Posted on 11/11/2001 7:11:41 AM PST by veronica
LEBANON, Tenn. - Charlie Daniels has been singing about American pride for years and makes no apologies for the thoughts expressed in his latest song.
In fact, he hopes Americans will allow themselves the opportunity to stay angry when they remember Sept. 11, 2001.
"This is not a time of healing. It's not a time of healing at all," Daniels said Wednesday during a telephone interview with The Herald. "It is time for people to realize we are literally in a fight to the death. If we don't follow through with this, we're not going to survive. We have to ask ourselves, 'Do we want to win or not?'"
Daniels found himself once again in the public spotlight after he sought to perform his song "This Ain't No Rag, It's a Flag," during the CMT Country Freedom Concert for the Salvation Army to benefit the September 11th Attack on America fund.
On the Charlie Daniels Band Web site he wrote, "After receiving the words they informed us that we could not do the song on the show and when we asked them why they said that the show was a healing type show and they were afraid that the song would offend someone. I would never do anything to hurt the show but I knew that they had the very epitome of country stars and didn't particularly need us to sell tickets," Daniels said.
When people asked why the band didn't play the show, "I had to tell them the truth," Daniels told The Herald. Despite the controversy, or perhaps because of it, the song immediately became a top radio request and Daniels' Web site was flooded with orders.
"I think, if we would have done the song (on the CMT show) it wouldn't have been a controversy to this degree," Daniels said, stressing that all the feedback he's since received from "It Ain't No Rag, It's a Flag" has been "overwhelmingly" supportive.
"I wrote that song about the terrorists and nobody else. If somebody wants to misunderstand my words there's nothing I can do about it," he said.
"I don't feel that this is the time for healing. I feel that this is the time to rub salt in the wounds and keep America focused on the job at hand. We lost almost 7,000 people in the Trade Towers and Pentagon and we're worrying about offending somebody? We have 7-month-old babies infected with Anthrax and we're afraid we'll hurt someone's feelings? Brave Americans forced a plane down in a field in Pennsylvania and we're worried about ruffling someone's feathers? We're sending our sons and daughters off to fight and perhaps die in a war we had nothing to do with starting and we're concerned about insulting somebody?
"I felt to give into this political correctness would be to turn my back on the people who lost their lives on 9-11 and on the brave men and women who defend this country," Daniels states on his Web site.
Having spent much of his early life in the Gulf/Goldston communities of Chatham County, Daniels sent best wishes to local residents, adding, "I've got a lot of friends there." The current Charlie Daniels Band tour will bring him to Cherokee Jamboree Pavilion in Andrews, N.C., Saturday night, and he hopes to include a Raleigh show on the next tour schedule.
Along with the single "This Ain't No Rag, It's a Flag," Daniels' band has a new CD in stores, a live album captured during performances in North Carolina, Florida and Virginia last year. Daniels said the new CD, "the Charlie Daniels Band LIVE," features songs the band has been playing for years (including "Wooley Swamp," "Simple Man," "Long Haired Country Boy," and "The Devil Went Down to Georgia"), and three tributes to late musical friends ("Take the Highway," "In Memory of Elizabeth Reid," and Freebird").
A surprise treat on the live album is the instrumental "Sidewinder," which is perhaps one of the most complex and twisting songs ever to come from Daniels' diverse musical mind. Daniels said the song is the result of many backstage jam sessions and pre-show rehearsals.
"We have little practice amps in the dressing room and sometimes we'll sit and jam a little to get warmed up," Daniels said Wednesday. "I started to goof around with it ("Sidewinder") and the bass player joined in and then somebody else added something and it came along from there."
Although the band's current tour is near an end, Daniels himself is in demand and has appearances scheduled on national television talk shows, Armed Forces Radio, magazines and newspapers. His views were also featured in Wednesday's edition of USA Today.
A Country Boy Will Survive!
I love ole' "Saddle Tramp" Charlie.
BTW--Off topic, but worthy of honorable mention:
My girlfriend and her friends went to see Jay Black (Jay And The Americans "Cara Mia", "This Magic Moment" etc.) about 2 weeks after September 11th, at the Westbury Music Fair on Long Island. I didn't go. Given the mood I was in, I didn't feel like going to a music show. I also knew nothing about Black's politics and didn't want to pay good money, just to subject myself, possibly, to another artist-liberal's interpretation of the world's events.
I could not have been more wrong.
After she told me about the show, I wished I had gone. It was more pep rally than concert. Although he sang his hits, he did a bunch of patriotic songs, and spoke extensively about the events of the preceeding weeks and how we should respond.
Jay's a Brooklyn boy, from that part of Brooklyn that political correctness has never conquered. Three times during his show, he shouted into the microphone "We've got to go nuke those f___ing sand-monkies". The audiance took to it's feet and chanted USA, USA, USA........
My girl said it was like a catharsis. The subdued audience that entered the theatre that night, left with their heads high and grinning from ear to ear. Some of them were repeating Jay's mantra and there was another spontanious USA,USA,USA cheer in the parking lot.
Jay and The Americans
One of the most popular groups of the '60s, Jay and the Americans brought a distinctive sound Lead singer John Traynor, originally of the Mystics, left to form his own group in 1959. That group was the Harbor Lights and consisted of Traynor, Howard Kirshenbaum, Kenny Rosenberg, and Sandy Yaguda. The group recorded two singles, one for Mala Records and one for Jaro Records, 1960, with neither receiving much air play. In 1962, they met producers/writers Leiber and Stoller at an audition that resulted in a recording contract with United Artists. Leiber and Stoller built on the group's natural doo wop ability attempted to broaden their appeal by emphasizing Traynor's lead and the pop flavor of the sound. United Artists decided to rename the group Blinky Jones and the Americans. A compromise changed it to Jay and the Americans, using Traynor's nickname. Their first recording sessions were in October of 1961, and from those sessions came the West Side Story single "Tonight." "Tonight" received considerable airplay in New York, but failed to chart nationally. The second single "She Cried" headed straight up the charts and reached #5 in the spring and early summer of 1962. The next single "This Is It" failed to chart. At this time Traynor decided to leave to pursue a solo career that began in 1963 with Coral Records. His first single "How Sweet It Is" went nowhere as did his last single "The Merry Go Round Is Slowing Down" three years later for ABC-Paramount Records. Meanwhile the Americans were without a lead single. Marty Sander, the group's backup vocalist since "She Cried " sessions brought in his friend David Blatt to audition. Blatt was the lead singer for the Empires. an all Jewish vocal group from Tilden High School in Brooklyn. Blatt won the spot. Reluctant to change the group's name to David and the Americans, Leiber and Stoller, so David Blatt became Jay Black. Other names changed as well: Kenny Rosenberg became Kenny Vance; Howard Kirshenbaum became Howie Kane. With a new lead and three new names Jay and the Americans resumed its career. The next two singles, "Tomorrow" and "Strangers Tomorrow" failed to chart. Early in 1963 The Drifters (produced by Leiber-Stoller since 1959) recorded a Mann/Weil composition called "only In America." When Atlantic decided not to release it the vocals were erased and replaced by Jay and the Americans. "only In America" was released in July, 1963 and became their first chart hit (#25) with Jay Black singing lead. One year and two singles later they had their biggest hit with "Come a Little Bit Closer" (#3). This resulted in the going on the Beatles first American tour in 1964, that also included the Righteous Brothers. "Let's Lock the Door (#11) and "Think of the Good Times" both charted in the summer of 1965. At this time they began the second phase of their career with "Cara Mia" (#4). Beginning with Cara Mia" the group began covering successful oldies. Their next release was "Some Enchanted Evening" (#13) followed by Neil Diamond's first songwriting success "Sunday and Me" (#18). Ten singles released between 1966 and 1968 produced only one top 30 record a remake of Roy Orbison's "Crying" (#25). Going back to originals, the public wasn't buying Jay and the Americans without a familiar song. They went back to the oldies reworking the Drifters, "This Magic Moment," which became their biggest hit since "Cara Mia" charting higher #6 than the original Drifters record #16. From 1968 through 1971 they charted with three more remakes, that included the Turbans' "When You Dance, the Mystics' " Hushabye," and the Ronettes' "Walking in the Rain" (#19). Their last chart record was "Was Capture the Moment" in the spring of 1970 and their last single was the Drifters "There Goes My Baby." In the early '70s Jay and the Americans did the oldies shows, with Jay Black staying as lead into the '80s while other members dropped out. Two band members at the time, Walter Becker and Donald Fagen went on to form Steely Dan. Kenny Vance began recording with record producer Joel Dorn (Roberta Flack) and recorded "looking For an Echo in 1975. Vance's backup group included Eddie Brigati of the Rascals, David Brigati of the Hi-Five, Pete Anders of the Trade Winds, and most of the Americans minus Jay. More than any groups of the 60s, Jay and the Americans paid tribute to the 50s vocal sound, singing songs by The Harptones, The Passions, The Cleftones. The Platters, The Skyliners, and The Impressions. Jay and the Americans was on of the few successful groups to spend their entire career with one record label: all of their thirty-two singles and LPs were with United Artists.
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My girl told me he was also making many pointed references to Jews in the audience, such as:
"Do you see all these people down front here? They're all Jews. How do I know? Because if Jews have to sit in seats beyond the third row, they complain that they are a persecuted minority.".
Now that I know that his original name was David Blatt, I can understand why he can go there. I was under the mistaken impression, up till now, that Jay was of Italian heritage. I couldn't possibly imagine that a Brooklyn Italian guy would be able to get away with that in Westbury, New York!
Evidently, this banter is an anticipated part of his act, and enjoyed by his long-time fans. Nobody seemed to take offense, and the remark above was one of the milder ones.
Years ago, my friends and I would occasionally make the trip from Queens to "The Crazy Country Club" in Brooklyn. It was a comedy club whose specialty was a staff of comics that "roasted" the patrons in the crowd, based on their ethnicity, age, sex, physical appearance, etc.
It was not the place for the faint of heart, those who lacked self esteem, or those with thin skins.
One time, one of my good "friends" told the comic that I was a Greek. I'll leave it to your own imagination as to what kind of abuse was heaped upon me that night.
(P.S. In New York neighborhoods, you are identified with your heritage, regardless of how many generations of your family were born in America. I'm second generation American, but among New Yorkers, I'll always be Greek. Our softball shirts from the bar team, back when I played, had nicknames on the back, instead of our names. Mine said "Da Greek".)
I read it through the first time.
I also read Charlie D's essay on his own website, within days of the attack.
I've been a Charlie Daniels fan since I bought "Honey In The Rock" on vinyl, last century.
I got it. Thank you.
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