"Earl Had to Die: The 20 Greatest Country Songs Depicting Killing Your Partner"
Murder-themed songs have always been a significant part of traditional country music. Although they are not as commonly found in today's country music scene, there still exists a substantial collection of exceptional songs portraying men murdering their female romantic partners. However, it is less frequently seen the other way around. Nevertheless, country music also offers numerous songs depicting women who commit such acts of violence, and we've compiled a list to showcase them.
We had to eliminate certain contenders from this list based on a few criteria. Our main focus was to include only one song per artist, which meant that popular country singers Carrie Underwood and Miranda Lambert, who both have multiple songs about murder in their repertoire, were only allowed one slot each. Although songs like "Before He Cheats," "Church Bells," "White Liar," and "Kerosene" are all excellent revenge anthems, they were ultimately overshadowed by even more popular songs and didn't make the final cut.
The theme of the list was quite specific and it further narrowed down the selection. In order for a murder song to be included, it had to involve at least one male victim. Therefore, even though Ashley McBryde's "Martha Divine" is considered one of the best modern murder songs in the genre, it didn't qualify for this list. Other notable mentions include Willie Nelson's "Red Headed Stranger" and The SteelDrivers' "If It Hadn't Been for Love," but they also didn't meet the criteria to make it onto this list.
The remaining content consists of an impressive and wicked collection of the most impactful songs in country music that express a desire to harm or kill someone. Take a look at the slideshow below to discover our choices for the top revenge songs and lesser-known tracks that revolve around the theme of murder, particularly targeting the man in one's life (or persuading someone else to do it on their behalf). Keep reading, and don't forget to share in the comments if we overlooked your favorite song about eliminating your significant other.
Earl Must Die: A Collection of 20 Top Country Songs About Taking Out Your Significant Other
Written by: Carena Liptak
Additional content from Taste of Country
Details
Stay connected with us