I agree with the last statement. I think it's best to learn basic computer architecture before learning C, which assumes a close relationship.

I took http://nand2tetris.org/ before learning C; starting from a single logic gate, you build memory, CPU, assembler, and a compiler for small language (you implement malloc and free yourself). [0]

Though some folks say it sacrifices depth for breadth, I feel very comfortable learning C now.

[0] HN thread for part 2 of the course: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14526344

[1] HN thread for part 1 of the course: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=13209452