1986 Songs: Lawless Avenues

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Hey, we’re staying in L.A. for the 1986 song as well. The “L.A. mellow rock” sound was very popular in the 70s. That popularity waned in the 80s in favor of hair bands but the acts were still releasing music. And here’s one from one of my favorites…such a favorite that he’s on both the 40-year-old AND 50-year-old lists. Lawless Avenues - Jackson Browne Remember reading The Outsiders in school? Or seeing West Side Story? Gangs are part of popular culture, as they are part of life. Not the “cliques” of high school, but gangs. The kids you don’t want to meet in a dark alley. Well, that’s what this song is about: gangs in Los Angeles. You assume Mexican, because part of the song is in Spanish and some of the people mentioned have Latino names. It doesn’t matter, though: “Silent Joe” is dead (“stabbed in the chest, he went down swinging”). Gee, I’m going for the violent and depressing songs this month, aren’t I? Sorry. I was a little turned off by Jackson Browne’s deep dive into politics with this album (not that he hadn’t been subtly political before: the brilliance of “Before the Deluge,” about environmentalism). I thought — and still think — that he was so focused on the message that the music suffered. But I fell in love with this song immediately. I still love it. Lawless Avenues Written by Jackson Browne and Jorge Calderón Recorded by Jackson Browne From Lives in the Balance, 1986 We don’t hear no church bells ringing: