Devil

(fire)
It's night time in the Big City
an ambulance races though downtown
an off duty cops parks in front of his ex-wife's house This is Theme Time Radio Hour, and there's Hell to pay

The Singers and Songs

  • Reverend Gary Davis
    The Devil's Dream
    During his intro, Bob spoke over a section from The Devil's Dream by Reverend Gary Davis .
  • Robert Johnson
    Me and the Devil Blues
    "According to legend, Robert Johnson made a deal with the devil, at the crossroads of Highway 61 and Highway 49."
  • The Louvin Brothers
    Satan Is Real
  • Grateful Dead
    Friend of the Devil
    "This song is a road story, a hitch-hiking journey of the early 70's counterculture."
  • Elvis Presley
    Devil In Disguise
  • Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys
    The Devil Ain't Lazy
    "They had a country string section but they played pop songs, as if they were jazz numbers."
  • The Flying Burrito Brothers
    The Devil In Disguise (aka Christine's Tune)
  • Dandy Livingstone
    Suzanne Beware of the Devil
  • The Donays (lead vocalist Yvonne Allen)
    Devil In His Heart
    "The Donays only made one record...you only have to make one, if it's this good."
  • Otis Spann
    Must Have Been The Devil
    "This record was recorded after an all night party, and it sure sounds like it."
  • Johnny Tyler
    Devil's Hot Rod
  • Skip James
    Devil Got My Woman
    "Here's another barn burner. This is my man, Skip James. Skip had a style that was celestially divine, sounded like it was coming from beyond the veil. Magic in the grooves. He had a style that was ghostly and other worldly, rare and unusual, mysterious and vague. You won't believe what you'll hear. Listen for yourself and you'll see. You be the judge."
  • Count Basie and His Orchestra, featuring Helen Humes
    Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea
  • Shorty Long
    Devil With a Blue Dress On
    "I wonder if he means Monica Lewinski?"
  • Beck
    Devil's Haircut
    "Beck says this song is a really simplistic metaphor for the evil of vanity. I just thought you could dance to it!"
  • Gene Vincent (and the Blue Caps)
    Race With the Devil
  • Tom Waits
    Way Down in the Hole
    "Low on schmaltz and a real show-stopper, not pullin' any punches."

The Other People and Players

  • Muddy Waters
  • The Dust Brothers
  • The Neville Brothers
  • Blind Boys of Alabama
  • Cliff Gallup
  • George Patton, Jr.
  • Jane Mansfield
  • Jackson Pollock
  • James Dean
  • Albert Camus
  • Isadora Duncan
    Strangled by her own scarf
  • Princess Diana
  • Princess Grace of Monaco
  • Stevie Wonder
  • Marvin Gaye
  • Monica Lewinski
  • Mitch Ryder
  • Lester Young
  • Billie Holiday
    "Back then, Songwriters used to write songs and let the artist interpret 'em. Nowadays, People just write songs for themselves. They put themselves in boxes, ticky-tacky boxes. We've lost out on the whole art form on interpretive singing."
  • Charlie Patton
  • Skip James
  • Dylan Thomas
  • B.B. King
  • Oscar Wilde
    "We are each our own devil, and we make this world our hell."
  • Bob Shadd
  • W.C. Fields
  • George Harrison
  • Leonard Cohen
  • The Specials
  • Ernie Ranglin
  • Rico Rodriguez
  • Christine Frka (Girls Together Outrageously)
  • Graham Parsons
  • Chris Hillman
  • Richard Nixon
    "One of the most misunderstood people of the 20th century, often maligned, but obviously capable of great humanity. He loved that dog, and he loved that his daughter loved that dog, too."
  • Sammy Davis, Jr.
  • Anton LaVey
  • Ken Kesey
  • Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions
  • Chet Atkins
  • Reverend Gary Davis
  • John Milton
  • Holland/Dozer/Holland
  • The Beatles

The Other Songs and Albums

The Guests

  • Twyla Tharp

The Books and Poems

  • Paradise Lost

The Movies and TV Shows

  • 42nd Street
  • The Wire

The Places

  • Norfolk, VA
  • Detroit River
  • Motown
  • Grafton, WI
  • Philadelphia, PA
  • Bentonia, MS
  • Missouri
  • Arkansas
  • Jamaica
  • Cook County, IL
  • Reno
  • Los Angeles
  • Clarksdale, MS

Record Labels


We'll see you next week, sure as Hell!