Ep. 161: Crossroad Blues - The Mystery of Robert Johnson

This week, Carrie takes us on a trip back to the 1930s Mississippi Delta with the mysterious story of Robert Johnson, American blues icon and “first ever rock star.” Johnson has long been identified with the legend that he, desperate to become an incredible guitarist, went down to the crossroads one dark night and sold his soul to the Devil for musical glory.  Did Johnson really make some kind of Faustian bargain with Satan himself? If not, how did he go from no-talent blues wannabe to musical virtuoso in just a few short months? And did the “hellhound on his trail” that dogged him throughout a life shadowed by tragedy drive him to his untimely end at the young age of 27? We try to answer some of these questions and more in this exploration of the darker roots of rock ‘n roll. ________________________________________ Connect with us on social media: Facebook: www.facebook.com/aintitscary Twitter: @aintitscary Instagram: @aintitscary Patreon: www.patreon.com/aintitscary Merch: https://www.teepublic.com/stores/aint-it-scary?ref_id=27696 ___________________________________________ Thank you to our sponsors: Neuro Gum - Get up to 30% off your order of Neuro Gum at tryneurogum.com/aintitscary! Magic Mind - Get up to 56% off your subscription and 20% off your first order with our code SCARYSC2020 at MagicMind.co/aintitscary! MANSCAPED - Get 20% OFF @manscaped + Free Shipping with promo code SCARYSQUAD at MANSCAPED.com! #ad #manscapedpod BetterHelp - Special offer for Ain’t it Scary? listeners: Get 10% off your first month at www.betterhelp.com/aintitscary Audible - Get a FREE audiobook and 30-Day Free Trial at www.audibletrial.com/aintitscary BarkBox - Enjoy a FREE month of BarkBox on us when you sign up for a 6 or 12-month BarkBox subscription! Visit www.barkbox.com/aintitscary for more details Hunt a Killer - Receive 20% off your first Hunt a Killer subscription box at www.huntakiller.com with the code SCARYSQUAD at checkout!  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices