"The Devil Went Down to Georgia" is a song written and performed by the

Charlie Daniels Band Charles Edward Daniels (October 28, 1936 – July 6, 2020) was an American singer, musician, and songwriter. His music fused rock music, rock, country music, country, blues and jazz, pioneering Southern rock. He was best known for his numb ...

and released on their 1979 album ''

Million Mile Reflections ''Million Mile Reflections'' is the tenth studio album by Charlie Daniels and the seventh as the Charlie Daniels Band, released on April 20, 1979. It is best known for the hit single "The Devil Went Down to Georgia". The title refers to the ban ...

''. The song is written in the key of

D minor D minor is a minor scale based on D, consisting of the pitches D, E, F, G, A, B, and C. Its key signature has one flat. Its relative major is F major and its parallel major is D major. The D natural minor scale is: Changes needed for t ...

Vassar Clements Vassar Carlton Clements (April 25, 1928 – August 16, 2005) was an American jazz, swing, and bluegrass fiddler. Clements has been dubbed the Father of Hillbilly Jazz, an improvisational style that blends and borrows from swing, hot jazz, and ...

originally wrote the basic

melody A melody (from Greek language, Greek μελῳδία, ''melōidía'', "singing, chanting"), also tune, voice or line, is a Linearity#Music, linear succession of musical tones that the listener perceives as a single entity. In its most liter ...

octave In music, an octave ( la, octavus: eighth) or perfect octave (sometimes called the diapason) is the interval between one musical pitch and another with double its frequency. The octave relationship is a natural phenomenon that has been refer ...

lower, in a tune called "Lonesome Fiddle Blues" released on Clements' self-titled 1975 album on which Charlie Daniels played guitar. The Charlie Daniels Band moved it up an octave and put words to it. The song's verses are closer to being spoken rather than sung (i.e.,

recitation A recitation in a general sense is the act of reciting from memory, or a formal reading of verse or other writing before an audience. Public recitation is the act of reciting a work of writing before an audience. Academic recitation In a ...

), and tell the story of a young man named Johnny, in a variant on the classic

deal with the Devil A deal with the Devil (also called a Faustian bargain or Mephistophelian bargain) is a cultural motif exemplified by the legend of Faust and the figure of Mephistopheles, as well as being elemental to many Christian traditions. According to t ...

. The performances of the Devil and Johnny are played as instrumental bridges. The song was the band's biggest hit, reaching No. 3 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, prevented from further chart movement by "

After The Love Has Gone "After the Love Has Gone" is a single by Earth, Wind & Fire released in 1979 on ARC/Columbia Records. The song reached No. 2 on both the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100, behind The Knack's "My Sharona" and the US Billboard Hot R&B Singles chart, No. ...

" by

Earth, Wind and Fire Earth, Wind & Fire (EW&F or EWF) is an American band whose music spans the genres of jazz, R&B, soul, funk, disco, pop, big band, Latin, and Afro pop. They are among the best-selling bands of all time, with sales of over 90 million ...

and "

My Sharona "My Sharona" () is the debut single by the Knack. The song was written by Berton Averre and Doug Fieger, and it was released in 1979 from their debut album, '' Get the Knack''. It reached number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 singles chart, w ...

" by

The Knack The Knack was an American rock band based in Los Angeles that rose to fame with its first single, "My Sharona", an international number-one hit in 1979. History Founding (1977–1978) Singer Doug Fieger was a native of Oak Park, Michigan, a no ...

Content

The song tells a story about the

Devil A devil is the personification of evil as it is conceived in various cultures and religious traditions. It is seen as the objectification of a hostile and destructive force. Jeffrey Burton Russell states that the different conceptions of t ...

's failure to gain a young man's

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun ''soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest attes ...

through a

fiddle A fiddle is a bowed string musical instrument, most often a violin. It is a colloquial term for the violin, used by players in all genres, including classical music. Although in many cases violins and fiddles are essentially synonymous, th ...

