A Genuine Original, or Not - Soapbox Jr.
Last week I unknowingly unleashed a hornet’s nest with a simple factual statement.
Was it some highly-charged bold political statement like Dad might have made before he left us? Was I calling out someone for their behavior in a controversial way?
Nope, it was pretty uneventful, but the controversy followed nonetheless.
Before I get to the events of last week, I’m going to say something that will also be looked at with controversy, but there should be none, because it is also factual.
Charlie Hayward and Tommy Crain were not original members of The Charlie Daniels Band.
There, I said it…
Furthermore – despite assertations to the contrary – Mark Fitzgerald, Barry Barnes and Gary Allen were not original members of the CDB either.
Dad started touring as The Charlie Daniels Band in 1972, that means that at the time, the official “original” lineup was – in addition to dad - Taz/Joel DiGregorio, Earl Grigsby on bass and both Freddie Edwards and Buddy Davis on drums.
He didn’t release an album as The Charlie Daniels Band until 1974’s “Way Down Yonder” – later retitled “Whiskey” when re-released on Epic in 1976 – but here’s an even more controversial statement, but I don’t mean it to be.
Any four, five, six or more musicians that Dad wanted to take out with him would have been The Charlie Daniels Band.
Period.
Why?
It’s not because Dad was head and shoulders over anyone he shared the stage with, quite the opposite. Dad often commented on how good Tommy Crain was on stage, and it was a challenge to keep up with him and try to match Tommy’s seemingly effortless talent. In Dad's opinion, playing across from Tommy made him a better guitar picker.
There’s no denying Taz DiGregorio’s talent for the keyboards, and the two worked together from the mid-1960s and non-stop from 1972 until 2011 when we lost him and his talent for “tickling the ivories.”
Here’s the reason anyone on stage with Dad could be The Charlie Daniels Band, because Dad was signed as a solo artist, rather than a band, to both Kama Sutra and then to Epic in 1975 and even with EMI/Liberty/Captiol/Sparrow in the early 1990s..
That means that unlike the Allman Brothers Band, Lynyrd Skynyrd and The Marshall Tucker Band, Dad was the sole owner of the name rather than a partnership of band members.
It’s my understanding that everyone in MTB had a share, and originally, Tommy Caldwell was the glue who held it all together, and also doubled as the band leader despite everyone having a share.
Based on conversations regarding and upcoming Southern Rock project we are involved with, we’ve run into situations where multiple parties are involved with the Allmans and Skynyrd’s camps in order to secure rights.
That does not apply with Dad because he was the signed artist with each of his record deals, and the musicians that shared the stage and studio with him were sidemen.
Again, not to diminish anyone’s contributions. They were some of the most talented sidemen around, and Dad was complimented and supported by their presence, and the result was pure magic on stage and in the studio.
But back to the original controversy. I was acknowledging the anniversary of the passing of Skynyrd’s Gary Rossington on March 6:
“ON THIS DAY in 2023, we lost the last of the original Free Birds. RIP Gary Rossington, God Bless the Lynyrd Skynyrd band, and the Daniels family sends prayers to Dale, their family, friends and fans. - CD Jr.”
We also posted the same thing in 2024 and 2025 with little commotion, but this year, it seemed to strike a nerve with some folks, and all of a sudden, multiple definitions of what constitutes an “original” member were being debated.
Usually, Artimus Pyle’s name gets brought up, and I point out that he wasn’t an original member, but it kept happening, so I added an addendum to the original post:
“*NOTE* "Original Free Birds" does not include Artimus Pyle. Artimus was not the original drummer, Bob Burns was. Also, Rickey Medlocke was around before the first album was release, but he was not a member when the first album was released, so he does not apply here either. Of the band members that were on the very first release, "Pronounced 'Lĕh-'nérd 'Skin-'nérd)" Gary was the last one left. - TeamCDB
I added the disclaimer about Rickey as well because there was all of a sudden, a wave of Rickey Medlocke being there from the beginning, although he left to do Blackfoot before the first Skynyrd album was released. For some people, that seemed good enough for them for him to be original.
