Musician By Night: Rickey Medlocke

Showing posts with label Rickey Medlocke. Show all posts

Friday, April 26, 2013

Blackfoot . . .

There was another American Southern rock band from Jacksonville, Florida by the name of Blackfoot that organized during 1970. Though they were primarily a Southern rock band, they were also known as a hard rock act. The band's classic lineup consisted of guitarist and vocalist Rickey Medlocke, guitarist Charlie Hargrett, bassist Greg T. Walker, and drummer Jakson Spires.

They've had a number of successful albums during the 1970s and early 1980s, including Strikes (1979), Tomcattin' (1980) and Marauder (1981).

During the spring of 1969, Rickey Medlocke and Greg T. Walker met New York City native Charlie Hargrett in Jacksonville and organized the band Fresh Garbage with Ron Sciabarasi for keyboards, Rick for drums and vocals, Greg for bass and Hargrett for lead guitar, playing mostly at The Comic Book Club on Forsyth Street.

That autumn, Sciabarasi left Fresh Garbage and lead guitarist Jerry Zambito (ex-Tangerine) joined as a new band, Hammer, was organized with Medlocke performing lead vocals (playing almost no guitar); Greg T. Walker for bass and backup vocals; Jakson Spires, from Tangerine, for drums and backup vocals; DeWitt Gibbs, also from Tangerine, for Hammond organ, Fender Rhodes electric piano and backup vocals; and Hargrett for lead guitar. They soon relocated to Gainesville, Florida to be the house band of Dub's, a well-known topless bar on the outskirts of town.

About the beginning of 1970, the band relocated to Manhattan after a friend, who was working in a music publishing company, told her boss about the band and he had them move to New York City. During the early spring of the same year, the band, after learning of another band on the West Coast named Hammer, decided to change their name to Blackfoot to represent the American Indian heritage of Walker, Spires and Medlocke (Spires is part Cherokee, Medlocke part Sioux, and Walker part Eastern Creek, a Florida Indians tribe). When the band failed to acquire a contract as a result of their relocation, Gibbs quit the band and Medlocke began playing rhythm guitar full-time.

During the spring of 1971, Medlocke and Walker accepted an offer to join Lynyrd Skynyrd and Blackfoot ended for a time. There was a brief attempt to regroup during 1972, but Medlocke quit again and Walker joined The Tokens, who soon changed their name to Cross Country. Hargrett remained in the north, living in Hackettstown, New Jersey. During August 1972 Blackfoot's old friend and roadie, John Vassiliou, visited Hargrett with Reidsville, North Carolina bassist Lenny Stadler from the band Blackberry Hill. Hargrett decided to relocate to North Carolina and invited Medlocke, who'd quit Lynyrd Skynyrd by this time, to reform Blackfoot with Stadler for bass guitar and Jakson Spires for drums. Danny Johnson (later with the bands Derringer and Steppenwolf), from a Louisiana group, Axis, was employed as second guitarist. But Medlocke soon decided to be both main vocalist and guitarist again, so Johnson was employed only briefly.

During the summer of 1973, Stadler quit the band after a tumor was discovered on one of his lungs (it later dissolved). But Stadler decided to leave secular music to join a gospel group. He eventually became a Methodist minister. Greg T. Walker was invited to rejoin at this juncture.

By 1974 the band had returned their base of operations to the Northeast (Northern New Jersey) and Medlocke developed nodes on his vocal cords and temporarily lost his voice. Another singer, Patrick Jude, was brought into the band. After a brief time, Medlocke was able to sing again and Jude was dismissed. Soon afterward, Medlocke and Walker sent producers/session players Jimmy Johnson and David Hood a copy of Blackfoot's material. Johnson and Hood had worked with Medlocke and Walker in Muscle Shoals, Alabama when they were there recording with Lynyrd Skynyrd. No Reservations was released by the company Island Records during 1975 as part of a deal organized by Blackfoot's then manager Lou Manganiello, and their second record album, Flying High, was vended by Epic Records company during 1976. Both record albums were produced by Johnson and Hood.

