The Playlist: Crying, Waiting, Hoping

As legislative observers eager to see certain bills revived for the special session yearn for Gov. Rick Perry to expand the agenda, we begin our weekly news-inspired playlist with Buddy Holly's "Crying, Waiting, Hoping."

The easiest way to enjoy the playlist is to download Spotify, which is a free program. But even without it, you can still follow along. Here are this week's other selections:

The second — chosen because the redistricting process is proving more cumbersome in the special session than initially anticipated — is "Harder Before it Gets Easier" by David Wax Museum. Meanwhile, the town of Barnhart has run out of water, so the next song is Eric Clapton's "Till Your Well Runs Dry."

We included a tongue-in-cheek tribute to Jay Root's report about lawmakers receiving a per diem during the special session whether or not they show up for work at the Capitol with The Avett Brothers' "Hard Worker."

A planned high-speed rail line between Dallas-Fort Worth and Houston has sparked a turf war in North Texas and inspired the addition of "Fast Train" by Solomon Burke to the playlist. It is followed by Bruce Springsteen's "State Trooper" in honor of the budget's inclusion of money for troopers’ raises.

After a Dallas Tea Party leader said he misspoke last month when he said Republicans don't want to encourage blacks to vote because they overwhelmingly support Democrats, we added Brad Paisley's "Accidental Racist."

Local Natives' "Who Knows Who Cares" reflects the apparent mentality of Texans, who are at the bottom of the barrel when it comes to civic participation in the U.S., according to the Texas Civic Health Index.

For conservationists worrying that a developer's plan may threaten the world's largest colony of bats, we have "Bats in the Belfry" by Dispatch. And we close with a reference to Emily Ramshaw's report on lawmakers motivated by self-preservation: Travis Tritt's "Looking Out for Number One."

Enjoy!