Charlie Daniels was an American singer, musician and songwriter whose music fused rock, country, blues and jazz. He was a pioneering contribution to Southern rock and progressive country. Best known for his number one country hit "The Devil Went Down to Georgia", Daniels was active as a singer and musician from the 1950s right through to his death in 2020.
Having relocated to Nashville in the sixties Daniels found his fiddle playing skills much in-demand; he leant his instrumental talents to albums such as Bob Dylan’s Nashville Skyline, Self Portrait and New Morning, and even the Ringo Starr solo album Beaucoups of Blues. Canadian National Treasure Leonard Cohen recruited Daniels for his late ‘60s touring band, and Daniels found himself in the production chair for the Youngbloods classic, Elephant Mountain.
Then in 1970 Daniels released his self-titled debut album for Capitol Records and by 1972, he’d formed his own band, and his frequent touring, good-time ambience and unrepentant Southern attitude endeared himself to the burgeoning Southern Rock audience. His music blended country fiddle playing, hard-rocking guitar, a bit of Blues, Texas Swing and dazzling instrumental interplay to impressive effect, and, in not very much time, his hard work started to pay dividends.
As the seventies progressed, Daniels was able to navigate assuredly the Southern Rock wave, and with his single, ‘The South’s Gonna Do It Again’, cannily gave name checks to many of his Southern contemporaries, including Grinderswitch, Marshall-Tucker Band, ZZ Top, Wet Willie Band, Barefoot Jerry, et al. Although the Southern Rock phenomenon had burned itself out by the latter part of the decade, he nonetheless prevailed, by dint of strong record company support from Epic Records, and his ‘Volunteer Jam’ jamborees based in Nashville, which became hugely popular events – in 2015, he celebrated the fortieth anniversary of the shows.
A solid regimen of albums and touring kept Daniels and his band busy throughout the eighties. He was Southern born and raised, and his opinions were robust, making little apology for his assertion of those values. However, as a musician, his reputation was founded on a love of The Blues, hillbilly country, Western Swing, and old-time rock and roll. His music drew on those influences and more besides.
With thanks to Alan Robinson