Charlie Daniels Honored in New Ira Dean + Ted Nugent Song ""W.W.C.D.D."

The Tennessean | Marcus Dowling

Multi-platinum-selling country singer, songwriter and performer Ira Dean paired with multigenerational rock icon Ted Nugent for the new single "WWCDD (What Would Charlie Daniels Do)." The song honors the fifth anniversary of the passing of the "Devil Went Down To Georgia" performer.

Both performers spent decades touring with Daniels. Notably, Nugent was a guest at the Country Music Hall of Famer's Volunteer Jam concerts in Nashville in the 1980s. In 2002, when Dean was a member of the country trio Trick Pony, Daniels recognized that the bass player was struggling with addiction. He helped him by performing an on-site prayer intervention after a concert.

The track is from Dean's latest album, "I Got Roads," released on April 11. It honors the Nashville country music industry's ability to serve as an outpost for rock and roll's honky-tonk and juke joint-ready wild children.

"Charlie was a little bit of Jesus Christ and a little bit of John Wayne," Dean said. "He was a true patriot who backed our country and troops. A lot of people say they'll pray for you, but Charlie was the type of guy who would stop whatever he was doing and pray right then and there."

"Charlie and I were s***kickers and bad mofos who shared a love for boogie woogie rhythm and blues. Little Richard and Howlin' Wolf meets Toby Keith. He was my blood brother in spirit who stood up and fought for a quality of life defined by honoring the American dream," Nugent said. He recently joined Dean for an extended interview with The Tennessean.

Proceeds from the single will benefit The Charlie Daniels Journey Home Project. The organization supports veterans and their transition from military to civilian life.

What would Charlie Daniels do?

"It seems like everyone these days is a ticking time bomb full of hate from folks like me who don't agree / It ain't ever gonna change," sings Dean as the hard rock track with a soulful groove opens.

The song's video pairs Dean and Nugent hunting and performing on the latter's 300-acre Spirit Wild Ranch near Waco, Texas.

Nugent counts the 1977 platinum album "Cat Scratch Fever" and co-founding rock supergroup Damn Yankees a decade later as two of many career successes. He said that "WWCDD" works because it fuses blues, country, folk, gospel, rock and soul in its underpinnings.

"Country artists have always been able to deliver all genres perfectly with an adventurous, miraculous spirituality," Nugent said.

Dean also sings "I'm one of those don't give a damn, live off the land Ted Nugent fans" in the song. Thus, making the call to the rock icon for a guitar solo to put the equivalent of what he describes as a "flaming, rock and roll middle finger" on "WWCDD" felt ideal.

"There's a dynamic, emotional, sincere and soulful performance that feels like the song's heartbeat unleashed. I'm genuflecting at the altar of Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley, Albert, B.B. and Freddie King, Jerry Lee Lewis, Little Richard, James Brown's band and Motown's Funk Brothers (house and session band)."

For Nugent, the ultimate indication that the song has a soulful connection comes from watching the video. As his solo crescendos, the veins in his forehead pop.

"That's the ultimate indicator," the guitarist said.

Charlie Daniels work as a political, social influencer

"Charlie Daniels was a politically and socially radical pioneer who wasn't afraid to be outspoken about his beliefs," Nugent said.

Dean noted that the song also makes an intentional mention of Lynyrd Skynyrd's caustic note to Neil Young in "Sweet Home Alabama," which states, "Southern men didn't need him around."

When extended into the realm of legacy country acts like Charlie Daniels and the values they represented, Skynyrd's response to Neil Young's songs "Southern Man" and "Alabama," which were critical of the South, still holds value in the modern era.

"Skynyrd, like Ted Nugent, are my heroes who taught me how to play and write what I know, with honesty, truth and a rebellious spirit," Dean said.

For Nugent, the connection to Skynyrd honors how Southern men continue to serve as conservationists, providers, and leaders of those who would rather be "participants and not spectators" in American politics.

Honoring Charlie Daniels

Dean counts creating "WWCDD" as "one of the most humbling experiences" of a career that's seen him tour with Country Music Hall of Famers like Brooks & Dunn and Hank Williams, Jr., plus write songs cut by Grand Ole Opry members like Trace Adkins, Montgomery Gentry and Rascal Flatts.

"Without me reading Creem Magazine and seeing Ted Nugent shooting flaming arrows out of his guitar or wearing a loincloth and swinging on a vine onstage, I don't learn what it means to be an entertainer," Dean said.

Nugent, laughing and smiling, summarizes the multi-generational connection the new song by making an invitation to the world that's open for years to come.

"Like Charlie, Ira and I have an open-door policy in our lives, allowing us to learn from everything and everybody," Nugent said. "I'll be cooking high-quality protein on a mesquite grill - who wouldn't want to come over and hang out?"

IRA DEAN