Devil Went Down to Georgia

The song is a narrative about the Devil, who comes to Georgia to procure souls. He has not obtained any recently, and is willing to "make a deal" out of desperation. He happens upon a young fiddle player named Johnny, who is minding his own business and playing impressively. The Devil approaches Johnny, and informs him that he too, plays the fiddle. He then decides to challenge Johnny to a fiddle-playing contest, confident that he is more skillful than the young boy. The terms of the duel are that should Johnny win, he will be given a fiddle made of solid gold, but should the Devil triumph, he gains Johnny's soul. Johnny accepts the terms, proudly telling the Devil that he will regret it as he is "the best there's ever been". The duel commences, with the Devil performing a sinister and powerful piece with the backing of demon musicians. Despite this, the Devil is squarely defeated when Johnny takes his turn to perform. The Devil acknowledges being bested and, true to his word, the Devil presents Johnny with a beautiful golden fiddle. Johnny boastfully informs the Devil that he is welcome anytime to come back for a rematch. The narrative is a derivative of the traditional "pact with the Devil" 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 wrote many, many years ago [1925], that I had in high school."

[Verse 1] The Devil went down to Georgia He was lookin' for a soul to steal He was in a bind 'cause he was way behind He was willing to make a deal When he came across this young man sawin' on a fiddle and playin' it hot And the Devil jumped upon a hickory stump and said "Boy, let me tell you what." "I guess you didn't know it, but I'm a fiddle player, too And if you'd care to take a dare I'll make a bet with you Now you play a pretty good fiddle, boy, but give the Devil his due I'll bet a fiddle of gold against your soul 'cause I think I'm better than you." [Pre-Chorus] The boy said, "My name's Johnny, and it might be a sin But I'll take your bet, and you're gonna regret, 'cause I'm the best there's ever been." [Chorus] Johnny, rosin up your bow and play your fiddle hard 'Cause Hell's broke loose in Georgia and the Devil deals the cards And if you win you get this shiny fiddle made of gold But if you lose the devil gets your soul [Verse 2] The Devil opened up his case and he said, "I'll start this show." And fire flew from his fingertips as he rosined up his bow And he pulled the bow across the strings and it made an evil hiss And a band of demons joined in and it sounded something like this: [Demonic violin piece] [Verse 3] When the Devil finished, Johnny said, "Well, you're pretty good ol' son But sit down in that chair right there and let me show you how it's done." [Chorus] "Fire on the Mountain" Run, boys, run! The Devil's in the house of the rising sun Chicken's in the bread pan picking out dough Granny, does your dog bite? No, child, no [Non-demonic violin piece] [Verse 4] The Devil bowed his head because he knew that he'd been beat And he laid that golden fiddle on the ground at Johnny's feet Johnny said, "Devil, just come on back if you ever wanna try again I done told you once--you son of a bitch--I'm the best there's ever been." And he played: [Chorus] "Fire on the Mountain" Run, boys, run! The Devil's in the house of the rising sun Chicken's in the bread pan picking out dough Granny, will your dog bite? No, child, no