Charlie Daniels

Early life

Charles Edward Daniels was born October 28, 1936, in Wilmington, North Carolina, to teenage parents William and LaRue Daniel.

Career

Sideman career and first rock band

Daniels began his music career as a member of the bluegrass band Misty Mountain Boys in the 1950s, already skilled on guitar, fiddle, banjo, and mandolin, In the 1960s, Daniels was performing rock and roll. Daniels formed a band, the Rockets, who later changed its name to the Jaguars after scoring a hit single with the instrumental recording "Jaguar".

Daniels lent his talents to the bass guitar playing, arrangement and co-production of a single, "Love" bw "Black Olives" by The Bad Boys which was released on the Paula Records label in 1966. It became an R&B hit, first registering on the Cash Box Top 50 in R&B Locations chart on 17 December 1966, and still active on the Cash Box Looking Ahead chart 18 March 1967. where it peaked at no. 11. It also made the Record World national R&B chart, peaking at no. 28 on 28 January.

During his career as a rock and roll sideman, Daniels also wrote songs for other performers. In July 1963, soul singer Jerry Jackson recorded Daniels's song "It Hurts Me"; the following year, on January 12, 1964, Elvis Presley recorded the better-known recording of Daniels's song. The songwriting credits list Charles E. Daniels and Joy Byers as the songwriters, although Byers' husband, songwriter and producer Bob Johnston, was the actual co-writer with Daniels. Dylan and Daniels found each other creatively invigorating during their recordings together, with Dylan saying that "when Charlie was around, something good would usually come out of the sessions", and Daniels describing the recording sessions with Dylan as "loose, free and, most of all, fun".

Solo career and formation of the Charlie Daniels Band

Daniels released his self-titled debut album in 1970, which helped lay the foundations for Southern rock. The following year, Daniels organized the first Volunteer Jam concert. The same year, the Charlie Daniels Band released the gold selling Fire on the Mountain, followed by the even more successful Nightrider, whose success was spurred by the Top 40 hit single "Texas". Saddle Tramp was also a gold seller, and was the first release by the band to reach the top 10 of the Billboard Country charts.

In 1975, he played fiddle on Hank Williams Jr's breakthrough studio album Hank Williams Jr. and Friends on the songs "Losin You", originally by The Marshall Tucker Band, and "Stoned At The Jukebox". He would also later provide a fiddle solo to the bridge of Williams Jr's song "Family Tradition" from his 1979 studio album of the same name.

In 1979, the Charlie Daniels Band released their most commercially successful album, Million Mile Reflections, which reached number five and was certified triple-platinum. It featured the single "The Devil Went Down to Georgia", which reached No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 in September 1979, and won Daniels the Grammy Award for Best Country Vocal Performance. Subsequently, the combination of the success of the more country-oriented song and the decline in popularity of Southern rock led Daniels to shift focus in his sound from rock to country music. because of lyrics such as "Just take them rascals [rapists, killers, child abusers] out in the swamp/Put 'em on their knees and tie 'em to a stump/Let the rattlers and the bugs and the alligators do the rest", which garnered Daniels considerable media attention and talk show visits.

Later career

In the 1990s, Daniels's albums failed to chart, although he continued to draw audiences as a concert performer well into the 21st century. In 1999, Daniels was inducted into the North Carolina Music Hall of Fame.

The 21st century saw Daniels, who had previously recorded for major labels, predominantly recording for independent record labels. and began an association with Koch Records, which began releasing a series of Daniels's albums which included holiday albums, live albums and theme compilations.

On October 18, 2005, Daniels was honored as a BMI Icon at the 53rd annual BMI Country Awards. The following year, Daniels played in the backup band for Hank Williams Jr.'s opening sequence to Monday Night Football. In November 2007, Daniels was invited to become a member of the Grand Ole Opry. He was inducted during the January 19, 2008, edition of the Opry. In 2009, Daniels was featured playing fiddle in a commercial for GEICO.

