"Crime of Passion" is a song written by

Walt Aldridge James Walton Aldridge Jr. (born November 12, 1955 in Florence, Alabama) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, engineer and record producer. Aldridge is known primarily as a Nashville songwriter. He has written dozens of hit country songs ...

and

Mac McAnally Lyman Corbitt McAnally Jr. (; born July 15, 1957), known professionally as Mac McAnally, is an American country music singer-songwriter, session musician, and record producer. In his career, he has recorded ten studio albums and eight singles. ...

, and recorded by American

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

singer

Ricky Van Shelton Ricky Van Shelton (born January 12, 1952) is an American retired country music singer. Active between 1986 and 2006, he charted more than 20 singles on the ''Billboard'' Hot Country Songs charts. This figure includes 10 Number One hits: "Somebod ...

. It was released in April 1987 as the second single from his debut album ''

Wild-Eyed Dream ''Wild-Eyed Dream'' is the debut studio album by American country music artist Ricky Van Shelton. The first singles released from the album from 1986 to 1988 were "Wild-Eyed Dream" and "Crime of Passion", which charted at #24 and #7, respectively ...

''. The song spent nineteen weeks on the

Hot Country Singles Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data from Nielsen BDS along with digital sal ...

charts, where it peaked at number 7. Its

b-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record compan ...

, " Don't We All Have the Right," was released in 1988 as the album's fifth single.

Content

The song's main plot – a drifter who conspires with a young woman to rob a gas station – serves as a metaphor for a man who falls hard for a woman with sinister hidden motives: in this case, a failed love affair with a seductress, who leaves her target to the wolves after he serves her purposes. In the song's first verse, the drifter is picked up by a beautiful young woman driving a

Cadillac Eldorado The Cadillac Eldorado is a luxury car manufactured and marketed by Cadillac from 1952 until 2002 over twelve generations. The Eldorado was at or near the top of the Cadillac line. The original 1953 Eldorado convertible and the Eldorado Brougham ...

convertible, along a desert highway. After the two begin talking and the man explains his situation (he's unemployed and broke), the woman suggests finding a place to rob. The man enters the gas station and follows through with the plan, netting a large cache of cash in the process. Later, as the two are counting the cash and celebrating their success, the convertible is pulled over by an

unmarked police car A police car (also called a police cruiser, police interceptor, patrol car, area car, cop car, prowl car, squad car, radio car, or radio motor patrol) is a ground vehicle used by police and law enforcement for transportation during patrols a ...

. The woman professes her innocence and immediately points at the man as the armed robbery suspect. It is later explained that the woman's soon-to-be ex-husband is the gas station owner who – as a favor to her – refuses to implicate her, leaving the drifter to take the fall alone. Throughout the song, vivid descriptions of the objects in the song are written into the lyrics. These include the names of key people in the song (gas station owner Jim, whose name is sewn on his shirt; and Joe, the police officer whose name is written on his badge); the Eldorado convertible with "tuck and roll pleat" vinyl upholstery; and the unmarked

Chevy Nova The Chevrolet Chevy II/Nova is a small automobile manufactured by Chevrolet, and produced in five generations for the 1962 through 1979, and 1985 through 1988 model years. Nova was the top model in the Chevy II lineup through 1968. The Chevy II ...

police car.

Chart performance

References

{{authority control 1987 singles 1987 songs Ricky Van Shelton songs Songs written by Mac McAnally Songs written by Walt Aldridge Song recordings produced by Steve Buckingham (record producer) Columbia Records singles Songs about crime