Charlie Daniels

Once you get around the fact that Koch's 2004 album The Essential Super Hits of the Charlie Daniels Band is in fact not a collection of original hit recordings but is instead a collection of new recordings cut by Daniels and his 2004 incarnation of the CDB, the album is actually pretty fun. The key is, unlike a lot of latter-day re-recordings, it doesn't sound like the band is going through the motions. Instead, Daniels and his band are having a great time running through "The South's Gonna Do It (Again)," "The Devil Went Down to Georgia," "Still in Saigon," "Uneasy Rider," and "Simple Man." While a couple of selections are a little dubious -- Skynyrd's "Freebird" doesn't need to be here and "This Ain't No Rag, It's a Flag" remains the rudest post-9/11 song this side of Ray Stevens' "Osama Yo Mama" -- this is overall a nifty little collection of new versions of familiar tunes. Don't mistake it for a hits collection; just think of it as a new album, and The Essential Super Hits will satisfy. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide