Criminal, acoustic version

I live in the city of Richmond, Virginia. In July of 2020, my hometown went ballistic when frustration and anger turned into massive protests and demonstrations. Protesters and police confronted each other in the downtown streets stoked by the killing of George Floyd, the ideologic clash over confederate era memorials, and the stresses of the pandemic lockdown. Outside agitators infiltrated the ranks of law abiding protesters resulting in property damage and violence that was answered with tear gas and rubber bullets for everyone. The mayhem occurred nightly and seemed to escalate with each confrontation. As I watched the events unfold from my home near the fray, I was inspired to write the song Criminal as a snapshot of what I felt at the time.
This video is an acoustic version of the song that I recorded with my iPhone this morning. Here are the lyrics:
Criminal
I heard the sirens
They were coming my way
To drown out my voice
And voices shouting for a better day
With a crowd on Broad Street
Ideas held high
Flashing blue lights
Hissing smoke made me want to cry
I am not a criminal
And I’m nowhere near the end of this
I’m counting down your minutes
‘Cause I’ll still be here when you are gone
Adore the idols
Of abomination
Ignore the toil
Outside your desperation
You see the pictures
And it don’t look right
Pull back your curtain
And let through just a little light
I am not a criminal
And I’m nowhere near the end of this
I’m counting down your minutes
‘Cause I’ll still be here when you are gone
I am not a criminal
And I’m nowhere near the end of this
I’m counting down your minutes
‘Cause I’ll still be here when you are gone
My band recorded Criminal during the pandemic. We also produced an accompanying music video filming some scenes on the same streets where the riots took place. This studio produced version of Criminal is available on our band's CZcams channel. It’s very different that my acoustic version and you can check it out at: • The J.O.B. - Criminal ...

[@danbremer7010]

Play it brutha 😊