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The Devil Went Down to Georgia

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"The Devil Went Down to Georgia"
Single by Charlie Daniels Band
from the album Million Mile Reflections
B-side"Rainbow Ride"
ReleasedMay 21, 1979
Genre
Length3:34
LabelEpic
Songwriter(s)
  • Charlie Daniels
  • Tom Crain
  • "Taz" DiGregorio
  • Fred Edwards
  • Charles Hayward
  • James W Marshall
Producer(s)John Boylan
Charlie Daniels Band singles chronology
"Trudy"
(1978) 		"The Devil Went Down to Georgia"
(1979) 		"Mississippi"
(1979)
Music video
"The Devil Went Down to Georgia" on YouTube

"The Devil Went Down to Georgia" is a song written and recorded by American music group Charlie Daniels Band and released on their 1979 album Million Mile Reflections.[3]

The song is written in the key of D minor. Although uncredited, Vassar Clements originally wrote the basic melody an octave 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), and tell the story of a young man named Johnny, in a variant on the classic deal with the Devil. 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" by Earth, Wind and Fire and "My Sharona" by The Knack.[4]

Content

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The song tells a story about the Devil's failure to gain a young man's soul through a fiddle-playing contest. The song begins as a disappointed Devil arrives in Georgia, 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, he fearlessly accepts, confidently boasting "I'm the best that's ever been."

The Devil plays first, backed by a band of demon musicians. When he has finished, Johnny compliments him ("Well, you're pretty good, old son.") and takes his own turn, rendering at least four old-time songs, named (though not played) in the Charlie Daniels Band recording—the third of the four being identified not by title, but by an excerpt of its lyrics:

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

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Cash Box praised the "engaging narrative story line" and said the song has "thundering piano", "screaming fiddle work", "pounding drums and screeching guitar".[7] Record World said that Daniels "administers heavy doses of both [storytelling and fiddle-playing] with producer John Boylan capturing the excitement like no one else can."[8]

In 2024, Rolling Stone ranked the song at #120 on its 200 Greatest Country Songs of All Time ranking.[9]

Censorship

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Johnny's final boast, from the album 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, I'm the best that's ever been", though AOR stations continued to use the unaltered version.

Musical references

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The ballad's story is a derivative of the traditional deal 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."[10][11]

Personnel

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Parodies and covers

[edit]
"The Devil Went Down to Georgia"
Single by Nickelback
ReleasedAugust 14, 2020 (2020-08-14)
Recorded2016–2017
VenueLittle Mountain View Studio
GenreHard rock
Length3:58
LabelNickelback II Productions Inc.
Songwriter(s)
  • Charlie Daniels
  • Tom Crain
  • "Taz" DiGregorio
  • Fred Edwards
  • Charles Hayward
  • James W Marshall
Producer(s)Nickelback
Nickelback singles chronology
"After the Rain"
(2017) 		"The Devil Went Down to Georgia"
(2020) 		"San Quentin"
(2022)
"The Devil Went Down to Georgia"
Song by Primus
from the EP Rhinoplasty
ReleasedAugust 11, 1998 (1998-08-11)
StudioPrairie Sun (Cotati, California)
GenreAlternative rock, funk rock
Length4:35
LabelInterscope, Prawn Song
Songwriter(s)
  • Charlie Daniels
  • Tom Crain
  • "Taz" DiGregorio
  • Fred Edwards
  • Charles Hayward
  • James W Marshall
Producer(s)Primus, Toby Wright
  • The Levellers released a version of the song in 1991.[13]
  • The musician Travis Meyer performed a parody entitled "The Devil Went to Jamaica" circa 1998, although it is frequently misattributed to David Allan Coe or "Weird Al" Yankovic, 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 is best: his, or Johnny's.[14]
  • On a 1980 The Muppet Show episode (Episode 420), the Muppet versions of the Devil and Johnny are portrayed in an opening number cover of the song.[15]
  • 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.[16]
  • In the 2000 movie Coyote Ugly, the original song version by the Charlie Daniels Band is sung and danced to as an on-bar line dance by the troupe of female bartenders.[17]
  • Steve Ouimette (with Ed DeGenaro and Geoff Tyson[18]) 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".[19]
  • 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 fan, playing off the historic rivalry between the Yankees and Boston Red Sox.[20]
  • In the 1996 Summer Olympics, American gymnast Dominique Moceanu used an instrumental version of the song as her music for the floor routine
  • The pop singer and electric violinist Michelle Lambert recorded a version of the song in 2015, and released a music video. In her rendition "Johnny" is replaced by "Michelle".[21]
  • A cappella group Home Free recorded a version of the song in collaboration with Taylor Davis and Charlie Daniels playing fiddle, released in September 2015. The narration is performed by Home Free bass singer Tim Foust.[22]
  • The rock band Blues Traveler often performs this song in concert, with John Popper playing the fiddle parts on harmonica.[23] They featured a live version of the song on their 2006 EP ¡Bastardos en Vivo![24]
  • Robot Chicken featured a composite parody of the song along with the animated series Spawn in episode 49 of season 3, where Malebolgia, an infernal lord, is challenged by Spawn to a fiddle duel set to a similar tune.[25]
  • In the Futurama 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.
  • In the Supernatural episode "Swan Song", Lucifer quotes a line from the song "a fiddle of gold against your soul that says I'm better than you."
  • The funk metal band Primus covered the song and featured it, in the form of a stop motion animated music video, on a CD-ROM that was included with the 1998 release of their EP Rhinoplasty.[26]
  • 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.
  • The Christian parody band ApologetiX 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 recorded a version called 'The Devil Went Down To Barnsley', in which the devil has a fiddle duel with Bjorn Doonicansson.
  • The American metal band Nature of Rebel Minds [27] released a cover of the song in 2019 and released an official music video to youtube as well.[28]
  • The American nu metal band Korn recorded a cover of the song in 2020 which featured the band playing the devil and rapper Yelawolf as Johnny.[29]
  • The Canadian rock band Nickelback 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 for his YouTube channel, Frog Leap Studios. The video was publicly released[30] on July 17, 2020.
  • A sequel to the song titled "Devil Comes Back to Georgia" was done by Mark O'Connor in 1993. Johnny Cash was the lead singer and narrator, Marty Stuart and Travis Tritt sang as Johnny and the Devil, respectively, Charlie Daniels played the Devil's solo on the fiddle, and O'Connor played Johnny's solo on the violin.[31][32]
  • In 1996, the indie rock band Mono Puff released their studio album Unsupervised, which spawned a single "The Devil Went Down to Newport".[33]
  • The Zac Brown Band perform the song regularly in concert, and included a version on their 2009 EP Live from Bonnaroo.[34]
  • Adrenaline Mob released a heavy metal cover in their 2015 album "Dearly Departed".
  • In the fifth Hazbin Hotel episode, "Dad Beat Dad", during the song "Hell's Greatest Dad", Lucifer pulls a golden fiddle when challenged by Alastor.
  • In 2002, Tenacious D released "Tribute". The song chronicles the band members' encounter with a demon who demands the duo play "the best song in the world" or have their souls eaten