Mid 1970s

By late 1975, the group was living back in Gainesville, Florida. During 1977 they communicated with Black Oak Arkansas' manager, Butch Stone, who hired them as the backing group for one of his clients, Ruby Starr, who had been a backup singer for Black Oak but was now becoming self-employed. After the stint with Ruby ended during 1978, they met Brownsville Station manager Al Nalli and his partner Jay Frey, who got them a contract with the company Atco Records.

Blackfoot Strikes, produced by Al Nalli and engineered by Brownsville Station drummer Henry Weck, was recorded in Nalli's basement studio in Ann Arbor, Michigan and was completed by January 1979. It was destined to be the band's most commercially successful effort. The song "Train, Train", written by Rickey's grandfather, "Shorty" Medlocke, became their first success and best known song. "Highway Song" proved to be another success for them later that year.

The group toured frequently during 1979; late during the year they opened for the band The Who at the Silverdome in Pontiac, Michigan while developing their next album, Tomcattin, which was released during 1980. They went on to release the album Marauder during 1981 and Highway Song Live during 1982.

1980s

During the early 1980s the "southern rock" genre was considered passe by the pop music press, so the band began attempting to change their style somewhat. They decided to add keyboards to the group once again. Organist Ken Hensley (ex-Uriah Heep) was contacted and agreed to join during 1982 in time for their next record album, Siogo. But the poor sales for Siogo had the band thinking they might have to "modernize" for the new MTV generation. It was thought that perhaps Hargrett with his "biker type" appearance might not be appropriate for television.

Hargrett reluctantly decided to end his employment with the band during January 1984 having not played on their next album, Vertical Smiles, which had been recorded in Atlanta in late 1983 with former Yes band's engineer Eddie Offord. This album was rejected by Atco. But the revamped version, which was released finally during October 1984, also failed to sell well.

Ken Hensley, not accustomed to Blackfoot's intense tour schedule, quit by late 1984 and was replaced by former Axe band's singer/guitarist "Bobby" Barth. But by December 1985, with their popularity waning and good-quality engagements becoming few, the band decided to quit. During February 1986 the Blackfoot company was dissolved. Medlocke decided to continue with a new team that included Doug "Bingo" Bare (keyboards, synthetics, backup vocals), Jerry "Wizzard" Seay (from Mother's Finest, bass guitar, backup vocals) and Harold Seay (drums, percussion). For their 1987 album Rick Medlocke and Blackfoot (their final album for Atlantic Records), the new group was attempting a more radio-style 1980s rock music sound. Many of the group's fans were not all that happy with the changes.

During 1988, Wizzard and Seay quit and Gunner Ross (drums, percussion), bassist Mark Mendoza and Neal Casal (guitar) were employed. Mendoza quit by the end of the year and Rikki Mayr (ex-Lizzy Borden band) began playing bass for the band during early 1989.

1990s

During 1990 a new album, Medicine Man, was released by the Independent Loop Company.

By 1992, Medlocke had revamped the team yet again and hired three other players: Benny Rappa (drums, percussion), Mark Woerpel (an ex-Whiteface guitarist who had done some studio work for Medlocke for earlier albums) and Tim Stunson for bass guitar. Another new album, After the Reign, was released during 1994 by the company Wildcat and, like Medicine Man, had something of the band's old style. During 1994, also, the Rhino Records collection Rattlesnake Rock N' Roll: The Best of Blackfoot was released.

By 1996, Blackfoot was: Medlocke, Stet Howland, John Housley (from Ragady Ann) for lead and rhythm guitar and Bryce Barnes (from Edwin Dare) for bass guitar. That same year, Medlocke rejoined Lynyrd Skynyrd, this time as a guitarist. But he continued to tour with Blackfoot honoring all dates booked through 1997, then disbanded the group to concentrate on Lynyrd Skynyrd.

