My Ten Favorite Murder Ballads: L.A. County (#2)

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I'm about to kill off this series of songs that deal with murders. As I said at the beginning of this series, just because I like songs about murder doesn't mean I....yeah, like listening to Willie Nelson. Here's the penultimate song. L.A. County - Lyle Lovett It's the same old story: boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy shoots girl. Here's another one of those jilted lover songs, and oh, is it a brilliant one. Lyle Lovett is one of the most gifted songwriters in what used to be country music. He's great at putting a twist or two (or 20) in a song. In this one he proves the old saying that "revenge is a dish best served cold." His old girlfriend leaves Dallas with a new boyfriend. After a year he proposes. A year after that the narrator takes off for Los Angeles (where the happy couple is living and to be married) to attend the wedding, "with an old friend at my side." Unlike her old friend, this one is "a cold, black .45." When the preacher asks if there are any objections, he obviously has one...and kills his ex-girlfriend. I realize this is a very disturbing subject and song, but Lovett's delivery is hilarious. So is his concert introduction to the song (quoted above). L.A. County Written by Lyle Lovett Recorded by Lyle Lovett From Pontiac, 1987 The lights of L.A. County: