Robert Johnson’s recording career may have only lasted seven months, but today he’s recognized as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame describes him as “perhaps the first ever rock star,” and he’s considered a member of the 27 Club, a list of high-achieving cultural icons who didn’t make it to 28 years of age.

For the better part of his short life, Johnson was unknown and unrecognized – until he emerged in his early twenties as one of the world’s best guitarists. How did a musician go from being an unrecognized talent to world-class in such a short time? Some think that he sold his soul to the devil.

As far as deals with the devil go, Johnson’s is one of the better ones known in pop culture. In The Devil and Daniel Webster, a short story by Stephen Vincent Benét, a man sells his soul to the devil for a mere 10 years of “prosperity” – a far cry from a century’s worth of world fame.

The few sellers who’ve listed their soul on eBay have gotten even less for their “used” item. In 2002, 26-year-old Gareth Malham from Newcastle, England successfully passed on his soul to a man from Oklahoma, for just under $20 (minus post and packaging). By 2008, this window of opportunity had closed; an arts institute graduate from England found out that eBay no longer allows listings for non-physical items. Souls, ghosts, curses, and goodwill must be sold elsewhere, but perhaps an even better question than where to sell one’s........

© Psychology Today