Chart performance

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The original version of the song spent fourteen weeks on the Hot Country Singles 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.[35] The single was certified Platinum by the RIAA on December 20, 1989, for sales of over one million copies in the United States.[36] 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.[37] 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.[38] It spent seven weeks on the chart and peaked at number 60.[35]

Certifications

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Region Certification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[51] Silver 200,000‡
United States (RIAA)[52] Platinum 1,000,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Sequel

[edit]
"The Devil Comes Back to Georgia"
Single by Mark O'Connor featuring Johnny Cash, Charlie Daniels, Marty Stuart and Travis Tritt
from the album Heroes
B-side"This Can't Be Love"
ReleasedSeptember 14, 1993
GenreBluegrass, country, country rock
Length4:13
LabelEpic
Songwriter(s)
  • Charlie Daniels
  • Tom Crain
  • "Taz" DiGregorio
  • Fred Edwards
  • Charles Hayward
  • James W Marshall
Producer(s)Mark O'Connor and Jim Ed Norman

In 1993, a sequel to the song, "The Devil Comes Back to Georgia", was released by master violinist Mark O'Connor on his album Heroes. The song featured Daniels on fiddle, with Johnny Cash as the narrator, Marty Stuart as Johnny, and Travis Tritt as the devil. The song peaked at #54 on Billboard's Hot Country Songs 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.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Bluegrass Unlimited. Vol. 40. Bluegrass Unlimited. 2005. p. 71.
  2. ^ Heller, Marsha (July 7, 2020). "What you need to know July 7". KFVS-TV. Retrieved November 10, 2020.
  3. ^ "Million Mile Reflections - Charlie Daniels, The Charlie Daniels Band | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved October 14, 2016.
  4. ^ Whitburn, Joel: "The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits", p. 92, ISBN 0-8230-7518-4
  5. ^ "Ida Red lyrics chords | Bob Wills". Classic-country-song-lyrics.com. Retrieved January 20, 2017.
  6. ^ "Granny will Your Dog Bite". Retrieved February 28, 2023.
  7. ^ "CashBox Singles Reviews" (PDF). Cash Box. June 23, 1979. p. 18. Retrieved January 1, 2022.
  8. ^ "Single Picks" (PDF). Record World. June 23, 1979. p. 24. Retrieved February 11, 2023.
  9. ^ "The 200 Greatest Country Songs of All Time". Rolling Stone. May 24, 2014.
  10. ^ "Charlie Daniels : Songwriter Interviews". Songfacts.com. March 30, 2007. Retrieved October 14, 2016.
  11. ^ "Forty and Forward: The Devil Went Down to Georgia".
  12. ^ "The Charlie Daniels Band – Million Mile Reflections (1979, Vinyl)". Discogs. August 19, 1979. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
  13. ^ "The Levellers - One Way (CD)". Discogs.com. September 28, 2012. Retrieved October 14, 2016.
  14. ^ "David Allan Coe - Devil went down to jamaica (the complete song)". YouTube. Archived from the original on December 13, 2021. Retrieved October 26, 2021.
  15. ^ "Muppet Songs: The Devil Went Down to Georgia". YouTube. Archived from the original on December 13, 2021. Retrieved October 26, 2021.
  16. ^ "K.M.C. Kru - The Devil Came Up to Michigan (CD)". Discogs.com. September 28, 2012. Retrieved October 27, 2016.
  17. ^ Coyote Ugly
  18. ^ "Steve Ouimette - Radio King". Radio King. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  19. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on October 3, 2012. Retrieved June 15, 2016.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  20. ^ Annear, Steve (June 13, 2013). "Rate This Boston Accent and Anti-Yankees Music Video". Boston Magazine. Retrieved October 11, 2021.
  21. ^ "The Devil Went Down to Georgia by Michelle Lambert (Official Video)". YouTube. July 25, 2015. Archived from the original on December 13, 2021.
