Charlie Daniels' Family: What to Know

Mom and Dad

Daniels was born in North Carolina in 1936 to father William Carlton Daniels and mother LaRue Hammonds. The musician has kept fairly private about his childhood, but he has reminisced about playing baseball in his hometown of Wilmington. When he was a teenager, Daniels moved to Gulf, Chatham County, North Carolina, before graduating high school in 1955 and starting his music career.

Hazel

Daniels met his future wife, Hazel Juanita Alexander, when he was playing a show at the Fondalite Club in Tulsa, Oklahoma with his then-band the Jaguars, who he played with from 1959 to 1967. "She's not much of a clubgoer, but she came with a girlfriend of hers one night," Daniels told The Oklahoman. "And I said, 'Hey I like that curvy little blonde over there. Hey how are you doin'? It kinda went on from there, you know."

Tying the knot

Daniels and Hazel married in September 1964. In 2014, the couple celebrated their 50th anniversary, which fell on the same date Daniels played the Oklahoma State Fair, a set of circumstances very similar to those of their wedding.

"I was a young musician going around the country playing ... and I had one night off," Daniels recalled. "I had Sunday off, so we got married on a Sunday morning. I had to go back to work Monday night, so we didn't have a honeymoon. But I've been able to remedy that. In the last 50 years, we had a whole bunch of honeymoons. We don't necessarily take them on our anniversary, but we've seen a good bit of the world together."

Secret to success

Daniels shared that the secret to his long-lasting marriage was committing to commitment. "It's just finding somebody you truly love that you want to spend the rest of your life with," he said. "Marriage is not an experiment. It is a commitment. It's a sacred commitment, and it's who you marry you're supposed to stay with. If you can't find somebody you'd like to spend the rest of your life with, don't tie the knot, because that's not gonna make ya happy. I've been blessed with finding the girl of my dreams, and here I am 50 years after, without a regret in the world about marryin' my darlin' from Tulsa."

Charlie Jr.

Daniels and Hazel welcomed their son, Charlie Daniels Jr., in 1965, and his dad spent much of son's early life on the road. "I came home so anxious to see my family and hold my baby son, and when I picked him up, he started crying. He didn't know who I was," Daniels wrote in an essay for CNS News. "Even after we moved to Nashville in 1967, the periods of separation would continue as I pursued my dreams, logging millions of miles and untold weeks away from my family in the process."

Family first

Daniels and Hazel's first priority was always their son, and Daniels shared that "all through the difficult years of my being gone most of the time, and the days of skimpy budgetary, rattletrap cars and secondhand appliances, my wife never lost sight of what I was trying to accomplish and giving me whatever latitudes and parameters it took for me to get there."

In 1983, Charlie Jr. started college and Daniels had a bus outfitted for himself and Hazel and they "began living our dream of being together night and day, traveling around the country, still pursuing my ambitions, but doing it together."

The Charlie Daniels Band

The Charlie Daniels Band was together for over 40 years, and Daniels considered the members his family. "This band's been around now over 40 years," he told Rare Country. "I've got people that have been with me — 40 years is a long time for anybody to stay at any job. You can retire from General Motors in less time than that."

"But the guys, they're like my family," he continued. "I've gone through births, deaths, grandchildren, children, divorces — all kinds of things with my guys, and they're my family. That's a big part of my story is about my band, my road crew. The ups and downs. The things that we've done."

Saying goodbye

Daniels died on Monday morning at Summit Medical Center in Hermitage, Tennessee, from a hemorrhagic stroke. In lieu of flowers, the musician's family is asking fans to donate to the Journey Home Project, a non-profit Daniels founded in 2014. Throughout his career, the 83-year-old was a staunch supporter of U.S. servicemen and women, and his organization has raised over $1 million for veterans and veterans-related programs and charities.