The Playlist: Just a Game

A planned — and quickly canceled — game of "catch an illegal immigrant" at the University of Texas at Austin caused an uproar this week, so we begin our weekly news-based playlist with Birdy's "Just a Game."

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:

Following another battle over science textbooks at the State Board of Education, we added "Textbook" by We Are Scientists. That is followed by Alicia Keys' "Brand New Me," a reference to Ross Ramsey's column on changes to Gov. Rick Perry's image as he positions himself for another national campaign.

Becca Aaronson wrote about how the gubernatorial candidates on both sides of the aisle have made a tactical choice to remain mostly mum on the abortion issue, so we added "Don't Say A Word" by Ellie Goulding — and we're pretending there is a missing hyphen in the song's title.

The Texas Higher Education Commissioner said that major changes will be needed to meet the state's long-term higher ed goals, inspiring the addition of Bruce Hornsby's "Gonna Be Some Changes Made."

Next up is "Just Beneath the Surface" by Dawes, because many farmers, struggling to keep their crops irrigated, are probing beneath their land for water.

Attorney General and gubernatorial candidate Greg Abbott's proposals for more stringent privacy laws got a closer look this week, so we added "Privacy" by Sammy Hagar. Celebrity motorcycle connoisseur Jesse James, opened a new firearms business in Texas, prompting the inclusion of "Just Like Jesse James" by Cher.

We have Sting's "Russians" in light of a report on the efforts of Russian immigrant in Texas to maintain ties to their heritage. And because state Sen. Leticia Van de Putte, D-San Antonio, officially announced her bid for lieutenant governor on Saturday, we close with Spyro Gyra's "Leticia."

Enjoy!