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3 min
Lissin
· Jun 12, 2026
Morning News Ballad
The Ballad of Thirty-Four Counts
A Manhattan Jury Sings
The Ballad of Thirty-Four Counts
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About this episode
A Manhattan Jury Sings
0:00
The summer sun beat down on the isle of Manhattan stone,
0:05
But the hottest room in the whole wide town held a man who sat alone.
0:11
He'd built his towers of glass and gold, put his name up in the sky,
0:16
But twelve good folks, a story's told, were chosen to ask him why.
0:22
They came from jobs and city blocks, the baker and the clerk,
0:27
To sit inside a wooden box and do a solemn work.
0:33
Oh, the gavel fell like thunder on a quiet afternoon,
0:39
Thirty-four times pulled him under, by the light of a city moon.
0:44
Not for the crown or the deals he'd spun, but the ledgers he'd redrawn,
0:50
A jury from the people said, "The deed is done."
0:55
And a chapter in the books is gone.
1:01
Half the country raised a cheer, cried, "No one stands above the law!"
1:06
The other half, they shed a tear and spoke of what they saw.
1:12
A crooked trial, a witch's hunt, a system weaponized,
1:18
While battle lines were drawn upfront behind the nation's eyes.
1:23
The airwaves cracked with rage and doubt, from every single side,
1:29
While the man who'd lost just walked right out, with nowhere left to hide.
1:34
Oh, the gavel fell like thunder on a quiet afternoon,
1:40
Thirty-four times pulled him under, by the light of a city moon.
1:45
Not for the crown or the deals he'd spun, but the ledgers he'd redrawn,
1:51
A jury from the people said, "The deed is done."
1:57
And a chapter in the books is gone.
2:02
This old guitar has heard the tale of powerful men and pride,
2:08
Who ride the storm and hoist the sail, then get swept up by the tide.
2:13
And all the while the sun still burns, the western states are dry,
2:19
A new machine just sits and learns beneath an empty sky.
2:24
But a simple count on paper thin, a choice 'tween wrong and right,
2:30
Is a story that will long begin again in dark and light.
2:36
And the gavel fell like thunder on a quiet afternoon,
2:41
Thirty-four times pulled him under, by the light of a city moon.
2:47
Not for the crown or the deals he'd spun, but the ledgers he'd redrawn,
2:52
A jury from the people said, "The deed is done."
2:58
And a chapter in the books is gone.
