Death and taxes seem to be agreed upon as two things none of us can escape. The recent death of Charlie Daniels gives one a pause. As long-lived artists pass to their reward their fans express dismay. As icons from their early lives it jolts fans to realize their idols aged, lived long lives, but yet, like their parents, eventually passed from this mortal coil.
Unlike artists who tragically die at an early age, the passing of an elderly, long-lived iconic artist brings about reflection of a different nature.
An earlier Country Underground Australia piece on Merle Haggard brings to mind the same kind of reflection that the death of Charlie Daniels brought about for me personally and within the culture….the fans, artists, industry executives, radio, television, and social media…of Country Music.
I thought and felt numerous things regarding personal experiences… seeing Merle in concert, teaching about Merle, hearing Merle on the radio, and fitting Merle into the history of Country Music. I also realized and reflected on how much Merle personally, and Country Music in general, had become part of my life.
First, it’s not a tragedy when Charlie Daniels dies at age 83. We are sorry to see his passing. We grieve because his death represented a significant part of our lives. It’s not like Hank Williams, Patsy Cline, Hawkshaw Hawkins, and others dying before their time.
We don’t grieve Charlie Daniels’ passing because he left us far too early to show what a long life would have produced and that we could grow old with them. We grieve Charlie Daniels’ passing because he was a part of our life for such a long time. His career evolved and we evolved with it.
Second, the events of our lives connected to Charlie Daniels connect to major cultural forces in which our lives were connected. Take something as simple as high school. Daniels first No. 1 Country Music single The Devil Went Down to Georgia.
What a great story about country boy Johnny fiddling in a contest with the devil. If Johnny wins he gets a gold fiddle. If the Devil wins, he gets Johnny soul. It’s good vs evil, heaven vs. hell. And…The Devil Went Down to Georgia links to several BIG IDEAS.
It’s about the Georgia Old Time Fiddler’s Convention (GOTFC). Held in Atlanta, Georgia from 1913-1935 GOTC served to reinforce and develop Country Music as an emerging genre bringing the urban and the country together. I participated in the 2013 100th Anniversary Celebration of GOTFC.
It’s about Stephen Vincent Benet writing The Mountain Whippoorwill (Or, how Hill-Billy Jim Won the Great Fiddlers’ Prize) in 1925. Benet attended GOTFC and then wrote The Mountain Whippoorwill. It’s kind of like art imitating life.
It’s about Charlie Daniels read The Mountain Whippoorwill in high school English class and credits it with the basis for The Devil Went Down to Georgia. It’s kind of like art imitating high school life.
It’s about The Devil Went Down to Georgia keeps reminding me of the strong Evangelical Christian Roots associated with the strong southern roots of Country Music. The battle between an earthly mortal and The Devil suggests the Sacred and Profane, the Heaven and Hell dichotomy in Country Music.
Eudora Welty, a great Southern Writer, mentioned that the South as Christ Haunted. Daily life is filled with sinful temptations designed to keep weak folks committing sins at the same time they love Jesus. Just wait for my friend and colleague Randy Williams to finish his PhD dissertation about this tension in early Country Music!
It’s about becoming iconic. As Charlie Daniels’ first Number 1 Country Music hit The Devil Went Down to Georgia had legs, it wore-well, it stood the test of time. A commercial success doesn’t guarantee icon status.
It’s also about Charlie Daniels changing from what appears to be a rough edged Southern Rocker to a Conservative Christian Patriotic American of the Love It Or Leave It persuasion.
It’s also about LP (Life Partner) Mickie and I driving east from Nashville on Interstate 40. We looked over as a pick-up truck passed us with Confederate Flag hankie/doo-rag wrapped around the rear view mirror. It then exited at Mt. Juliet just after passing us. It was Charlie Daniels.