Live On The King Biscuit Flower Hour, a 1983 concert recording, was released during early 1998, and EMI released Live during 2000, also culled from the band's heyday.

2000-2011

During 2004 a second resurrection of Blackfoot occurred with original members Jakson Spires, Greg T. Walker and Charlie Hargrett. Medlocke was not available, so the lead vocals role was given to Bobby Barth. During March 2005, Spires died suddenly of an aneurysm, but the band decided to persevere. In compliance with the will of Spires, Austrian drummer Christoph Ullmann was hired as the new drummer.

During 2006 the band toured and was joined by Southern Rock All Stars's Jay Johnson (the son of Jimmy Johnson, their original co-producer) for guitar and vocals after Barth was sidelined for a shoulder and neck operation. Barth resumed performing later that year. During November 2006 Ullman left to return to Austria and was succeeded by Mark McConnell. In April 2007 Blackfoot dismissed Johnson and McConnell. That year the band toured and consisted of bassist Walker, Hargrett, Barth and drummer Michael Sollars. Later that year a live DVD was released. In 2009 Scott Craig was employed as drummer.

During the spring of 2010, Barth was forced to undergo emergency back surgery. Former Lynyrd Skynyrd guitarist Mike Estes was then employed for lead vocals/guitar and Kurt Pietro replaced Scott Craig on drums. In the summer of 2011 Charlie Hargrett was replaced by Randy Peak.

2012-present

The year 2012 introduced a completely new line-up personally chosen and to be produced by founding member and front man Rickey Medlocke.

The new line-up was modeled after the live high energy version of Blackfoot in the early 80s. Blackfoot is in the process of booking a full line up of live dates, which can be viewed on their new website, www.blackfootband.com.

Greg T. Walker, Charlie Hargrett, Michael Estes and Pietro subsequently regrouped under the band name Fired Guns, whilst Rickey Medlocke continued to perform with Lynyrd Skynyrd.

Members:

Current members:

Sean Chambers - lead vocals, guitar (2012–present)
Tim Rossi - guitar, vocals (2012–present)
Brian Carpenter - bass, vocals (2012–present)
Michael Cannizzaro - drums, vocals (2012–present)

Former members:

Rickey Medlocke - vocals, guitar, dobro, mandolin, drums (1969–1971, 1972–1997)
Charlie Hargrett - guitar (1969–1971, 1972–1984, 2004–2011)
Greg T. Walker - bass, backing vocals (1969–1971, 1973–1986, 2004–2011)
Ron Sciabarasi - keyboards (1969)
Jerry Zambito - guitar (1969)
Jakson Spires - drums, percussion, backing vocals (1969–1971, 1972–1986, 2004–2005; died 2005)
Dewitt Gibbs - keyboards, backing vocals (1969–1970)
Leonard Stadler - bass (1972–1973)
Danny Johnson - guitar (1972)
Patrick Jude - vocals (1974)

Ken Hensley - keyboards, guitar, backing vocals (1982–1984)
Bobby Barth - lead vocals, guitar, keyboards (1984–1986, a2004–2006, 2006–2010)
Doug Bare - keyboards, backing vocals (1986–1992)
Jerry "Wizzard" Seay - bass, backing vocals (1986–1988)
Harold Seay - drums, percussion (1986–1988)
Gunner Ross - drums, percussion (1988–1992)
Neal Casal - guitar (1988–1992)
Mark Mendoza - bass (1988)
Rikki Mayr - bass, backing vocals (1989–1992)
Benny Rappa - drums, percussion (1992–1994)
Mark Woerpel - guitar, synthesizer (1992–1996)

