Charlie Daniels (1936-2020) was a complicated figure. Inspired by the funky twang of the Allman Brother's pioneering southern rock, the North Carolina-born fiddler and Nashville studio pro formed his own crossover group in the early 1970s, although he was decidedly more country than Gregg, Duane, and their crew. Daniels loved story songs and novelty anthems, and in the early days he used to make fun of good ol' boys in popular tunes like "Uneasy Rider," at least until he realized that smoking pot didn't mean you couldn't be a redneck yourself. Over the years, Daniels became the same kind of grouchy, ultraconservative caricature as Hank, Jr., tweaking as many liberal noses as he could and rousing the gun-toting NRA faithful to drink another six-pack and let them nosy ACLU types know they just better watch their step. In between, there were a few woeful twang-prog operettas, though thankfully Daniels left that kind of would-be profundity behind sometime in the '80s. Like Hank Junior, there was more to Charlie Daniels than his public persona implied, and those in search of true twang can find a lot to celebrate in his long career...



Discography

Charlie Daniels Band "The Ultimate Charlie Daniels Band" (MCA Records, 2002)
This 2-CD set covers his career pretty well -- with all the fun early hits and the Bubba-billy stuff that came later on. If the later right-winger anthems don't interest you, you might want to just check out the early albums instead, particularly 1975's Fire On The Mountain, which is probably one of his finer moments.


Charlie Daniels "A Decade Of Hits" (Epic Records, 1983)


Charlie Daniels "The Roots Remain" (Sony Records, 1996)
A 3-CD best-of box set...


Charlie Daniels "Essential Super Hits" (Koch Nashville, 2004)
(Produced by Charlie Daniels & Patrick Kelly)
A 2-CD set of rerecorded versions of old hits ("Uneasy Rider," "Devil Went Down To Georgia," et. al. and patriotic anthems ("In America," "This Ain't No Rag..."), along with crowd-pleasers like "Drinkin' My Baby Away" and (ulp!) "Freebird" thrown in for good measure. Travis Tritt joins the old coot for a duet on "Southern Boy," and Daniels shows that he still knows how to shred a violin bow now and then. Also includes several video clips for the faithful...



Albums

Charlie Daniels "Charlie Daniels" (1971)


Charlie Daniels "Te John, Grease And Wolfman" (Buddah Records, 1972)


Charlie Daniels "Honey In The Rock" (Buddah Records, 1973) (LP)


Charlie Daniels "Way Down Yonder" (Buddah Records, 1974) (LP)


Charlie Daniels "Fire On The Mountain" (Epic Records, 1974)


Charlie Daniels "Nightrider" (Epic Records, 1975)


Charlie Daniels/Various Artists "Volunteer Jam" (Capricorn Records, 1976) (LP)


Charlie Daniels "Saddle Tramp" (Epic Records, 1976)


Charlie Daniels "Pickup Truck Tramp" (Epic Records, 1976)


Charlie Daniels "High Lonesome" (Epic Records, 1976)


Charlie Daniels "Whiskey" (Epic Records, 1977)


Charlie Daniels "Midnight Wind" (Epic Records, 1977)


Charlie Daniels "Midnight Wind... Plus" (Raven Records, 1977)


Charlie Daniels/Various Artists "Volunteer Jam III & IV" (Epic Records, 1978)


Charlie Daniels "Million Mile Reflections" (Columbia Records, 1979)
One of his biggest hits and one of his least country-sounding albums. Even as he makes fun of disco music on the album's opener, "Passing Lane," Daniels and his boys sure seem pretty captivated by its sound. Daniels's own fiddle is hardly to be heard amid the ZZ Toppish Southern rock rhythms and jittery disco keyboards. If it weren't for the inclusion of "The Devil Went Down To Georgia," which went to the top of the charts, you'd clearly be forgiven if you mistook this album for a late-night coke party with Tom Scott and some of his jazz-fusion pals. I guess it's kind of funky, and "of its time," but I find this disc a little bit scary.


Charlie Daniels "Volunteer Jam VI" (Epic Records, 1980)


Charlie Daniels "Full Moon" (Epic Records, 1980)


Charlie Daniels "Volunteer Jam VII" (Epic Records, 1981)


Charlie Daniels "Windows" (Epic Records, 1982)


Charlie Daniels "Me And The Boys" (Epic Records, 1985)


Charlie Daniels "Powder Keg" (Epic Records, 1987)


Charlie Daniels "Homesick Heroes" (Epic Records, 1988)


Charlie Daniels "Simple Man" (Epic Records, 1989)


Charlie Daniels "Christmas Time Down South" (1990)


Charlie Daniels "Renegade" (Sony Records, 1991)


Charlie Daniels "America, I Believe In You" (Capitol Records, 1993)


Charlie Daniels "The Door" (Capitol Records, 1994)


Charlie Daniels "Same Ol' Me" (Capitol Records, 1995)


Charlie Daniels "Steel Witness" (Sparrow Records, 1996)


Charlie Daniels "Blues Hat" (Blue Hat Records, 1997)


Charlie Daniels "By The Light Of The Moon: Campfire Songs & Cowboy Tunes" (Sony Wonder, 1997)


Charlie Daniels "Tailgate Party" (Koch Records, 1999)


Charlie Daniels "Road Dogs" (Hopesong Records, 2000)


Charlie Daniels "Live!" (Audium Records, 2001)


Charlie Daniels "How Sweet The Sound: 25 Favorite Hymns And Gospel Greats" (Sparrow Records, 2001)


Charlie Daniels "Redneck Fiddlin' Man" (Koch Records, 2002)


Charlie Daniels "Freedom And Justice For All" (Audium Records, 2003)


Charlie Daniels "A Merry Christmas To All" (Koch Records, 2002)


Charlie Daniels "Songs From The Longleaf Pines" (Koch Records, 2005)


Charlie Daniels "Deuces" (Koch Records, 2007)


Charlie Daniels "Live From Iraq" (Koch Records, 2007)


Charlie Daniels "Joy To The World: A Bluegrass Christmas" (2009)


Charlie Daniels "Land That I Love" (Koch Records, 2010)
And... that land would be America, just in case you were wondering. Not Estonia, or Tanzania, or Mongolia, or Seattle... America, people! Capital "U", capital "S", capital "A."


Charlie Daniels "Off The Grid: Doin' It Dylan" (Blue Hat Music, 2014)



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