Charlie Daniels: Remembering ‘Stroker Ace,’ From Burt Reynolds’ Beloved NASCAR Movie

Country music icon Charlie Daniels died on Monday after suffering a hemorrhagic stroke at the age of 83. This prompted countless tributes on social media and motivated fans to listen to one of his more underrated songs. They revisited “Stroker’s Theme,” the theme song from the 1983 Burt Reynolds film Stroker Ace.

Like many of Daniels’ songs, “Stroker’s Theme” had lyrics that told a story. The song discussed Ace’s ego, as well as his mean streak. Considering that Stroker Ace is centered around NASCAR and the Winston Cup Series, the song prominently mentioned yellow caution flags, Victory Lane and racing for the checkered flag. The film performed poorly following its release, but the fans have continued to express their love for the song.

“Stroker Ace was born to race. He had a mean streak ten feet wide,” the lyrics read. “A son of a gun with a taste for fun and more than his share of pride. Take a dirt road curve with the devil’s nerve and make a car dance across the mud. Hauling shine was his regular line ’til the track got in his blood.

“Was a real hot shot and he bragged a lot but, man that fool could drive. ‘Cause he loved the feel of the steering wheel and the girls with the bed-room eyes. And in a racing tide or a bar room fight old Stroker stole the show. A back stretch blazer, a real hell raiser and a race track Romeo.”

Following Daniels’ death, fans continued to discuss the racing-centric film and its theme. Some said they were spending the day watching Stroker Ace in the singer’s honor while others listed “Stroker’s Theme” as one of his all-time best songs. One fan, in particular, said that he witnessed a fight between two women because they wanted Daniels’ sweat-soaked bandana. This incident occurred immediately before the country singer performed “Stroker’s Theme.”

A longtime NASCAR fan and friend of Darrell Waltrip, Daniels mentioned stock car racing in more than one song. He also wrote and released a tribute song to Dale Earnhardt, which he called “The Intimidator” to match with No. 3’s nickname. In the lyrics, Daniels talked about Earnhardt’s nerves of steel and the ability to always find a way to win. To cap off the song, the late country star also threw in a reference to Dale Earnhardt Jr., saying that “No. 8” is a rocker and roller and that it runs in the family.