-playing contest. The song begins as a disappointed Devil arrives in

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

, apparently "way behind" on stealing souls, when he comes upon a young man named Johnny who is playing a fiddle, and quite well. Out of desperation, the Devil, who claims to also be a fiddle player, wagers a fiddle of gold against Johnny's soul to see who is the better fiddler. Although Johnny believes taking the Devil's bet might be a

sin In a religious context, sin is a transgression against divine law. Each culture has its own interpretation of what it means to commit a sin. While sins are generally considered actions, any thought, word, or act considered immoral, selfish, s ...

, he fearlessly accepts, confidently boasting that "I'm the best that's ever been." The Devil plays first, backed by a band of

demon A demon is a malevolent supernatural entity. Historically, belief in demons, or stories about demons, occurs in religion, occultism, literature, fiction, mythology, and folklore; as well as in media such as comics, video games, movies, ani ...

musicians. When finished, Johnny compliments him and takes his own turn, in which he refers to, but does not perform, four old-time songs: *''"Fire on the Mountain"'', the name of an early 19th Century fiddle tune, and also the name of Daniels' 1974 album, *"''

The House of the Rising Sun "The House of the Rising Sun" is a traditional folk song, sometimes called "Rising Sun Blues". It tells of a person's life gone wrong in the city of New Orleans. Many versions also urge a sibling or parents and children to avoid the same fate. ...

"'', a traditional American southern folk song, (the latter two were lyrical references): *"''Chicken in the bread pan pickin' out dough''", which was famously used in

Bob Wills & His Texas Playboys James Robert Wills (March 6, 1905 – May 13, 1975) was an American Western swing musician, songwriter, and bandleader. Considered by music authorities as the founder of Western swing, he was known widely as the King of Western Swing (although S ...

' song "

Ida Red "Ida Red" is an American traditional song of unknown origins that was made famous in the upbeat 1938 version by Bob Wills and his Texas Playboys. Wills' "Ida Red" served as the primary inspiration for Chuck Berry's first big hit "Maybellene". I ...

", and *"''Granny does/will your dog bite, no child no''", but the lyrics alone pre-date this song. Realizing he has been defeated, the devil lays his golden fiddle at Johnny's feet. Johnny then invites the devil to "c'mon back if y'ever wanna try again" before repeating his claim to be "the best that's ever been".

Reception

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', was an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

'' praised the "engaging narrative story line" and said the song has "thundering piano", "screaming fiddle work", "pounding drums and screeching guitar".

Censorship

Johnny's final boast, from the

album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

version of the song, goes, "I done told you once, you son of a bitch, I'm the best that's ever been". But to accommodate radio airplay for Country and Top 40 formats, Daniels changed the lyric for the single release to, "'Cause I told you once, you son of a ''gun''", though AOR stations continued to use the unaltered version.

Musical references

The

ballad A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads derive from the medieval French ''chanson balladée'' or ''ballade'', which were originally "dance songs". Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and ...

's story is a derivative of the traditional

motif. Charlie Daniels has stated in interviews, "I don't know where it came from, but it just did. Well, I think I might know where it came from, it may have come from an old poem called 'The Mountain Whippoorwill' that

Stephen Vincent Benét Stephen Vincent Benét (; July 22, 1898 – March 13, 1943) was an American poet, short story writer, and novelist. He is best known for his book-length narrative poem of the American Civil War, ''John Brown's Body'' (1928), for which he receive ...

wrote many, many years ago (1925), that I had in high school."

Personnel

Charlie Daniels Charles Edward Daniels (October 28, 1936 – July 6, 2020) was an American singer, musician, and songwriter. His music fused rock, country, blues and jazz, pioneering Southern rock. He was best known for his number-one country hit "The Dev ...

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

vocal The human voice consists of sound made by a human being using the vocal tract, including talking, singing, laughing, crying, screaming, shouting, humming or yelling. The human voice frequency is specifically a part of human sound production i ...

s *Tom Crain - guitar, vocals * "Taz" DiGregorio -

keyboards Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...

, vocals *Fred Edwards -

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Exc ...

*James W. Marshall - drums, percussion *Charles Hayward -

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range: ** Bass (instrument), including: ** Acoustic bass gui ...

Parodies and covers

The Levellers The Levellers were a political movement active during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms who were committed to popular sovereignty, extended suffrage, equality before the law and religious tolerance. The hallmark of Leveller thought was its popul ...

released a version of the song in 1991. *Although it is frequently misattributed to

David Allan Coe David Allan Coe (born September 6, 1939) is an American singer and songwriter. Coe took up music after spending much of his early life in reform schools and prisons, and first became notable for busking in Nashville. He initially played mostly i ...

"Weird Al" Yankovic Alfred Matthew "Weird Al" Yankovic ( ; born October 23, 1959) is an American singer, musician, songwriter, record producer, actor and author. He is best known for creating comedy songs that make light of pop culture and often parody specifi ...

, musician Travis Meyer performed a parody entitled "The Devil Went to Jamaica" circa 1998, in which Johnny is recast as a Jamaican drug dealer who is challenged by the devil to a pot-smoking contest to see whose

marijuana Cannabis, also known as marijuana among other names, is a psychoactive drug from the cannabis plant. Native to Central or South Asia, the cannabis plant has been used as a drug for both recreational and entheogenic purposes and in various tra ...

is best: his, or Johnny's. * On a 1980 ''

The Muppet Show ''The Muppet Show'' is a sketch comedy television series created by Jim Henson and featuring the Muppets. The series originated as two pilot episodes produced by Henson for ABC in 1974 and 1975. While neither episode was moved forward as a ser ...

'' episode (Episode 420), the Muppet versions of the Devil and Johnny are portrayed in an opening number cover of the song. * The rap group K.M.C. Kru released a hip hop re-imagining of the song entitled "The Devil Came Up to Michigan" in 1991, featuring the devil and a deejay competing for a turntable of gold. *In the 2000 movie Coyote Ugly, the original song version by the

is sung and danced to as an on-bar line dance by the troupe of female bartenders. *

Steve Ouimette Stephen "Steve" Ouimette (born June 18, 1968) is a rock guitarist. He is known for performing a cover version of the hit song "The Devil Went Down To Georgia" (which was originally by the Charlie Daniels Band) for the video game '' Guitar Hero ...

(with Ed DeGenaro and

Geoff Tyson Geoff Tyson (also referred to as Jeff Tyson) played guitar for T-Ride, whose debut album shared the same title. He was a student of Joe Satriani, and one of two students Satriani has said 'Graduated' from his lessons (the other being Steve Vai). S ...

) performed a cover of the song for the 2007 video game '' Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock'' and, eventually, his 2010 album ''Epic''. This version uses electric guitars instead of fiddles, though the original lyrics are still performed. It is played as the conclusion of the game in a simulated guitar battle with the devil. Daniels objected to this version on the grounds that the devil may win the contest, which he referred to as "violating the very essence of the song". * In 2013, the Boston-based roots rockers Adam Ezra Group recorded a parody version, "The Devil Came up to Boston", with Boston-focused lyrics. In this version's official music video, group leader Adam Ezra, who wrote the lyrics to the parody, narrates it with an exaggerated version of his real-life Boston accent, and the Devil is depicted as a

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Amer ...

fan, playing off the historic

rivalry A rivalry is the state of two people or groups engaging in a lasting competitive relationship. Rivalry is the "against each other" spirit between two competing sides. The relationship itself may also be called "a rivalry", and each participant o ...

between the Yankees and

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...

. *Pop singer and electric violinist

Michelle Lambert Michelle Lambert (born May 2, 1985) is an American singer-songwriter and musician. Early life and Education Born in Covelo, California, and raised in the Bay Area, Michelle Lambert started studying the violin when she was two years old unde ...

recorded a version of the song in 2015, and released a music video. In her rendition "Johnny" is replaced by "Michelle". *A cappella group Home Free recorded a version of the song in collaboration with Taylor Davis and

playing fiddle, released in September 2015. The narration is performed by Home Free bass singer Tim Foust. *The rock band

Blues Traveler Blues Traveler (formerly known as "The Establishment" or "The Black Cat Jam" or "The Establishment Blues Band") is an American rock band that formed in Princeton, New Jersey in 1987. They are known for extensive use of segues in live performance ...

often performs this song in concert, with

John Popper John Popper (born March 29, 1967) is an American musician and songwriter, known as the co-founder, lead vocalist, and frontman of the rock band Blues Traveler. Early life John Popper was born in Chardon, Ohio. His father was a Hungarian immig ...

playing the fiddle parts on

harmonica The harmonica, also known as a French harp or mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used worldwide in many musical genres, notably in blues, American folk music, classical music, jazz, country, and rock. The many types of harmonica inclu ...

