Charlie Daniels‘ latest album, Beau Weevils – Songs in the Key of E, will release Friday, Oct. 26. The new ten-track album features lead vocals, guitar and fiddle by Daniels, music industry musician/producer/publisher/label exec James Stroud on drums and percussion, Billy Crain on guitar, and Charlie Hayward on bass.
“Beau Weevils – Songs in the Key of E is the culmination of a long held desire of James Stroud and myself to do a project together,” Daniels says. “We had worked together, with James in the capacity of producer, which had resulted in some of our most successful albums for The Charlie Daniels Band, but James is one of the finest and most soulful drummers in the business and I figured we could get together, musician to musician, and come up with something special. We just needed a vehicle in the form of songs that would fit the bill.”
Stroud has also produced several albums for The Charlie Daniels Band, including 1988’s Homesick Heroes, 1989’s Simple Man and 1991’s Renegade.
Daniels wrote or co-wrote each track on the new album, which was produced by Stroud and Casey Wood, with David Corlew serving as executive producer.
“The whole thing started one day when I, as I often do, was fooling around with my guitar and came up with the opening riff on a song that eventually turned out to be ‘Mudcat,'” Daniels says. “That song set the style for the rest of the songs I would write, that all lent themselves to being played in the key of E, hence the title.”
A staple of the southern rock scene since early 1970s, Crain has performed with The Allman Brothers Band, The Rossington-Collins Band, The Rolling Stones, ZZ Top, The Outlaws and the Henry Paul Band. He’s the brother of the late Charlie Daniels Band guitarist, Tommy Crain.
Longtime Charlie Daniels Band guitarist Hayward is best known for playing bass on Gregg Allman’s critically-acclaimed album, Laid Back. His additional credits include performing with Dr. John, as well as sitting in with The Allman Brothers Band after bass guitarist Berry Oakley was involved in a motorcycle accident.
Beau Weevils – Songs in the Key of E Track Listing:
1. Geechi Geechi Ya Ya Blues
2. Bad Blood
3. Mexico Again
4. Louisiana Blues
5. Oh, Juanita
6. Smokey’s Got Your Number
7. Mudcat
8. Everybody’s Gotta Go Sometime
9. We’ll All Have Some
10. How We Roll
About the Author
Jessica Nicholson serves as the Managing Editor for MusicRow magazine. Her previous music journalism experience includes work with Country Weekly magazine and Contemporary Christian Music (CCM) magazine. She holds a BBA degree in Music Business and Marketing from Belmont University. She welcomes your feedback at jnicholson@musicrow.com.View Author Profile
