The product of frontiersmen who settled in middle Tennessee after the Revolution, Charles was reared in McMinnville, TN: the son of a teacher and a librarian, Charles spent his after school hours exploring the library, reading volumes of books that ranged over a multitude of subjects, both fiction and non-fiction. From this history, a native thirst for knowledge was born. After graduating from high school, Charles set out on a path of musical study that took him from Tennessee, to New Orleans, Louisiana, to Louisville, Kentucky --a long journey in pursuit of his DMA. Additionally, his interest in different cultures led him to travel internationally with his church’s mission team to far-flung places like Venezuela, and The Philippines, and to fall in love with, and marry his college sweetheart, Lenore, a native of The Bahamas. These experiences both broadened and deepened his appreciation for the varied musical styles of different cultures throughout the world.  Songwriting has always been at the core of his musical articulation, with thoughtful expressions of that growing and maturing over the years. The subjects of his lyrics vary widely: from the rural south of his Tennessee home, to the islands and distant shores of his travels, and into the history of the people and places that have had a profound influence on his life.