The disclaimer seemed to do little to head off those out looking to not let facts get in the way of their opinion.
I even had someone challenge me on if Steve Gaines had survived the plane crash would I consider him an original member.
At this point, I ended up rewriting the post to be as generic as possible, and drop the debate. Some of us have more to do than just debate on Facebook all day.
But with regards to Steve, the answer is no. Despite the absolutely incredible guitar player that Steve Gaines was, whether he survived the crash or not, he wasn’t on the first album, therefore by definition, he was not an original member. I get that he along with Ed King – who he replaced – are in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, and deservedly so. Same goes for Bob Burns and Artimus who are both in the R&R HoF.
I’m glad that they are all there, because they should be.
People were so worked up over a post that had been virtually the same for three straight years and literally aggressively splitting hairs on what constitutes “original.”
Original does not mean better, original does not mean that contributions by band members who were later additions are to be dismissed and looked down upon because they were late to the party, which is something I never tried to convey in the post.
Bands can be made better – and often are - when new blood comes in, just like when Don Murray, Charlie Hayward and Tommy Crain joined the CDB in 1975, no sleight to anyone who came before, but the band got even better when they joined.
Original members, or not, each brought their own originality.
God bless the Lynyrd Skynyrd band, Allman Brothers Band, The Marshall Tucker Band and The Charlie Daniels Band, to all those that came before, and to those still carrying the torch for the bands of Southern Rock, rock on, our brothers.
What do you think?
Let’s all make the day count!
Pray for our troops, our police, the Peace of Jerusalem and our nation.
God Bless America!
#SonyReleaseHonkyTonkAve
#BenghaziAintGoingAway #End22
- Charlie Daniels, Jr.
Nope, it was pretty uneventful, but the controversy followed nonetheless.
Before I get to the events of last week, I’m going to say something that will also be looked at with controversy, but there should be none, because it is also factual.
Charlie Hayward and Tommy Crain were not original members of The Charlie Daniels Band.
There, I said it…
Furthermore – despite assertations to the contrary – Mark Fitzgerald, Barry Barnes and Gary Allen were not original members of the CDB either.
Dad started touring as The Charlie Daniels Band in 1972, that means that at the time, the official “original” lineup was – in addition to dad - Taz/Joel DiGregorio, Earl Grigsby on bass and both Freddie Edwards and Buddy Davis on drums.
He didn’t release an album as The Charlie Daniels Band until 1974’s “Way Down Yonder” – later retitled “Whiskey” when re-released on Epic in 1976 – but here’s an even more controversial statement, but I don’t mean it to be.
Any four, five, six or more musicians that Dad wanted to take out with him would have been The Charlie Daniels Band.
Period.
Why?
It’s not because Dad was head and shoulders over anyone he shared the stage with, quite the opposite. Dad often commented on how good Tommy Crain was on stage, and it was a challenge to keep up with him and try to match Tommy’s seemingly effortless talent. In Dad's opinion, playing across from Tommy made him a better guitar picker.
There’s no denying Taz DiGregorio’s talent for the keyboards, and the two worked together from the mid-1960s and non-stop from 1972 until 2011 when we lost him and his talent for “tickling the ivories.”
Here’s the reason anyone on stage with Dad could be The Charlie Daniels Band, because Dad was signed as a solo artist, rather than a band, to both Kama Sutra and then to Epic in 1975 and even with EMI/Liberty/Captiol/Sparrow in the early 1990s..
That means that unlike the Allman Brothers Band, Lynyrd Skynyrd and The Marshall Tucker Band, Dad was the sole owner of the name rather than a partnership of band members.
It’s my understanding that everyone in MTB had a share, and originally, Tommy Caldwell was the glue who held it all together, and also doubled as the band leader despite everyone having a share.