Tim Stunson - bass (1992–1996)
Stet Howland - drums, percussion (1994–1997)
John Housley - guitar (1996–1997)
Bryce Barnes - bass (1996–1997)
Christoph Ullmann - drums, percussion (2005–2006)
Jay Johnson - guitar, vocals (2006–2007)
Mark McConnell - drums, percussion (2006–2007; died 2012)
Michael Sollars - drums, percussion (2007–2009)
Scott Craig - drums, percussion (2009–2010)
Mike Estes - guitar, vocals (2010–2011)
Kurt Pietro - drums, percussion (2010–2011)
Randy Peak - guitar (2011)

Once again, it has been very interesting doing the research on Blackfoot. They have quite a history behind them; they went thru several different band members much like Lynyrd Skynyrd. They seemed to have captured the heart and soul of the American Southern Rockers as they travelled with the likes of Lynyrd Skynyrd, The Marshall Tucker Band, Z.Z. Top, The Outlaws and even 38 Special.

I hope you’re enjoying following along with me as I take you thru the different Southern Rock and Blues-Rock Bands back from the early 70’s. I have a few more that I’d like to cover for my own interests in not for all of you. I believe we all can learn something from each of these artists/bands so I’ll be covering “The Outlaws” in my next post. I certainly hope you continue to follow along.

Always remember that music and playing music will keep you young. Just watch the bands like Lynyrd Skynyrd, Aerosmith, Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin and many more on shows such as Palladium as see how they continue to light-up those stages just as they did 25-30 years ago. That is a true professional.

Well once again, until next time, please remember to “Support Live Music”. That keeps all the musicians working which is very important. Your support is greatly appreciated.

MUSICIAN by Night

GOD Save “The Blues”

Friday, April 19, 2013

Lynyrd Skynyrd . . .

Lynyrd Skynyrd (pronounced /ˌ l ɛ n ər d ˈ s k ɪ n ər d / LEN-ərd-SKIN-ərd) is an American rock band best known for popularizing the southern hard-rock genre during the 1970s. Originally formed in 1964 as the "Noble Five" in Jacksonville, Florida, the band rose to worldwide recognition on the basis of its driving live performances and signature tunes "Sweet Home Alabama" and "Free Bird." At the peak of their success, three members died in an airplane crash in 1977, putting an abrupt end to the band's most popular incarnation.

The surviving band members re-formed in 1987 for a reunion tour that featured Ronnie Van Zant's younger brother Johnny Van Zant as lead vocalist. The re-formed band continues to tour and record with original and co-founding member Gary Rossington and core members Johnny Van Zant along with Rickey Medlocke who recorded with the band for a short time in the early 1970s. Long time drummer Michael Cartellone has recorded and toured with the band since 1999. Lynyrd Skynyrd was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on March 13, 2006.

Early years

In the summer of 1964, teenage friends Ronnie Van Zant, Allen Collins, and Gary Rossington formed the band "The Noble Five" in Jacksonville, Florida. The band changed in 1965 to "My Backyard", when Larry Junstrom and Bob Burns joined. In 1968, the group won a local Battle of the Bands contest and the opening slot on several Southeast shows for the California-based psychedelic rock band Strawberry Alarm Clock.

In 1970, Van Zant sought a new name. "One Percent" and "The Noble Five" were each considered before the group settled on "Leonard Skinner", a mocking tribute to a physical-education teacher at Robert E. Lee High School, Leonard Skinner, who was notorious for strictly enforcing the school's policy against boys having long hair. Rossington dropped out of school, tired of being hassled about his hair. The more distinctive spelling was adopted before they released their first album. Despite their high school acrimony, the band developed a friendlier relationship with Skinner in later years, and invited him to introduce them at a concert in the Jacksonville Memorial Coliseum. Skinner also allowed the band to use a photo of his Leonard Skinner Realty sign for the inside of their third album.

In 1970, Pat Armstrong, a Jacksonville native and partner in Macon-based Hustlers Inc. with Phil Walden's younger brother, Alan Walden, became the band's managers. Armstrong left Hustlers shortly thereafter to start his own agency. Walden stayed with the band until 1974, when management was turned over to Peter Rudge. The band continued to perform throughout the South in the early 1970s, further developing their hard-driving, blues-rock sound and image, and experimenting with making studio recordings.

