The devil went down to Georgia he was lookin' for a soul to steal
He was in a bind 'cause he was way behind
And he was willing to make a deal

When he came across this young man
Sawing on a fiddle and playing it hot
And the devil jumped up on 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 pretty good fiddle, son but give the devil his due
I bet a fiddle of gold against your soul I think I'm better than you"

The boy said, "my name's Johnny
And it might be a sin but I'll take your bet and you're gonna regret
I'm the best that's ever been"

Johnny you resin 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

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

He dragged the bow across the strings and it made an evil hiss
The band of demons joined in and it sounded something like this

When the devil finished johnny said "well you're pretty good, old son
But sit down in that chair right there and let me show you how it's done"

Fire on the mountain, run boys run
The devil's in the house of the rising sun
Chicken in the bread pan pickin' out dough
Granny does your dog bite, no child no

The devil bowed his head 'cause 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 want to try again
I told you once, you son of a bitch I'm the best that's ever been"

He played, fire on the mountain, run boys run
The devil's in the house of the rising sun
Chicken in the bread pan pickin' out dough
Granny does your dog bite, no child no

Copyright: Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Writer(s): Charles Fred Hayward, Charlie Daniels, Fred Edwards, James W. Marshall, John Crain, William J. Digregorio