DESCRIPTION:
I wrote this tune partially as California's response to Warren Zevon's "Werewolves of London," and partially as an ode to canines worldwide. Musically, I aimed for somewhere between "Folsom Prison Blues" and "Stray Cat Strut." Lyrically, I wanted it to be cinematic, with prison breaks and chase scenes sprinkled into our big ol' California Noir stew, so it seemed like the perfect song for a music video. But one of the first rules of filmmaking is to avoid shooting with animals or children if at all possible, so luckily the good folks at Maku helped us channel this vision into the video you see here, sans hounds, but replete with T-Rex! Thanks for tuning in - MJ

Stream: http://smarturl.it/HHOASpotify
Download: http://smarturl.it/HHOAiTunes

Video by Maku. Director/Producer: Spenser Linney. Director of Photography: Nick Mahar. Assistant Camera: Joe Seiler. Actress: Jenna Harris. T-Rex: Nick Akiona. Stunt Driver: Elisabeth Jaffe. PA: Connor Cuse. Colorist: Ayumi Ashley. Special Thanks to Brietta Linney, Nick Roach, Thomas Yopes and Paul Paldino.

Website: http://www.mattjaffemusic.com
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/MattJaffeMusic
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/mattjaffemusic
Twitter: @mattjaffemusic
Instagram: @mattjaffemusic

Lyrics:
Hellhounds of Alcatraz - Matt Jaffe

You had better swim like you ain’t never swum before
Unless you wanna end up lying on the ocean floor
The channel is so windy and the water is so wide
You paddle toward the city under cover of the night
The hurricane’s in motion as you’re jumpin’ off the jail
The Hellhounds of Alcatraz are hot on your tail

They’ll follow you through North Beach and way down to Mexico
You’re never out of reach and it don’t matter where you go
Down The Embarcadero they are following their prey
The strait is getting narrow between you and Judgment Day
So if you ever turn around you know what to expect
The Hellhounds of Alcatraz are dogging all your steps

And the mission bells are ringin’ out upon the open sea
And the angels are a-singin’, but they’ll never set you free

A storm, it is a-comin’ like doomsday coming down
Their paws, they are a-drummin’ like a tremor through the ground
They’re raging up from under, following no common law
Like Wicked bolts of thunder with the justice of their jaw
Like locomotive lightning riding on the howling wind
The Hellhounds of Alcatraz relieve you of your sin

The skies above will darken as you tread into the night
You already here ‘em barking, pretty soon you’ll feel ‘em bite
You hear a deathly rumblin’ as you see the moon eclipsed
San Francisco Bay is nothing but the River Styx
You’re a refugee to heaven but you can’t get off the ground
The Hellhounds of Alcatraz are you dragging you back down