail. The Kingston Trio was formed in 1957 in the Palo Alto, California, area by Dave Guard, Bob Shane, and Nick Reynolds. The group's first hit was a version of a traditional folk song called "Tom Dooley", a story of an actual hanging. It garnered a Gold Record in 1958 and launched their career. During the early sixties the group had four albums in the top the Billboard Top Ten. Despite numerous top selling albums the boys only had ten top-forty singles.

From Quiz Ten 'Killer' Songs

Answer: Guns and Roses

A light-hearted (I hope) take on how to deal with a nagging partner by Guns and Roses. "Used To Love Her" is found on the "G&R Lies" album. Although never released as a single it was a popular number at Guns and Roses concerts.

From Quiz Homicidal Rock

Answer: Sting

Sting, whose real name is Gordon Sumner, wrote this song. He was the lead singer of the reggae/new wave band The Police.

From Quiz Tragedy in Songs, Part 5: Gunfights and Shootings

Answer: Big Iron

The Arizona Ranger leaves the outlaw dead in the street.

From Quiz Child Abuse in Popular Music

Answer: This Life

"This is not the life you wanted--someone to make you, someone to break you..."

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Last Updated Oct 18 2025 5:50 AM

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