Johnny Samuels

> *"Samuels had dreamt of being a great Blues player ever since he was a child. He had worked and saved to afford his first-and only- guitar from almost since he could walk, and when he was 15 he finally bought a second or third hand guitar and began to realise his dream"*
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John "Johnny" Samuels was a young Blues musician who found fame after potentially making a deal with the Man with a Voice like Honey and Chocolate and Coffee all at once. Was the owner of the Guitar of the Man Who Met the Devil at the Crossroads.

## Description

Johnny Samuels is an American man described as coming from a poor family and having a tremor. Through his story, it is shown he is willing to do anything to become a famous Blues musician. He is shown spending all of his money on Flatshoe Hap to find out how to become famous, then later lying to him about his plans to make a deal with The Man.

## History

Most of Johnny's history is obscured due to the passage of time and mythology surrounding him, however, researchers have been able to glean the following;

Johnny grew up in a poor family and wanted all his life to be a famous Blues player. He worked from a young age to finally buy himself a "second or third hand guitar" at age 15. Despite constantly practising, Johnny's playing was only described as "adequate" due to a persistent tremor he had in both of his hands.

After hearing about an obscure Blues player called Flatshoe Hap playing in a nearby town, he rode there on a pig cart and begged for help. After spending all of his money on buying Flatshoe drinks, Flatshoe finally told him the story of how he met the Man with a Voice like Honey and Chocolate and Coffee all at once at a crossroads and made a deal with him to become famous and later return the favour. Flatshoe made Johnny promise not to try and find The Man.

Despite his promise, it is strongly implied Johnny found The Man and made a deal with him. Although, this cannot be confirmed by any witnesses.

Johnny's next confirmed location was in New York playing for an audience of hundreds of people. Johnny became an instant success, with people describing him as "One of the greatest, if not the greatest, Blues musicians who had ever lived." Unlike before, his hands were now completely steady, allowing him to record two albums in one year.

Johnny disappeared during the recording of his third album. The most popular story is that he simply disappeared when the producer went for a smoke break, leaving only his guitar behind. However, a second story suggested his guitar broke and his tremor returned. His tremor began taking over his entire body, resulting in his entire body and the room vibrating. The producer there described Johnny as becoming "liquified" but researchers suggest believe Johnny vibrated so hard his body fell apart.

A third story claimed that Johnny Samuels was simply "taken" by The Man during the recording of his third album due to rumours around him selling his soul to the devil. Upon realising his mistake, The Man offered Johnny a chance "to slip his mortal form and become something more" in ways he was not willing to disclose. It is implied this story was provided by The Man and is potentially false.

## Appearances

* NASCENT, ***The Guitar of the Man Who Met the Devil at the Crossroads***, (Part of Exhibit)
* SPIRALING, ***A Correction Regarding The Exhibit Titled “The Guitar Of The Man Who Met The Devil At The Crossroads”***, (Mentioned)

## Trivia

* Johnny's two albums are considered an essential part of any Blues collection.
* The only recording of Johnny's third album can be found in The Mistholme Museum's Secure Archives.
	+ The disc is described as an "otherwise nondescript 12” vinyl record" which has been stored in a lead-lined vault.
	+ Listening to the disc requires full-body protective gear and months of therapy afterwards to survive.
	+ Supposedly The Man's voice can be heard on the disc.
* The strings of Johnny's guitar broke in order of E, C, A, then D
* Johnny's story is inspired by the legend surrounding American blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter Robert Johnson.
* It is suggested that Johnny making a deal with The Man resulted in Flatshoe's death.
* Someone who is supposedly Johnny wrote a letter to the Museum following the publication of the exhibit on his guitar.
	+ This is disproven to be Johnny, or at least Johnny in any recognisable form, as the letter is written in "truly immaculate hand." This cannot be possible as Johnny has a distinctive tremor. It is instead implied to be written by The Man as the letter notes several clarifications about The Man's preferences and guilt.
	+ The letter implies that Johnny is no longer human and has since "slipped his mortal form and become something more." It is unclear if this is to trick the Museum Staff into believing the letter or if he is still alive to some extent.
	+ 'Johnny's' request for his guitar back was denied.
* There is a persistent rumour that Johnny Samuels sold his soul to the devil for his musical prowess and was later claimed by the devil during the recording of his 3rd album. Supposedly, Johnny has had to defend himself from these accusations for decades.