Earl Must Perish: The 20 Finest Country Songs Depicting the Act of Killing Your Partner
Songs depicting murder have always had a significant presence in traditional country music. Although they may not be as common nowadays, there is still a notable collection of exceptional songs centered around men murdering their female romantic partners. Conversely, songs portraying women as killers are less frequent but rest assured, the country genre has a substantial number of such songs, and we have compiled a list to showcase them.
We had to set some parameters to narrow down the contenders for this list. Our focus was on choosing only one song per artist, which meant that popular country stars Carrie Underwood and Miranda Lambert, who have multiple murder songs in their catalogs, were only allowed one slot each. Although songs like "Before He Cheats," "Church Bells," "White Liar," and "Kerosene" are all excellent revenge anthems, ultimately, bigger songs took precedence and prevented them from making the final cut.
The chosen theme was quite specific, which helped to narrow down the options even more. In order for a murder song to be included in this list, 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 did not qualify. Similarly, notable mentions should be given to Willie Nelson's "Red Headed Stranger" and The SteelDrivers' "If It Hadn't Been for Love," but they also did not make it onto this list.
The remaining content is extremely impressive and wicked, a compilation of the most powerful songs in country music that advocate for harming or killing someone. Take a look at the selection we've made for the top revenge songs and lesser-known tracks that revolve around the topic of murder, particularly when it involves getting rid of a man in your life (or persuading another person to do it on your behalf). Keep reading and don't forget to share your favorite song about eliminating your man in the comments section if we didn't include it.
Earl Had to Die: A Compilation of the Top 20 Country Songs Depicting the Act of Killing Your Partner
Image Credit: Carena Liptak
Additional content can be found on Taste of Country website. You can find out more