Robert Leroy Johnson ©

Take me to the crossroads
Near where he used to play his guitar
Take me to the crossroads
Near where he used to play his guitar
The place where they say
He sold his soul away
To the Devil
So he could be a star

Now Robert knew how to play the Blues
Now Robert knew how to play the Blues
He came from the Mississippi
In America’s Deep South
The only picture I ever saw
He had cigarette hanging from his mouth.

He started playing
When he was a teen
He started playing
When he was a teen
Beaten so hard when he was young
If he could perfect the sound
He would fulfill his dream.

He travelled all over the country
In the back of rail road cars
He travelled all over the country
In the back of rail road cars
He would entertain the crowds
Not in the theatres
But in back street bars

And during the depression
Charlie, Son, and Ike
Would teach him how
And during the depression
Charlie, Son, and Ike
Would teach him how
They would teach him how
To play blues guitar
He recorded his songs
But a jealous husband made sure
Robert Leroy Johnson would never be a star.

He influenced Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton
And Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones
He influenced Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton
And Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones
With his haunting voice
And frightening but precise guitar tones

I don’t know if the Devil
Claimed his soul
I don’t know
If the Devil claimed his soul
But he did lay the foundations for the sound
We now call Rhythm and Blues and Rock and Roll