. They featured a live version of the song on their 2006 EP ''¡Bastardos en Vivo!'' *''

Robot Chicken ''Robot Chicken'' is an American adult animated stop motion sketch comedy television series, created and executive produced for Adult Swim by Seth Green and Matthew Senreich along with co-head writers Douglas Goldstein and Tom Root. The writers, ...

'' featured a composite parody of the song along with the animated series ''

Spawn Spawn or spawning may refer to: * Spawn (biology), the eggs and sperm of aquatic animals Arts, entertainment, and media * Spawn (character), a fictional character in the comic series of the same name and in the associated franchise ** '' Spawn: Ar ...

'' in episode 49 of season 3, where Malebolgia, an infernal lord, is challenged by

to a fiddle duel set to a similar tune. *In the ''

Futurama ''Futurama'' is an American animated science fiction sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series follows the adventures of the professional slacker Philip J. Fry, who is cryogenically preserved for 1000 years a ...

'' episode " Hell is Other Robots", Leela must challenge the robot devil in a fiddle-playing contest to win back Bender's soul. Also included as a prize for the winner of the contest is a solid gold fiddle. *Funk metal band Primus covered the song and featured it, in the form of a

claymation Clay animation or claymation, sometimes plasticine animation, is one of many forms of stop-motion animation. Each animated piece, either character or background, is "deformable"—made of a malleable substance, usually plasticine clay. Tra ...

music video, on a CD-ROM that was included with the 1998 release of their EP ''

Rhinoplasty Rhinoplasty ( grc, ῥίς, rhī́s, nose + grc, πλάσσειν, plássein, to shape), commonly called nose job, medically called nasal reconstruction is a plastic surgery procedure for altering and reconstructing the nose. There are two typ ...

''. *British Punk band The Toy Dolls recorded a version called 'The Devil Went Down to Scunthorpe', which used a guitar duel instead of a fiddle duel between Johnny and the Devil. *Christian parody band

ApologetiX ApologetiX is an American Christian parody band from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The band was founded in 1990, and since then, has played in almost all 50 states, released 40 studio albums, and built up a fan club that includes over 65,000 peopl ...

recorded a parody called "The Devil Went Down to Jordan" which records the Devil's attempt to tempt Jesus in the wilderness. *British comedy folk band

The Bar-Steward Sons of Val Doonican The Bar-Steward Sons of Val Doonican are a British comedy folk and parody band from Barnsley, South Yorkshire. Formed in 2006, they claim to be the hardest working comedy band in the UK, having played over 1200 shows throughout the UK. They ...

recorded a version called 'The Devil Went Down To Barnsley', in which the devil has a fiddle duel with Bjorn Doonicansson. *American Metal Band Nature of Rebel Minds released a cover of the song in 2019 and released an official music video to youtube as well. *American nu metal band

Korn Korn (stylized as KoЯn, or occasionally KoRn) is an American nu metal band from Bakersfield, California, formed in 1993. The band is notable for pioneering the nu metal genre and bringing it into the mainstream. Originally formed in 1993 ...

recorded a cover of the song in 2020 which featured the band playing the devil and rapper

Yelawolf Michael Wayne Atha (born December 30, 1979), better known by his stage name Yelawolf, is an American rapper. Born in Alabama and raised in Tennessee, he embarked on his career independently in 2005, releasing one extended play (EP) and four mixta ...

as Johnny. *Canadian rock band

Nickelback Nickelback is a Canadian Rock music, rock band formed in 1995 in Hanna, Alberta. It is composed of guitarist and lead vocalist Chad Kroeger, guitarist, keyboardist and backing vocalist Ryan Peake, bassist Mike Kroeger, and drummer Daniel Adai ...

recorded a cover in 2020 with Dave Martone. This version uses electric guitars instead of fiddles, tuned down a whole step, and contains the original lyrics with slight changes. * A metal version of the song was recorded by