  22. ^ "The Devil Went Down To Georgia". Youtube.com. September 19, 2015. Archived from the original on December 13, 2021.
  23. ^ "Blues Traveler - Devil Went Down To Georgia". YouTube. February 24, 2007. Archived from the original on December 13, 2021. Retrieved October 14, 2016.
  24. ^ "Blues Traveler - ¡Bastardos en Vivo! Live". Discogs. Retrieved July 11, 2022.
  25. ^ "Spawn Went Down to Georgia". Youtube.com. December 20, 2011. Archived from the original on February 1, 2013.
  26. ^ "Primus - The Devil Went Down To Georgia". Youtube.com. June 16, 2009. Archived from the original on December 13, 2021.
  27. ^ "Nature of Rebel Minds | Rock from Winston Salem, NC". Reverbnation.com.
  28. ^ "Nature Of Rebel Minds-The Devil Went Down To Georgia(OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO)". YouTube. Archived from the original on December 13, 2021.
  29. ^ "Korn Unveils Cover of The Charlie Daniels Band's 'The Devil Went Down to Georgia'". Billboard.com. June 28, 2020.
  30. ^ "Frog Leap Studios - The Devil Went Down To Georgia (metal cover by Leo Moracchioli)". YouTube. July 17, 2020. Archived from the original on December 13, 2021. Retrieved October 23, 2020.
  31. ^ ""Devil Comes Back to Georgia" feat. Mark O'Connor with Daniels, Cash, Tritt and Marty Stuart". YouTube. Archived from the original on December 13, 2021. Retrieved October 26, 2021.
  32. ^ Mark O'Connor - The Devil Comes Back To Georgia, August 19, 1993, retrieved July 11, 2022
  33. ^ "Unsupervised - TMBW: The They Might Be Giants Knowledge Base". tmbw.net. September 5, 2020. Retrieved June 7, 2022.
  34. ^ "Zac Brown Band - Live From Bonnaroo 2009 EP". Discogs. Retrieved July 11, 2022.
  35. ^ a b Whitburn, Joel (2008). Hot Country Songs 1944 to 2008. Record Research, Inc. p. 114. ISBN 978-0-89820-177-2.
  36. ^ "American single certifications – Charlie Daniel Band – The Devil Went Down to Georgia". Recording Industry Association of America.
  37. ^ Bjorke, Matt (November 6, 2019). "Top 30 Digital Country Downloads Chart". Roughstock. Retrieved November 7, 2019.
  38. ^ Jessen, Wade (June 20, 1998). "Country Corner". Billboard. Vol. 110, no. 25. p. 34.
  39. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 82. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  40. ^ "Irish Singles Chart – Search for song". Irish Recorded Music Association. Archived from the original on June 2, 2009. Retrieved July 6, 2011.
  41. ^ "{{{artist}}} – The Devil Went Down to Georgia". Top 40 Singles.
  42. ^ "Charlie Daniels Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard.
  43. ^ a b "Charlie Daniels Chart History (Hot Country Songs)". Billboard.
  44. ^ "Charlie Daniels Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard.
  45. ^ "Cash Box Top 100 9/08/79". tropicalglen.com. Archived from the original on February 14, 2015. Retrieved April 1, 2018.
  46. ^ "Kent Music Report No 288 – 31 December 1979 > National Top 100 Singles for 1979". Kent Music Report, via Imgur.com. Retrieved December 9, 2019.
  47. ^ Canada, Library and Archives (July 17, 2013). "Image : RPM Weekly". bac-lac.gc.ca. Retrieved April 1, 2018.
  48. ^ "Top 100 Hits of 1979/Top 100 Songs of 1979". Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved April 1, 2018.
  49. ^ "Hot Country Songs – Year-End 1979". Billboard. Retrieved July 17, 2021.
  50. ^ "Cash Box YE Pop Singles - 1979". tropicalglen.com. Archived from the original on July 13, 2014. Retrieved April 1, 2018.
  51. ^ "British single certifications – Charlie Daniels Band – The Devil Went Down to Georgia". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved October 16, 2020.
  52. ^ "American single certifications – Charlie Daniels Band – The Devil Went Down to Georgia". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved October 16, 2020.
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