During this time, the band experienced some lineup changes for the first time. Junstrom left and was briefly replaced by Greg T. Walker on bass. At the same time, Ricky Medlocke joined as a second drummer and vocalist. Medlocke grew up with the founding members of Lynyrd Skynyrd. Some versions of the band's history also have Burns leaving the band for a short time during this period. The band played some shows with both Burns and Medlocke, using a dual-drummer approach similar to that of The Allman Brothers. In 1971, they made some recordings at the famous Muscle Shoals Sound Studio with Walker and Medlocke serving as the rhythm section, without the participation of Burns.

Medlocke and Walker left the band to play with another southern rock band, Blackfoot, and when the band made a second round of Muscle Shoals recordings in 1972, Burns was featured on drums and Leon Wilkeson was Larry Junstrom's permanent replacement on bass. Also in 1972, roadie Billy Powell became the keyboardist for the band. When Blackfoot's attempts to move north and play New York and New Jersey were not successful enough for him, Medlocke called up Ronnie Van Zant and asked to play drums for Lynyrd Skynyrd. Medlocke and Walker did not appear on any album until 1978, when "First and... Last", which collected the band's recordings in the biennium 1971-1972, was posthumously released. This album was considered essential by most fans.

Peak years (1973–1977)

In 1972 the band (now Van Zant, Collins, Rossington, Burns, Wilkeson and Powell) was discovered by musician, songwriter, and producer Al Kooper of Blood, Sweat and Tears, who had attended one of their shows at Funocchio's in Atlanta. They changed the spelling of their name to "Lynyrd Skynyrd" and Kooper signed them to his Sounds of the South label that was to be distributed and supported by MCA Records, producing their first album. Leon Wilkeson temporarily left the band during the early recording sessions for the album only playing on two tracks. Wilkeson rejoined the band shortly after the album's release at Van Zant's invitation and is pictured on the album cover. Strawberry Alarm Clock guitarist Ed King joined the band and played bass on the album (the only part which Wilkeson had already written being the solo section in "Simple Man"), along with some tasty Stratocaster work. King stayed in the band and switched to guitar after the album's release, allowing the band to replicate the three-guitar mix used in the studio for their live performances. Released August 13, 1973, the album featured the hit song "Free Bird," which received national airplay, eventually reaching No. 19 on the Billboard Hot 100 charts.

Ronnie Van Zant

Lynyrd Skynyrd's fan base continued to grow rapidly throughout 1973, largely due to their opening slot on The Who's Quadrophenia tour in the United States. On their 1974 follow-up, Second Helping, the band successfully avoided any sophomore slump, with King, Collins and Rossington all collaborating with Van Zant on the songwriting. The album was the band's breakthrough hit, and featured their most popular single, "Sweet Home Alabama" (#8 on the charts in August 1974), a response to Neil Young's "Alabama," featuring some outstanding guitar work by King, and "Southern Man". (Young and Van Zant were not rivals, but fans of each other's music and good friends; Young even wrote the song "Powderfinger" for the band, but they never recorded it. Van Zant, meanwhile, can be seen on the cover of Street Survivors wearing a Neil Young t-shirt.) The album reached No. 12 in 1974, eventually going multi-platinum. In July of that year, Lynyrd Skynyrd was one of the headline acts at The Ozark Music Festival at the Missouri State Fairgrounds in Sedalia, Missouri.