In 2016, Daniels released Night Hawks, an album of Western swing music. In October of that year, Daniels became a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame. In March 2017, HarperCollins announced that Daniels's memoir, Never Look at the Empty Seats, would be released on October 24, 2017. In the late 2010s, Daniels, drummer James Stroud, guitarist Billy Crain and bassist Charlie Hayward formed a new band, Beau Weevils, which debuted on the 2018 album Songs in the Key of E, which Daniels described as being in a "down-home, swampy rock meets funk with a little taste of Delta-type of style." On September 28, 2018, Daniels was awarded the MMP Music Award and inducted into the MMP Global Entertainment Hall of Fame in Biloxi, MS. On November 6, 2018, Daniels released a book of daily inspirational quotes and stories titled Let's All Make the Day Count: The Everyday Wisdom of Charlie Daniels through HarperCollins's Thomas Nelson imprint.

Musical style

Stephen Thomas Erlewine said that Charlie Daniels's self-titled debut album, released in 1970, was a pivotal recording in the development of the Southern rock genre, "because it points the way to how the genre could and would sound, and how country music could retain its hillbilly spirit and rock like a mother." Erlewine described Daniels as "a redneck rebel, not fitting into either the country or the rock & roll [...] but, in retrospect, he sounds like a visionary, pointing the way to the future when southern rockers saw no dividing lines between rock, country, and blues, and only saw it all as sons of the South." The Charlie Daniels Band fused rock, country, blues, and jazz; Erlewine described the band's sound as "a distinctly Southern blend" which emphasized improvisation in their instrumentation, which was aided by the band following the Allman Brothers Band's seminal use of two lead guitarists and two drummers. The New York Times said that Daniels's music incorporated elements of country, blues, bluegrass, rock, and Western swing.

After the success of "The Devil Went Down to Georgia", a single which Erlewine described as a "a roaring country-disco fusion", In 1977, Billboard identified the Charlie Daniels Band as major performers of progressive country. In 2010, the rapper Cowboy Troy said that Charlie Daniels and Jerry Reed's vocal delivery "was called recitations at that time, but if you listened to it now, you'd probably call it a rap". Rolling Stone described "The Devil Went Down to Georgia" as one of the earliest examples of country rap. Regarding his musical style, Daniels said "I never claimed to be country"; Daniels described his style instead as "American music", saying that the Charlie Daniels Band played "some of all the music that's come across in America", particularly country, bluegrass, rock, gospel and jazz. Daniels also said "I refuse to be categorized because I think that puts blinders on you." Daniels's guitar playing was defined as having a "thick, buttery sound" which he achieved by stringing his Les Paul guitars with .10 gauge Gibson strings and amplifying them through a Marshall cabinet.

Views

Daniels did not endorse any political candidates, and refused to express political views in his concerts. However, in 1976, Daniels performed at campaign fundraisers for Jimmy Carter's presidential bid, and at his inauguration in January the following year; Daniels also initially supported the legalization of marijuana. In the following decade, however, Daniels expressed views that many considered to be right-wing and conservative. According to Rolling Stone, Daniels had "plenty in common with moderates and liberals who supported Bernie Sanders, expressing disgust at Washington gridlock and a fervent belief in term limits for people in Congress so that fresh ideas keep coming." Daniels also supported "the idea that someone can criticize the president's decision making and not be called anti-American."

Daniels was an outspoken Christian. In 2003, Daniels supported the invasion of Iraq. Regarding the removal of Confederate monuments and memorials, Daniels said, "If tearing them down did any good, I'd be all for it. But I don't see where it does any good." After President Donald Trump's April 7, 2017, military strike against targets in Syria in retaliation for additional chemical weapon deployment, Daniels tweeted: "The world changed yesterday, America will no longer be viewed as a cowering toothless tiger."

Personal life and death

Daniels married Hazel Juanita Alexander on September 20, 1964. They had one child, a son, Charles Edward Daniels Jr. An avid University of Tennessee sports fan, Daniels enjoyed hunting, fishing, snowmobiling, and other outdoor activities. He was a member of the National Rifle Association of America (NRA) and performed in their videos.