Charlie Daniels’ death also caused lots of other blokes and blokettes to reflect. Michael Gilpatrick, a friend and colleague, illustrates in his FaceBook post just how someone like Charlie Daniels’ passing brings out complex reflection
Before he become a tin foil hat wearing Fox News viewing right wing nut job…. Charlie Daniels hosted several fundraisers for and played at Jimmy Carter’s inauguration. I attended Volunteer Jam ever year but one from 77 to 84. Some of these years even had back stage passes (Yeah some good stories there) Back stage there were lots of musicians/celebrities that did not appear or did so with no fanfare. For instance I saw Billy Joel go out instead of Taz for a set. Some of my favorite concert memories ever was at the jam. Things like the single spot light on a solo mic stand while Free Bird was played acoustic back stage after the Skynyrd crash. The odd but cool mix of folks playing together. Folks you would not think like James Brown, and Little Richard at an event full of juiced southerners brought the house down.. I saw Joe Walsh play with Roy Acuff. Vaughan Brothers. Wondered why Jimmy Hall, Jimmie Van Zant , Henry Paul etc where not superstars. And of course watch Dicky Betts play that red guitar. Sorry to rant but even if Mr. Daniels did become a kook… Charlie Daniels and the jam (plus wore out 2 separate 8 tracks of Fire on the Mountain) was a big part of my youth. Rest Well Charlie Daniels and thank you.
The wide variety of posts, just like Michael Gilpatricks, all attest to the power of memories that last a life time. Gloria Christy wrote in The Murfreesboro Pulse of the power of Charlie Daniels’ Volunteer Jam.
Under a dimly lit Tennessee flag wafting above a smoke-filled arena, music was flooding through every vein in our excited minds and bodies. Onstage were the musical heroes of our day—a bearded Charlie Daniels, his band, and friends that included members of the original Marshall Tucker Band and even a guest appearance by Dickey Betts of the Allman Brothers Band.
In September 1975, I was one of those nameless thousands at Volunteer Jam II at Murphy Center on the campus of Middle Tennessee State University. It was one of the most memorable moments in my concertgoing years. Spontaneously, the crowd roared with exhilaration as Charlie’s red-hot fiddle squealed and stirred the crowd like a hot rod burning rubber. . . .
Be proud you’re a Rebel . . . the South’s gonna do it again!
Christy felt the variety of emotions from being present to seeing and hearing the cross-pollination of country and rock..with rhythm-and-blues blending with rockabilly, folk and blues. She also felt an allegiance with fellow southerners who felt that the South had been misunderstood, maligned, and under appreciated as a result of the Civil Rights movement. Heavy stuff. Big ideas, issues, and complexities of the day.
For me, the most emotional touching moment about Charlie Daniels’ passing came while listening the Bob Kingley’s Country Top 40 Country Countdown with Fitz…the successor to Bob Kingsley’s Top American Country Countdown. It was Sunday afternoon, Charlie Daniel’s funeral had been widely covered in the local and national media, and CT40 host Fitz played The Devil Went Down to Georgia. I got teary eyed for the first time and felt the sense of loss more deeply than at any time since his death. Just like with the passing of Merle Haggard and George Jones my emotions included them, but transcended them as well. All the listening, writing, teaching, helping direct a Country Music PhD dissertation, attending the GOTFC Centennial in Atlanta, local and international friendships, attending and presenting at the International Country Music Conference, and even going to Australia to keynote the first Australian Country Music Conference make up an emotionally and intellectually important part of my life. I got teary eyed. It proves that the circle of Country Music can’t be unbroken.
Passing from life to life everlasting….he believed in the Evangelical Christian view based on a literal interpretation of the Bible…Charlie Daniels deserves the recognition, the mourning, and the reflection for a life well lived. From a recording session musician with the likes of Bob Dylan…to Southern Rocker… to long haired rebellious country boy…to Country Music icon…to participant in the Dylan, Cash, and the Nashville Cats album and Country Music Hall of Fame exhibit … to Evangelical Christian conservative patriot ….and to elder statesman… Charlie Daniels’s life covered a wide and varied landscape. It’s no wonder that so many ordinary Middle Tennesseans attended his visitation, funeral, and genuinely mourned his passing. The devil may have gone down to Georgia looking for a soul to steal. He certainly didn’t steal the soul of Charlie Daniels. For Conservative Christian believers… and for non-believers… Charlie Daniels soul lives in our individual and collective hearts. Country Rock-On Charlie Daniels. You’re in Hillbilly Heaven!
