New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Family, friends and hundreds of fans gathered yesterday at World Outreach Church in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, to pay their respects to country and southern rock icon Charlie Daniels.
The funeral service began with Carolyn Corlew, a longtime backup singer for The Charlie Daniels Band (CDB), singing the Bible hymn, "The Lord is My Shepherd / 23rd Psalm." A color guard followed with a march to Daniels' casket with the U.S. and Tennessee flags, while former U.S. Marine Mark "Oz" Geist recited the pledge of allegiance.
SiriusXM's Storme Warren led the service, sharing his love and admiration for Daniels who he has long considered his hero and the reason he moved to Nashville.
Throughout the morning, Warren introduced several guest performers who took the stage to pay tribute to the late Country
Music Hall of Fame and Grand Ole Opry member.
Trace Adkins performed the patriotic "Arlington," while
Vince Gill crooned through "Go Rest High on That Mountain," and "America the Beautiful."
Travis Tritt led the congregation in "Amazing Grace." Accompanied on piano by Michael W. Smith,
Gretchen Wilson honored Daniels with gospel classic "I'll Fly Away."
Speakers included former U.S. Navy SEAL
David Rutherford, tenured CDB roadie
Roger Campbell, and Daniels' longtime manager
David Corlew. World Outreach Church pastor Allen Jackson eulogized the legendary singer.
Famous friends in the crowd included fellow southern rock staple Doug Gray, lead singer of The Marshall Tucker Band, Randy and Mary Travis,
David Lee Murphy, Rudy Gatlin, John Conlee, Deborah Allen, Mark Wills, Henry Paul of BlackHawk/The Outlaws fame,
Scooter Brown, and country music media personality Keith Bilbrey.
Following the service, Daniels was buried at Mt.
Juliet Memorial Gardens in Mt. Juliet, Tennessee.
Daniels passed away on Monday, July 6, at Summit Medical Center in Hermitage, Tennessee. Doctors determined the cause of death was a hemorrhagic stroke. He was 83. The beloved singer is survived by his wife, Hazel Daniels; son Charles
William Daniels and Alaya Nowling and Evan Tubb, whom Daniels considered his grandchildren, as well as "grandbuddies" Taylor Corlew Jenkins and Bailey Wheeler.
