Charlie Daniels Band keyboard player Joel 'Taz' Digregorio has been killed in a car crash.

The 67 year old vocalist and co-writer of hit song "The Devil Went Down To Georgia" was driving along Interstate 40 in Tennessee en route to meet the group's tour bus just outside of Nashville when he lost control of his vehicle on Wednesday.

The Charlie Daniels Band has canceled performances in Georgia on Thursday and Connecticut over the weekend to allow the bandmates time to grieve.

A statement from fiddler Charlie Daniels reads, "I am in shock now. Taz was one of my best friends. The CDB family...

The 2010 Academy of Country Music Awards show kicked off with Carrie Underwood, Miranda Lambert, Brad Paisley and Charlie Daniels.

We don't know about you, but Carrie's super short lavender dress is steaming things up for us. Talk about showing up Miranda, who simply wore jeans and a jacket.

At the end of the performance legendary fiddler Daniels - having recently recovered from a stroke - exclaimed, "That's how you start a television show, son!"

This year's show was held at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

SEE TONS MORE PHOTOS FROM THE COUNTRYMUSIC AWARDS HERE

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Legendary country music star Charlie Daniels is recovering after suffering a mild stroke on Friday. The Devil Went Down To Georgia musician was snowmobiling near his home in Colorado when he fell ill, and was rushed to a hospital nearby.

However, he had to be airlifted to the Swedish Medical Center in Denver to have further treatment. After two days under the watchful eyes of medics, the fiddler was allowed home on Sunday.

His publicist says he his doing well, according to TMZ.com.

- Click here for more Charlie Daniels pictures -

Image ©Courtesy WMA

(This news article ...

Country duo Montgomery Gentry were left sobbing like babies backstage at Nashville, Tennessee's Grand Ole Opry on Tuesday night after learning they will be inducted as Opry members in June.

Opry member Charlie Daniels surprised Eddie Montgomery and Troy Gentry by giving them the news during a show at the famed music hall.

Daniels walked onstage and told the duo, "I have been chosen to do something very special. I have known you guys for a long time, and I am very proud of all your accomplishments. If you agree to it, on June 23, you're gonna be made members of the Grand Ole Opry...

Kevin Costner and his band Modern West were unlikely tent fillers during the first day of the Stagecoach country music festival in California on Saturday by rocking fans with tunes and heartfelt messages to the struggling and unemployed.

The Oscar winner dedicated one track, Five Minutes From America, to the people of Louisiana, where he was filming when Hurricane Katrina hit in 2005. Costner won applause from the crowd when he recalled the decision he made to continue filming, rather than relocate: "These people had lost their homes; they didn't need to lose their jobs too." His wif...

As the Presidential campaign heads into the final stretch, rock and rap royalty are working hard to get out the vote for Democratic nominee Barack Obama. Springsteen played this weekend in Philadelphia, and Jay-Z was in Miami this week with Wyclef. Democrats get all the good headliners.

Republicans? That's another story. Ever since Ricky Martin got all "Vida Loca" with George W. Bush at his first Inauguration, it's been downhill for the GOP. These days the only musicians Republicans can count on are either second-rate country artists or low-rent rock acts. Maybe cutting taxes isn't eno...

Country great Charlie Daniels is far from happy his fiddling anthem The Devil Went Down To Georgia has become a tune on video game phenomenon Guitar Hero III.

Gamers can now battle each other to Daniels' hit about a musician who competes with the devil for a golden fiddle.

Daniels, who doesn't own the rights to the song, says, "I would never grant permission for some company to create a video game version of a song I wrote, in which the devil wins a contest.

"I'm sorely disappointed with the company who owns the copyright for not policing the situation. As it is they have ...

Some of these songs have some good moments but just go on a little too long. Some of them have zero good moments, and then go on a little too long. What they all have in common is that they're too freaking long. Any of these guys ever hear of trimming the fat? Less is more? Your song is too damn long? Any of that ringing a bell, you bloated, self-indulgent rockers?

10. Gordon Lightfoot, Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald (1976)

Running Tme: 6:28

There are longer songs, yes, but there are no other songs quite like this one in that everything is sang in the exact same melody an...

In a grand commemoration of the 50th Celebration of the GRAMMY® Awards, Shout! Factory and The Recording Academy®'s GRAMMY® Recordings announce an electrifying 7-CD series encompassing GRAMMY® winners from four of the legendary awards' major genres. With a personal introduction written by 27-time GRAMMY® winner and 50th Celebration Ambassador Quincy Jones, this series is a sumptuous ode to the biggest hits in music history and a must-have for music lovers and collectors alike.

"We look forward to celebrating the past five decades of GRAMMY®-winning music with music fans everywhere thr...

Country star Charlie Daniels was overwhelmed with emotion on Monday night when he accepted a surprise invitation to join the Grand Ole Opry. The 71-year-old was performing at a benefit concert at Nashville, Tennessee's Ryman Auditorium when he was presented with the honor by Opry member Martina McBride.

Accepting the spot on the weekly country music program, Daniels said, "I can not even begin to tell you folks... this is very emotional for me. I never ever in my wildest dreams when I came to Nashville with my precious wife and son dreamed that this would happen. To think that now my ...

Happy Birthday to actor Joaquin Phoenix (1974), Former Denver Broncos running back Terrell Davis (1972), singer/songwriter Ben Harper (1968), Pretty Woman Julia Roberts (1967), software tycoon Bill Gates (1955), Olympic gold medalist Bruce Jenner (1949), NYPD Blue actor Dennis Franz (1944), southern rock fiddler, Charlie Daniels (1937), and discoverer of the polio vaccine Dr. Jonas Salk (1914).

LEBANON, TENN. (September 12, 2007) – After years of touring and releasing platinum selling records, Lonestar has built a strong and loyal following of music fans across the country. The band is about to hit the road again, this time with a new lead singer and a new Christmas CD that's only available at Cracker Barrel Old Country Store® locations and online at crackerbarrel.com.

"It's an honor to be involved with Cracker Barrel on this project. I can't think of a better combination than Lonestar, Christmas and Cracker Barrel," said Lonestar's Keech Rainwater. "These recordings are a p...

Happy Birthday to actor Joaquin Phoenix (1974), Former Denver Broncos running back Terrell Davis (1972), singer/songwriter Ben Harper (1968), Pretty Woman Julia Roberts (1967), software tycoon Bill Gates (1955), Olympic gold medalist Bruce Jenner (1949), NYPD Blue actor Dennis Franz (1944), southern rock fiddler, Charlie Daniels (1937), and discoverer of the polio vaccine Dr. Jonas Salk (1914).

Aerosmith star Joe Perry, Cheap Trick star Rick Nielsen and members of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band have formed a supergroup with country maverick Hank Williams Jr. to pay tribute to American football.

The unnamed group, which also features fiddler Charlie Daniels and The Roots star ?uestlove, has recorded several versions of Williams' "All My Rowdy Friends Are Here On Monday Night," which will be used as the theme to cable sports channel ESPN's Monday Night Football coverage later this year.

(This news article provided by World Entertainment News Network)

Happy Birthday to actor Joaquin Phoenix (1974), Former Denver Broncos running back Terrell Davis (1972), singer/songwriter Ben Harper (1968), Pretty Woman Julia Roberts (1967), software tycoon Bill Gates (1955), Olympic gold medalist Bruce Jenner (1949), NYPD Blue actor Dennis Franz (1944), southern rock fiddler, Charlie Daniels (1937), and discoverer of the polio vaccine Dr. Jonas Salk (1914).