In January 1975, Burns left the band and was replaced by Kentucky native Artimus Pyle on drums. Lynyrd Skynyrd's third album, Nuthin' Fancy, was released the same year. The album had lower sales than its predecessor. Kooper and the band parted by mutual agreement after the raucous recording of the LP. Kooper was left with the tapes to complete the mix before release. Midway through the tour, Ed King left the band, citing tour exhaustion. In January 1976, backup singers Leslie Hawkins, Cassie Gaines and JoJo Billingsley (collectively known as The Honkettes) were added to the band, although they were not considered official members. Lynyrd Skynyrd's fourth album Gimme Back My Bullets was released in the new year, but did not achieve the same success as the previous two albums. Van Zant and Collins both felt that the band was seriously missing the three-guitar attack that had been one of its early hallmarks. Although Skynyrd auditioned several guitarists, including such high-profile names as Leslie West, the solution was closer than they realized.

Soon after joining Skynyrd, Cassie Gaines began touting the guitar and songwriting prowess of her younger brother, Steve. The junior Gaines, who led his own band, Crawdad (which occasionally would perform Skynyrd's "Saturday Night Special" in their set), was invited to audition onstage with Skynyrd at a concert in Kansas City on May 11, 1976. Liking what they heard, the group also jammed informally with the Oklahoma native several times, then invited him into the group in June. With Gaines on board, the newly-reconstituted band recorded the double-live album One More From the Road at the Fox Theatre (Atlanta, Georgia) in Atlanta, and performed at the Knebworth Festival, which also featured The Rolling Stones.

Gary Rossington

Both Collins and Rossington had serious car accidents over Labor Day weekend in 1976 which slowed the recording of the follow-up album and forced the band to cancel some concert dates. Rossington's accident inspired the ominous "That Smell" – a cautionary tale about drug abuse that was clearly aimed towards him and at least one other band member. Rossington has admitted repeatedly that he was the "Prince Charming" of the song who crashed his car into an oak tree while drunk and stoned on Quaaludes. Van Zant, at least, was making a serious attempt to clean up his act and curtail the cycle of boozed-up brawling that was part of Skynyrd's reputation.

1977's Street Survivors turned out to be a showcase for guitarist/vocalist Steve Gaines, who had joined the band just a year earlier and was making his studio debut with them. Publicly and privately, Ronnie Van Zant marveled at the multiple talents of Skynyrd's newest member, claiming that the band would "all be in his shadow one day." Gaines' contributions included his co-lead vocal with Van Zant on the co-written "You Got That Right" and the rousing guitar boogie "I Know A Little" which he had written before he joined Skynyrd. So confident was Skynyrd's leader of Gaines' abilities that the album (and some concerts) featured Gaines delivering his self-penned bluesy "Ain't No Good Life" – the only song in the pre-crash Skynyrd catalog to feature a lead vocalist other than Ronnie Van Zant. The album also included the hit singles "What's Your Name" and "That Smell". The band was poised for their biggest tour yet, with shows always highlighted by the iconic rock anthem "Free Bird". In November, the band was scheduled to fulfill Van Zant's lifelong dream of headlining New York's Madison Square Garden.

The song "Freebird" in the movie "Freebird the Movie" was actually filmed on July 2, 1977 at the Oakland Coliseum and not on July 4 as stated by Bill Graham and listed in the credits.

Plane crash (1977)

Main article: 1977 Convair CV-300 crash

On October 20, 1977, just three days after the release of Street Survivors, and five shows into their most successful headlining tour to date, Lynyrd Skynyrd's chartered Convair CV-300 ran out of fuel near the end of their flight from Greenville, South Carolina, where they had just performed at the Greenville Memorial Auditorium, to LSU in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Though the pilots attempted an emergency landing on a small airstrip, the plane crashed in a forest in Gillsburg, Mississippi. Ronnie Van Zant, Steve Gaines, Cassie Gaines, assistant road manager Dean Kilpatrick, pilot Walter McCreary and co-pilot William Gray were killed on impact; the other band members (Collins, Rossington, Wilkeson, Powell, Pyle and Hawkins) tour manager, Ron Eckerman and road crew suffered serious injuries.

Following the crash and the ensuing press, Street Survivors became the band's second platinum album and reached No. 5 on the U.S. album chart. The single "What's Your Name" reached No. 13 on the single airplay charts in January 1978.

