Run Down The Devil (Dirty Diamonds, 2005)

Alice’s 17th solo studio LP is Dirty Diamonds. Over the years, Alice has put together many different bands and created classic after classic. However, his current band may be the best he’s ever assembled.

Two members of his ensemble, Chuck Garric (Bass) and Ryan Roxie (Guitar) co-wrote many of the tracks on Dirty Diamonds and played on almost every song.

Like its predecessor (The Eyes Of Alice Cooper), Dirty Diamonds returns to the roots of Rock – a throwback to the 70s and garage bands of yesteryears. The album is raw and straightforward – lightly produced and recorded in very few takes.

“This is definitely (The Eyes of Alice Cooper) part two. Not officially, but it’s the same theory on this one, which is write the song, record the song, put the song to bed. I’m a very big advocate, if you’re going to do an album like this, the first thing you’re getting from the band is going to be the best thing you get.” – Alice Cooper

Yet another homerun by Alice. The formula used on these two LPs provides us with killer tunes and multiple stories unfolding through the music and lyrics. We believe these albums are stellar.

“Run Down The Devil,” the eighth track on Dirty Diamonds, authentically describes the subject’s disdain for the enemy of humanity.

It’s twelve o’clock in the mornin’
While everybody is sleepin’
I want him dead in my headlights
’Cause in the shadow he’s creepin’

Drive on down to lonely street
He’s always waitin’ there for me

Run down the devil, run the devil down
Run Down the devil, run him down, down, down
Run down the devil, run the devil down
Run Down the devil, run him down, down, down

I wanna take him to the mercury grill
I hope he’s ready for the big blast
He’ll be my ultimate roadkill
I’ll kick his future up his past

For thousands of years, the enemy has deceived humankind into thinking there is no need for God or that our Creator doesn’t exist. But, unfortunately, the devil is also crafty enough to convince a good portion of humanity that even he doesn’t exist.

In turn, through temptation, trickery, and confusion, a decent amount of society has removed itself from the presence of our Creator. Instead of searching for a relationship with our Heavenly Father, the enemy has convinced the world that we are self-righteous deities and should worship ourselves.

“And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others.” – Ephesians 2:1-3

Stop and think about these verses for a moment.

We are made ALIVE in Christ, yet the enemy is the “prince of the power of the air.” How does that even make sense? If Christ was victorious over death and defeated the enemy through His Resurrection, how does the enemy maintain any “power?”

In a nutshell, the enemy’s power is only temporary, and even more importantly, he only rules over those that choose him – those that choose to be apart from Christ. Although life is complicated, our primary decision is relatively simple – do we choose life through Christ or death with the enemy?

3 Surely He will save you
    from the fowler’s snare
    and from the deadly pestilence.
4 He will cover you with his feathers,
    and under His wings you will find refuge;
    His faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.
5 You will not fear the terror of night,
    nor the arrow that flies by day,
6 nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness,
    nor the plague that destroys at midday.
7 A thousand may fall at your side,
    ten thousand at your right hand,
    but it will not come near you.
8 You will only observe with your eyes
    and see the punishment of the wicked.

9 If you say, “The Lord is my refuge,”
    and you make the Most High your dwelling,
10 no harm will overtake you,
    no disaster will come near your tent.
11 For he will command his angels concerning you
    to guard you in all your ways;
12 they will lift you up in their hands,
    so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.
13 You will tread on the lion and the cobra;
    you will trample the great lion and the serpent.

14 “Because he loves me,” says the Lord, “I will rescue him;
    I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.
15 He will call on me, and I will answer him;
    I will be with him in trouble,
    I will deliver him and honor him.
16 With long life, I will satisfy him
    and show him my salvation.”

– Psalm 91:1-16 –

It’s awe-inspiring to see the correlation between the lyrics in the song and the scripture. Notice how Alice pegs the enemy precisely as one that dwells in darkness, creeping in the shadows, ready to prey on loneliness and despair.

It’s twelve o’clock in the mornin’
While everybody is sleepin’
I want him dead in my headlights
’Cause in the shadow he’s creepin’

Drive on down to lonely street
He’s always waitin’ there for me

So, how precisely do we “run down the devil?”

Notice how Alice’s words point to the devil being “dead in my headlights.” Couldn’t those headlights also be the Word of God? Just a thought.

The enemy is easily defeated in the Light. And, when we recognize the battle being waged for our hearts, minds, and souls, we realize the need for God’s Word – the light unto our path (Psalm 119:104).

God has equipped us with multiple ways to defeat evil. We’ve discussed the truth of God’s Word and many facets of our Faith – the Armor of God (Ephesians 6:11-17), the Fruit of the Spirit(Galatians 5:22-23), submission to God (James 4:7-10), and so on.

However, we’ve been given one ultimate weapon – the atomic bomb of our Faith. That weapon is Love.

It may seem monotonous to constantly drive home that premise and narrative, but Christ was adamant about it. The word “Love” is spoken over 300 times throughout all scripture, and Jesus declared LOVE over 50 of those times.

“Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” – Matthew 22:37-40

Perhaps the most critical time Christ declared Love was in the above-listed verses. Read those verses carefully but pay close attention to verse 40.

Christ declares we must “Love God and Love People,” and that “all law and prophecy are fulfilled on those two commandments. Matthew 22 when He was confronted about the “greatest commandment in the Law.”

In a nutshell, nothing pisses off the devil more than Love. Therefore, if you truly want to defeat evil, do so with love.

Wrapping up this week’s post, are we ready to lift our brothers and sisters? Are we prepared to restore a broken world absorbed by despair, fear, hate, and wickedness?

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only Light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” – Martin Luther King, Jr.

The enemy desperately wants us divided and focused on what we dislike about each other. Darkness feeds on the misery of God’s creation. It wishes death upon us all. However, we’ve been given the gifts of His Spirit and His Love. We must learn to use them. We must learn to Love.

NOTE: Growing up in the South, I was taught to “kill them with kindness (or love).” As I’ve grown older, I’ve often thought, “what a weird thing to say.”

Kill them with kindness, seriously? Why on earth are the words “kill” and “kindness (or love)” uttered within the same sentence?

Some 30+ years later, I think I understand…

It’s not the person or our fellow man that we “kill” with kindness and love. Instead, our combative focus is on the darkness or misery that misguides our fellow brothers and sisters. Our attention must be drowning out the darkness with His Light.

One simple act of kindness – a small display of love and compassion – can place us back on track. When we “kill” with kindness, we slay the enemy and his plans. We fight not against God’s creation but against the things that plague it – we slay evil with Love.

In conclusion, as we mentioned earlier, Dirty Diamonds and The Eyes of Alice Cooper are two of our favorite LPs. Not only do the songs tell short stories about life, love, and spirituality, they Rock! They Groove! They Swing!

“It’s called Dirty Diamonds because that’s what they are. All of them are little gems that have been left unpolished…right now; I’d rather take the songs, and make it sound like a really good garage band.” – Alice Cooper

Alice has returned further and further to his roots since the release of The Eyes of Alice Cooper. Interestingly enough, it seems he’s having just as much fun now as he did 40-something years ago. It seems he’s found the formula not only for success but faith, hope, and Love as well.

That’s it for this week. We’ll catch you next Friday.

Until then, Keep Walkin’ in Faith and Rockin’ with Alice!