Charlie is in The Opry, and the Ryman was Rockin' !!

It’s 9:45 PM on Saturday night January 19th, 2008. I just dropped an e-mail to our friend Charlie Daniels telling him how proud I was watching him on Grand Ole Opry Live tonight on GAC. It was obvious that this honor, being inducted as a member of The Grand Ole Opry, was one of the real high points of his career. And what a career it has been so far, with no signs of slowing up.

The TV broadcast was stellar. Marty Stuart opened the show with his Fabulous Superlatives rocking the house, and then introduced The Charlie Daniels Band, who wasted no time in pulling out their biggest hit of all time, “The Devil Went Down To Georgia.”  I had a brief “moment” when the memory of singing that very same song onstage with Charlie and company at the Angelus just a month ago. Wow.

The CDB was in top form. Charlie Hayward on bass, Pat McDonald on drums, Taz on keys, Chris Wormer and Bruce Brown on guitars - and everyone was dressed to impress.

The show featured performances by Marty's wife Connie Smith, Montgomery Gentry and Marty, but the obvious focal point of the show was Charlie. With a video montage that brought back more than a few memories, and a great interview segment, the show was a class act all the way. Just like our Charlie.

Charlie brought out his first guitar teacher from North Carolina Russell Palmer, who joined Charlie and Marty for “Long Haired Country Boy,” and the presentation of the trophy and induction of a tearful Daniels was priceless to us old fans.

Marty and Connie joined the CDB for “Drinkin’ My Baby Goodbye,” and Charlie closed it all out in true Charlie style with “Will The Circle Be Unbroken,” bringing Marty, Connie, Troy Gentry, Eddie Montgomery and Trace Atkins (who sang some genuine Southern gospel bass) to the stage.

It was truly a special evening honoring one of the greats of country and Southern rock. A friend of Swampland, a friend of GRITZ, a friend of mine, and a friend to us all - Charlie Daniels. Congratulations Charlie, nobody deserves it more.

You can still catch the show! Here's the GAC schedule!

January 20, 2008 12:00 AM ET
January 20, 2008 12:00 PM ET
January 20, 2008 7:00 PM ET
January 22, 2008 8:00 PM ET

Keep it Real. Keep it Southern.

Michael Buffalo Smith

CHECK OUT OUR CHARLIE DANIELS ARCHIVES

• Legends of Southern Rock: Charlie Daniels Band

• Charlie Daniels Interview, 2000

• Charlie Daniels: Renaissance Hillbilly

• Charlie Daniels Interview 2003 (GRITZ Print Issue #3)

• Volunteer Jam DVD Review

• Volunteer Jam 2007 Review

• Angelus 2007 Day One

• Angelus 2007 Day Two

• Angelus 2007 Day Three

• Angelus 2006

• CDB Live (DVD) Review

• Live from Iraq CD Review

• Deuces CD Review

Want to go even deeper? Follow the hyperlinks within the CDB Legends article for interviews with past and present band members and more!

Charlie Daniels photo by Buffalo. Late night Angelus jam, 2007.

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