Leo Moracchioli Leo Moracchioli is a Norwegian metal musician and producer based in Oltedal. A multi-instrumentalist, he is known for his metal covers of popular songs, which have gained him over 4.5 million followers on YouTube as ''Frog Leap Studios''. C ...

for his YouTube channel, Frog Leap Studios. The video was publicly released on July 17, 2020. * A cover of the song titled "Devil Comes Back to Georgia" was done by

Johnny Cash John R. Cash (born J. R. Cash; February 26, 1932 – September 12, 2003) was an American country singer-songwriter. Much of Cash's music contained themes of sorrow, moral tribulation, and redemption, especially in the later stages of his ca ...

singing updated lyrics with violin performed by

Mark O'Connor Mark O'Connor (born August 5, 1961) is an American fiddle player and composer whose music combines bluegrass, country, jazz and classical. A three-time Grammy Award winner, he has won six Country Music Association Musician Of The Year awards ...

in 1993. * In 1996, indie rock band

Mono Puff John Conant Flansburgh (born May 6, 1960) is an American musician. He is half of the long-standing Brooklyn, New York-based alternative rock duo They Might Be Giants with John Linnell, for which he writes, sings, and plays rhythm guitar. Common ...

released their studio album ''Unsupervised'', which spawned a single "The Devil Went Down to Newport". *

Zac Brown Band Zac Brown Band is an American country music band based in Atlanta, Georgia. The lineup consists of Zac Brown (lead vocals, guitar), Jimmy De Martini ( fiddle, vocals), John Driskell Hopkins (bass guitar, guitar, baritone guitar, banjo, ukulel ...

perform the song regularly in concert, and included a version on their 2009 EP ''Live from Bonnaroo''

Chart performance

The original version of the song spent fourteen weeks on the

Hot Country Singles Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data from Nielsen BDS along with digital sal ...

charts in 1979, peaking at number 1 and holding the position for one week. It spent two weeks at a peak of number 3 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. The single was

certified Platinum Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...

by the

RIAA The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

on December 20, 1989, for sales of over two million copies in the United States. In 2003, the song was ranked at #69 on ''CMT's 100 Greatest Songs of Country Music'', and #5 on ''CMT's 20 Greatest Southern Rock Songs'' in 2006. Since it became available as a download in the digital era, it has also sold 2.49 million digital copies in the US as of November 2019. In June 1998, Epic Records re-released the song to country radio, but accidentally sent out the version in which the line "son of a bitch" was uncensored. This error was quickly corrected, and the song re-entered the country charts at number 62 for the chart dated June 20, 1998. It spent seven weeks on the chart and peaked at number 60.

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Sequel

In 1993, a sequel to the song, "The Devil Comes Back to Georgia", was released by master violinist

on his album ''Heroes''. The song featured Daniels on fiddle, with

as the narrator,

Marty Stuart John Marty Stuart (born September 30, 1958) is an American country and bluegrass music singer, songwriter, and musician. Active since 1968, Stuart initially toured with Lester Flatt, and then in Johnny Cash's road band before beginning work as a ...

as Johnny, and

Travis Tritt James Travis Tritt (born February 9, 1963) is an American country music singer and songwriter. He signed to Warner Bros. Records in 1989, releasing seven studio albums and a greatest hits package for the label between then and 1999. In the 20 ...

as the devil. The song peaked at #54 on Billboard's

Hot Country Songs Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data from Nielsen BDS along with digital sal ...

chart in 1994. In the sequel, the devil, still furious ten years after being beaten, decides to take up Johnny's challenge to "c'mon back if y'ever wanna try again". Johnny is now grown with a wife and infant son, and the devil believes that Johnny's sinful pride will be his undoing, so he takes back the golden fiddle, forcing Johnny to practice with his old fiddle before their rematch- the same one he played when he defeated the devil. Though the song reiterates Johnny's bold claim that he is "the best that's ever been", the lyrics do not reveal who won the rematch. But in the video, the devil is shown defeated by Johnny again.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Devil Went Down To Georgia, The 1979 singles 1979 songs 2020 singles Charlie Daniels songs Epic Records singles Songs written by Charlie Daniels Song recordings produced by John Boylan (record producer) Songs about Georgia (U.S. state) Music based on the Faust legend