Daniels suffered a major arm injury on January 30, 1980, while digging fence post holes on his farm near Mount Juliet. He suffered three complete breaks in his right arm and two broken fingers when his shirtsleeve caught on a spinning power auger. The injury required surgery, and he was sidelined for four months.

Daniels was successfully treated for prostate cancer in 2001. On January 15, 2010, Daniels was rushed to the hospital after suffering a stroke while snowmobiling in Colorado. He was released two days later. During a doctor visit on March 25, 2013, Daniels was diagnosed with a mild case of pneumonia and admitted to a Nashville hospital for a series of routine tests. The tests revealed that a pacemaker was needed to regulate his heart rate. One was put in on March 28, and Daniels was released within days.

Daniels died on July 6, 2020, at the age of 83 of a hemorrhagic stroke at Summit Medical Center in Hermitage, Tennessee. He is buried in a grave at Mount Juliet, Tennessee.

Filmography

• Heartworn Highways (1976) ... Himself
• The Midnight Special (1979)... Himself (Musical Guest)
• Murder in Music City aka The County Western Murders (1979) ... Himself
• Urban Cowboy (1980) ... Himself
• Saturday Night Live (1982) ... Himself (Musical Guest)
• The Fall Guy (1983) ... Himself
• The Lone Star Kid (1985) ... Vernon Matthews
• Murder, She Wrote (1987) ... Stoney Carmichael
• Charlie Daniels' Talent Roundup (1994) ... Himself (Host)
• King of the Hill (2000) ... Himself (2 Episodes)
• 18 Wheels of Justice (2000) ... Frank Schooler
• The Legend Lives On: A Tribute to Bill Monroe (2003) ... Himself
• Fox NFL Sunday (2005) - Super Bowl XXXIX Pregame Show ... Himself
• Veggietales (2005) ... Himself (Musical Guest) ("Minnesota Cuke and the Search for Samson's Hairbrush")
• Dinner: Impossible (2008) ... Himself
• Poliwood (2009) ... Himself
• A Twin Pines Christmas (2009) ... Himself
• Sweet Home Alabama: The Southern Rock Saga (2012) ... Himself
• Behold a Pale Horse: America's Last Chance (2012) ... Himself
• Iron Will: Veterans Battle With PTSD (2016) ... Himself
• Floating Horses: The Life of Casey Tibbs (2017) ... Himself
• Country Music (2019) ... Himself

Discography

Main article: Charlie Daniels discography

References

References

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11. No Such Thing As Was, Dec 21, 2024 - [https://joebonomo.substack.com/p/these-are-a-few-of-my-favorite-b These are a few of my favorite B-sides - Joe Bonomo, “Black Olives,” The Bad Boys (1966)]
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15. ''Cash Box'', March 18, 1967 - [https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box/60s/1967/CB-1967-03-18.pdf Page 8 Cash Box LOOKING AHEAD, 31 BLACK OLIVES, ''(SuMa, Falls City, Counterpart—BMI), Bad Boys (Paula 254)'']
16. ''Cash Box'', February 18, 1967 - [https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box/60s/1967/CB-1967-02-18.pdf Page 6 Cash Box LOOKING AHEAD, 12 BLACK OLIVES, ''(SuMa, Falls City, Counterpart—BMI), Bad Boys (Paula 254)'']
17. ''Cash Box'', February 25, 1967 - [https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box/60s/1967/CB-1967-02-25.pdf Page 8 Cash Box LOOKING AHEAD, 11 BLACK OLIVES, ''(SuMa, Falls City, Counterpart—BMI), Bad Boys (Paula 254)'']
18. ''Cash Box'', March 4, 1967 - [https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box/60s/1967/CB-1967-03-04.pdf Page 8 Cash Box LOOKING AHEAD, 13 BLACK OLIVES, ''(SuMa, Falls City, Counterpart—BMI), Bad Boys (Paula 254)'']
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20. ''Record World'', February 4, 1967 - [https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Record-World/60s/67/Record-World-1967-02-04.pdf Page 37 TOP 50 R&B, 34. Black Olives, Bad Boys-Paula 254, 28]
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