The original cover sleeve for Street Survivors had featured a photograph of the band, particularly Steve Gaines, engulfed in flames. Out of respect for the deceased (and at the request of Teresa Gaines, Steve's widow), MCA Records withdrew the original cover and replaced it with a similar image of the band against a simple black background. Thirty years later, for the deluxe CD version of Street Survivors, the original "flames" cover was restored.

Lynyrd Skynyrd disbanded after the tragedy, reuniting just once to perform an instrumental version of "Free Bird" at Charlie Daniels' Volunteer Jam V in January 1979. Collins, Rossington, Powell and Pyle performed the song with Charlie Daniels and members of his band. Leon Wilkeson, who was still undergoing physical therapy for his badly broken left arm, was in attendance, along with Judy Van Zant, Teresa Gaines, JoJo Billingsley and Leslie Hawkins.

Hiatus (1977–1987)

Rossington, Collins, Wilkeson and Powell formed The Rossington-Collins Band, which released two albums between 1980 and 1983. Deliberately avoiding comparisons with Ronnie Van Zant as well as suggestions that this band was Lynyrd Skynyrd reborn, Rossington and Collins chose a woman, Dale Krantz, as lead vocalist. However, as an acknowledgment of their past, the band's concert encore would always be an instrumental version of "Free Bird". Rossington and Collins eventually had a falling out over the affections of Dale Krantz, whom Rossington married and with whom he formed the Rossington Band, which released two albums in the late 1980s and opened for The Lynyrd Skynyrd Tribute Tour in 1987–1988.

The other former members of Lynyrd Skynyrd continued to make music during the hiatus era. Billy Powell played keyboards in a Christian Rock band named Vision, touring with established Christian rocker Mylon LeFevre (who, like Skynyrd, had once opened for The Who). During Vision concerts, Powell's trademark keyboard talent was often spotlighted and he spoke about his conversion to Christianity after the near-fatal plane crash. Pyle formed The Artimus Pyle Band in 1982, which occasionally featured former Honkettes JoJo Billingsley and Leslie Hawkins.

In 1980, Allen Collins's wife Kathy died of a massive hemorrhage during a miscarriage of their third child. He formed The Allen Collins Band in 1983 from the remnants of The Rossington-Collins Band, and released one tepidly-received album.

But many around him believed that the guitarist's heart just was not in it anymore. Most point to his wife's death as the moment that Collins' life began to spin out of control; he spent several years binging on drugs and alcohol.

Gary Rossington & Allen Collins with

The Rossington-Collins Band

In 1986, Collins crashed his car while driving drunk near his home in Jacksonville, killing his girlfriend and leaving him permanently paralyzed from the chest down. Collins eventually pled no contest to DUI manslaughter, but was not given a prison sentence since his injuries made it obvious that he would never drive or be a danger to society again.

Return (1987–present)

In 1987, Lynyrd Skynyrd reunited for a full-scale tour with five major members of the pre-crash band: crash survivors Gary Rossington, Billy Powell, Leon Wilkeson and Artimus Pyle, along with guitarist Ed King, who had left the band two years before the crash. Ronnie Van Zant's younger brother, Johnny, took over as the new lead singer and primary songwriter. Due to Collins' paralysis from a 1986 car accident, he was only able to participate as the musical director, choosing Randall Hall, his former bandmate in the Allen Collins Band, as his stand-in. As part of his plea deal, Collins would be wheeled out onstage each night to explain to the audience why he could no longer perform (usually before the performance of "That Smell", which had been partially directed at him). Collins was stricken with pneumonia in 1989 and died on January 23, 1990.

