Run Devil Run oil

Run Devil Run oil is one of several charm oils used by Mexican curandero folk healers supposedly to ward off bad luck and remove jinxes.^[1] Other names include "Vete Diablo", "Corre Diablo", "Contra Enemigo", "Keep Away Evil" oil, and so on.

The oil was mentioned in a Los Angeles Times article in April 1992, which described the sale in a botánica of bottles of "Go Away Evil" oil and "Run Devil Run" bath oil – credited with keeping gang members away.^[2]

The oil came to more widespread prominence in 1995 after Paul McCartney wrote a song called "Run Devil Run" and used the song as the title track for his album Run Devil Run.^[3]

References

1. Lonely Planet Austin, San Antonio & the Hill Country 2004 -- Page 163 "It's basically a religious and Santeria superstore (mixed with a bit of voodoo), selling items to rid you of the problem of your choice: Get-Rich candles; Do-As-1-Say floor wash; Jinx Removal air-freshener; Run-Devil-Run and Get-out-of-Jail oil; ..."
2. A Botanica Is Ready to Help When Evil Spirits Come Calling 20 April 1992 "Limon buys a tiny bottle of oil with "Go Away Evil" emblazoned on the label to sprinkle on her neighbor's doorstep. ... She buys a bottle of "Run Devil Run" bath oil for her son, to keep gang members away. "
3. Howard Sounes Fab: An Intimate Life of Paul McCartney 2010 p.496 "... most of them obscure, with a couple of newly written tracks including the title song, 'Run Devil Run', inspired by a voodoo remedy Paul had picked up in Atlanta to ward off evildoers, thieves and liars."