In 1973, 9 college students record music at a remote studio location. On the way back to campus, they are all killed in a van accident. Their music remains silent for 31 years until it's discovered by a modern day college student.

Convicted murderer Clyde Thompson receives the death penalty for shooting two men in Texas in 1928. When the governor spares his life, Thompson gains a reputation as the meanest man in the state while working hard labor in prison.