Did Robert Johnson, the most famous blues musician, sell His Soul to the Devil? Did he make a Faustian bargain?  Are these stories about the crossroads and the murder true?  Ted Gioia writes a good essay which refuses to sanitize the issue. It was a serious issue for Johnson and his contemporaries, listen to Me and the Devil Blues or ("one of the most powerful blues ever recorded", says Gioia) to "Hellhound on My Trail" for confirmation.  Gioia thinks it is time to give the Devil his due.  I like this quote from Eric Clapton: "Up until the time I was 25 if you didn't know who Robert Johnson was I wouldn't talk to you."