Based on conversations regarding and upcoming Southern Rock project we are involved with, we’ve run into situations where multiple parties are involved with the Allmans and Skynyrd’s camps in order to secure rights.
That does not apply with Dad because he was the signed artist with each of his record deals, and the musicians that shared the stage and studio with him were sidemen.
Again, not to diminish anyone’s contributions. They were some of the most talented sidemen around, and Dad was complimented and supported by their presence, and the result was pure magic on stage and in the studio.
But back to the original controversy. I was acknowledging the anniversary of the passing of Skynyrd’s Gary Rossington on March 6:
“ON THIS DAY in 2023, we lost the last of the original Free Birds. RIP Gary Rossington, God Bless the Lynyrd Skynyrd band, and the Daniels family sends prayers to Dale, their family, friends and fans. - CD Jr.”
We also posted the same thing in 2024 and 2025 with little commotion, but this year, it seemed to strike a nerve with some folks, and all of a sudden, multiple definitions of what constitutes an “original” member were being debated.
Usually, Artimus Pyle’s name gets brought up, and I point out that he wasn’t an original member, but it kept happening, so I added an addendum to the original post:
“*NOTE* "Original Free Birds" does not include Artimus Pyle. Artimus was not the original drummer, Bob Burns was. Also, Rickey Medlocke was around before the first album was release, but he was not a member when the first album was released, so he does not apply here either. Of the band members that were on the very first release, "Pronounced 'Lĕh-'nérd 'Skin-'nérd)" Gary was the last one left. - TeamCDB
I added the disclaimer about Rickey as well because there was all of a sudden, a wave of Rickey Medlocke being there from the beginning, although he left to do Blackfoot before the first Skynyrd album was released. For some people, that seemed good enough for them for him to be original.
The disclaimer seemed to do little to head off those out looking to not let facts get in the way of their opinion.
I even had someone challenge me on if Steve Gaines had survived the plane crash would I consider him an original member.
At this point, I ended up rewriting the post to be as generic as possible, and drop the debate. Some of us have more to do than just debate on Facebook all day.
But with regards to Steve, the answer is no. Despite the absolutely incredible guitar player that Steve Gaines was, whether he survived the crash or not, he wasn’t on the first album, therefore by definition, he was not an original member. I get that he along with Ed King – who he replaced – are in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, and deservedly so. Same goes for Bob Burns and Artimus who are both in the R&R HoF.
I’m glad that they are all there, because they should be.
People were so worked up over a post that had been virtually the same for three straight years and literally aggressively splitting hairs on what constitutes “original.”
Original does not mean better, original does not mean that contributions by band members who were later additions are to be dismissed and looked down upon because they were late to the party, which is something I never tried to convey in the post.
Bands can be made better – and often are - when new blood comes in, just like when Don Murray, Charlie Hayward and Tommy Crain joined the CDB in 1975, no sleight to anyone who came before, but the band got even better when they joined.
Original members, or not, each brought their own originality.
God bless the Lynyrd Skynyrd band, Allman Brothers Band, The Marshall Tucker Band and The Charlie Daniels Band, to all those that came before, and to those still carrying the torch for the bands of Southern Rock, rock on, our brothers.
What do you think?
Let’s all make the day count!
Pray for our troops, our police, the Peace of Jerusalem and our nation.
God Bless America!
#SonyReleaseHonkyTonkAve
#BenghaziAintGoingAway #End22
- Charlie Daniels, Jr.
PLEASE READ BEFORE YOU POST
Feel free to comment on soapboxes, but please refrain from profanity and anonymous posts are not allowed, we need a name and you MUST provide a valid email address. If you provide an email address, but leave the name as "Anonymous" we will pick a name for you based on your email address. No one other than website administrators will see your email address, not other posters. If you post without a valid email address, your comment (whether positive or negative) will be deleted. — TeamCDB
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