Case file · Folklore / legend
Selling your soul at the crossroads
Mississippi Delta lore holds that a guitarist can meet a 'black man' at a crossroads at midnight and trade his soul for mastery; the legend is pinned on bluesman Robert Johnson, who died in 1938.
1938 CE · 34.19, -90.57 · status: legend
The account
The motif comes from hoodoo crossroads rituals recorded by Hyatt and others. It was first told about Tommy Johnson, by his brother LeDell in a 1960s interview; Clarksdale marks a 'crossroads' at Highways 61 and 49.
The sceptical view
Johnson's skill came from years of practice and teachers such as Ike Zimmerman; the soul-selling story grew after his records were reissued in the 1960s.