You and Hidden Bodies Playlist

The hipster supermarket playlists in Hidden Bodies made me think of a playlist of songs that remind me of Joe Goldberg, good guy extraordinaire.

* Possession by Sarah McLachlan



Many people think this is a sweet love song and feature it in weddings, but the origins are less than romantic. Sarah McLachlan wrote this song from the perspective of a real life fan who wrote her obsessive letters in an effort to understand this alien mindset.

* Every Breath You Take by the Police



This is the classic stalker song. Joe is particularly like this in the first book when he wears disguises to sit across the street from Beck's apartment and spy on her in addition to hacking into her email and phone as well as snooping through all of her stuff. Joe is also obsessed with someone he barely knows. The line "I will not be denied" is particularly chilling.

* Do I Wanna Know by the Arctic Monkeys



This song has a very cool, memorable guitar ostinato. Once you listen to the lyrics, it's clear this person is obsessed with someone without even knowing them. It seems that like Joe, they met in an insignificant way and he has become obsessed while she may not even know he really exists.

* I Will Possess Your Heart by Death Cab for Cutie



This song is amazing to listen to, but has a disturbing story. The person in this story has obviously been soundly rejected by the object of his affection, but remains convinced that he can possess her heart. This language use is interesting because it doesn't even take the woman's thoughts or feelings into account. Joe convinces himself he knows Beck completely and when she turns out to not be his ideal person, he turns violent. This view is seen in many crimes in the past few years of women refusing men and being attacked or even killed for it just as in You.

Any Joe-like song I missed? Let me know!