Rickey Medlocke and Gary Rossington

with Lynyrd Skynyrd

The reunited band was meant to be a one-time tribute to the original lineup, captured on the double-live album Southern By The Grace Of God/Lynyrd Skynyrd Tribute Tour 1987. The fact that the band chose to continue after the 1987 tribute tour caused legal problems for the survivors, as Judy Van Zant Jenness and Teresa Gaines Rapp (widows of Ronnie and Steve, respectively) sued the others for violating an agreement made shortly after the plane crash, stating that they would not "exploit" the Skynyrd name for profit. As part of the settlement, Jenness and Rapp collect nearly 30% of the band's touring revenues (representing the shares their husbands would have earned had they lived), and hold a proviso which forces any band touring as "Lynyrd Skynyrd" to include at least two from the pre-crash era.

The reconstituted Lynyrd Skynyrd has gone through a large number of lineup changes and continues to record and tour today.

One by one, the members of the pre-crash band have left, been forced out, or have died. Artimus Pyle left the band in 1991 and his place has been taken by a variety of drummers since, with Michael Cartellone finally becoming his permanent replacement.

Randall Hall was replaced by Mike Estes in 1993. Ed King had to take a break from touring in 1996. In his absence, he was replaced by Hughie Thomasson. King has stated that his break from the band was to be temporary, but the band did not let him rejoin after he recovered. At the same time, Mike Estes was replaced by Rickey Medlocke, who was briefly the second drummer and a vocalist (playing also mandolin) with the band in the early 1970s. Leon Wilkeson, Skynyrd's bassist since 1972, was found dead in his hotel room on July 27, 2001; his death was found to be due to emphysema and chronic liver disease. He was replaced in 2001 by Ean Evans.

The remaining members released a double album called Thyrty which had songs from the original lineup to the present. Lynyrd Skynyrd also released a live DVD of their Vicious Cycle Tour and on June 22, 2004, Lynyrd Skynyrd released the album Lyve: The Vicious Cycle Tour. On December 10, 2004, Lynyrd Skynyrd did a show for CMT, Crossroads, a concert featuring country duo Montgomery Gentry and other genres of music. In the beginning of 2005 Hughie Thomasson left the band to reform his disbanded Southern Rock Band, “The Outlaws”. Thomasson then died in his sleep on September 9, 2007 of an apparent heart attack in his home in Brooksville, Florida. He was only 55 years old.

Born June 11, 1952, in Jacksonville, Florida, Donnie Van Zant is best known as the lead vocalist of American Southern rock band 38 Special.

On February 5, 2005, Lynyrd Skynyrd did a Super Bowl party in Jacksonville with special guests 3 Doors Down, Jo Dee Messina, Charlie Daniels and Ronnie and Johnny Van Zant's brother Donnie Van Zant of 38 Special. On February 13 of that year Lynyrd Skynyrd did a tribute to Southern Rock on the Grammy Awards with Gretchen Wilson, Tim McGraw, Keith Urban and Dickey Betts. On May 10, 2005, Johnny and Donnie Van Zant released a country album called Get Right with the Man which featured the hit single "Help Somebody". In the summer of 2005, lead singer Johnny Van Zant had to have surgery on his vocal cord to have a polyp removed. He was told not to sing for three months.

Johnny Van Zant

On September 10, 2005, Lynyrd Skynyrd performed without Johnny Van Zant at the Music Relief Concert for the victims of Hurricane Katrina, with Kid Rock standing in for Johnny. In December 2005, Johnny Van Zant returned to sing for Lynyrd Skynyrd. The band performed live at Freedom Hall in Louisville, Kentucky, as a part of their 2007 tour. The concert was recorded in high definition for HDNet and premiered on December 1, 2007.

Mark "Sparky" Matejka, formerly of the country music band Hot Apple Pie, joined Lynyrd Skynyrd in 2006 as Thomasson's replacement. On November 2, 2007, the band performed at the University of Florida's Gator Growl, the world's largest student-run pep rally, in Ben Hill Griffin Stadium – also known as "The Swamp." The event's 50,000-person attendance marked the largest crowd that Lynyrd Skynyrd had ever played in front of in the United States, until the July 2008 Bama Jam in Enterprise, