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I mean, the name of the song is "Devil went Down to Georgia" not "Johnny went Down to Hell"
Kind of implies that the Devil came to fuck around and he found out. A cautionary tale for Devil's if you will 
I mean it’s kinda implied the devil got his soul the minute he agreed to the competition due to pride and making a bargain with the devil Johnny even says “it might be a sin” when he’s offered the deal
my question about that song is- he says "now it may be a sin but ill take your bet"
is it a sin regardless or only if he loses? because the price is his soul.
Basically- is it a sin for him to lose his soul? or is it making any kind of bet with the devil?
What do you expect from the country of Manifest Destiny
His fiddlin was divinely inspired! The Devil never stood a chance. This was a story about God humbling the Devil.
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Jason Morehead
@JasonMorehead10
The Devil in Georgia
Johnny's problem was not that he stood up to the devil it was that he thought he could defeat him with his own skill.
I imagine the narrator of that song being the devil...as he loves stories that make people think their pride and skill can defeat him...
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The devil lost the bet but won overall. Pride is the toughest of sins and Johnny bathed in it. The devil lost the bet and the violin but is gaining Johnny's soul in the end.
Not enough cultures believe in the strength of the indomitable human spirit.
Sometimes Japan does in anime, but that’s the only other country I can think of.
It reminds me of Canserbero's Es Epico song. Similar to this it's close to a Venezuelan story of Florentino and the Devil.
The devil was playing "devil music", i.e. rock and roll. Which is why it sounded better.
My favorite reference to that song is in Futurama where Fry challenges the robot devil to a fiddle contest.
The devil pulls out a solid gold fiddle and Bender says "Wouldn't a solid gold fiddle weigh a ton and sound like crap?"
LOL
I have this vivid memory of this song playing while at a Taco Bell drive thru with my Dad
He rarely ever picked me up because of his job, and rarely ever got take out for lunch
I was even with my older brother who rarely ever spends time with me
We just chatted over this song
It's so weird cos the devil's parts of the song were actually sooo much better than Johnny's
Nope, it's a tale of hard work being rewarded.
The Devil assumed he was the best and had demons backing him up, playing most of the music.
Johnny won by being better from just sheer practice and skill.
Johnny earned his win. Both times.
Well for 1 the song was written in the 1970s and wasn't based on a preexisting story
America does have Faustian stories like that i.e. the Devil and Tom Walker, but this is literally just meant to be a song without any particular message
I remember he wanted to sue guitar hero for allowing the player to lose to the devil, but didn't have the right to the song. Accused the devs of being devil worshippers
I like it, it shows even supernatural forces have nothing against pure talent and skill
cause we are the best theres ever been
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Richard I Porter (check bio?)
@richardiporter
Replying to @AlecStapp
much ink has been spilled on the special geographic, geologic, demographic, historical, strategic, heritage of these states united. but it really isnt enough still.
so lucky.
so unique.
so unbeatable.
USA USA USA
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GIF
I really like how this universe's solution to the literal devil being in town is to have a fiddle contest
Not only this but the Devil lost a contest that HE WAS JUDGING. Johnny is just that good!
It was a fiddle contest, not a battle of the bands, that’s why the devil lost
I don't really get it, tales about defeating demons and godlike beings have existed long before America was a country, what makes it American
Headcanon: the devil took a dive and because he inflated Johnny's ego has effectively guaranteed his soul in the future
The best part is that it can’t even be called pride, what would otherwise be a mortal sin, because he is simply better than Satan.
Well there was that time Garth Brooks sold his soul to the devil for a hit song and all Lucifer could come up with was Fred's Slacks. Music clearly wasn't his strong suit.
Except, the devil won. The contest outcome was irrelevant. The devil won as soon as Johnny's pride got the better of him and he accepted the devil's deal. Profiting off a devil's deal is still taking a devil's deal. The second you take it, you've lost.
How is this uniquely American? There's like a whole genre of simple folks tricking/beating the devil in European literature.
Same story in Benet's The Devil and Daniel Webster. Webster straight up out-lawyers the devil, which is impressive, since the devil has a special skill at lawyering--a justification and Bible verse for any situation. Webster beats him though.
I love the message of the story but I'm sorry, I hate to say it, the devils song is just better than Johnny's. Idk why the song makes it seem so obvious that Johnny won. It's at least a tie lol
The funniest part about this is its absolutely a song about hubris, but Americans missed that part all together
The Devil's prize was Johnny's soul and the Devil loses the contest, but Johnny's pride that makes him take the fight ensures the Devil will have his prize eventually.
Y’all are gonna flip when you realize that he made a follow up to this song, a round 2 if you will
Ok, I didn't know that in the US they also have their own legend of a musician against the devil. There are more versions than I thought.
Two things not to do in Georgia
1: never reject a peach
2: Don't challenge children to any contests
It was about hubris, just not Johnny's.
The Devil went to Georgia. He's the one that challenged some country bumpkin, thinking it would be easy pickings. He just wasn't prepared to find anyone that could outdo him at any skill.
Can't it be both? The song straight up said "it might be a sin" so he knows what's going on.
That’s honestly a great way to put it. Hell, look at John Henry, dude just smokes a drilling locomotive through sheer force of will. That’s that true American spirit right there.
German and Slavic folklore has this same tale with this same morality multiple times over.
Nah, bro. "Regular dude beats the devil" is an OLD ass European folklore trope.
There's actually a whole set of old folktales about regular folks outwitting the Devil
