There's a Scottish proverb, over 100 years old, which fits the same tune :
Some say the devil's dead and buried in Kirkcaldy
More say he rose again and danced the Heiland Laddie
I use this song to introduce a story about a failed missionary.
Also, on incredibly 1930 acetate recordings of Black Bahamas singers (in the archives of East Tennessee State University, alongside some unique 1940 recordings of Leadbelly) I heard in the midst of a kid's play song :
"Some say the devil's dead"
but I could not make out the rest