Family Law Themes in Popular Music

Compiled by Barbara Glesner Fines, UMKC School of Law

Active Listening:

You Say It Best, When You Say Nothing At All

(Performed by Keith Whitley, Allison Kraus, Ronan Keating)

Marriage (Licensure/Solemnization)

Chapel of Love

(Performed by The Dixie Cups, Beach Boys, Bette Midler)

Little Chapel

(Performed by Dwight Yoakam)

Marriage (Consent)

Shotgun Wedding

(Performed by Rod Stewart)

Marriage (Loving v. Virginia)

Ebony and Ivory

(Performed by Stevie Wonder & Paul McCartney)

Irma Jackson

(Performed by Merle Haggard)

Marriage (Age Restrictions)

She Was Only Sixteen

(Performed by Sam Cooke, The Supremes & Dr. Hook)

Too Young

(Performed by Elton John, Nat King Cole, Skeeter Davis, Perry Como)

Marriage (Incest)

Bad Wisdom

(Performed by Suzanne Vega)

Beautiful Prize

(Performed by Rick Springfield)

Paternity

Billie Jean

(Performed by Michael Jackson)

My Father’s Eyes

(Performed by Peter Clapton)
He Didn’t Have to Be

(Performed by Brad Presley)

Golddigger

(Performed by Kayne West) (I hate this song, but it’s a great representation of the viewpoint of some that women “father shop” and engage in paternity fraud)

Adoption

Lullaby in Blue

(Performed by Bette Midler)

Secrets

(Performed by Reba McEntire)

Raise Him Up

(Performed by Randy Travis)

Spousal Abuse/ Child Abuse

See the extensive list at http://creativefolk.com/abusesongs.html

Divorce

Going Through the Big D

(Performed by Mark Chestnut, Waylon Jennings

The Divorce

(Performed by Kitty Wells)

Mexican Divorce

(Performed by Ry Cooter)

Effects of Divorce on Children

Because of You

(Performed by Kelly Clarkson)

Your Mother and I

(Performed by Louden Wainwright)

D-I-V-O-R-C-E

(Performed by Dolly Parton, Tammy Wynette, Kitty Wells, Conway Twitty)

Property Distribution/Alimony

She Got the Goldmine/ I Got the Shaft

(Performed by Jerry Reed)

Alimony

(Performed by Weird Al Yankovich)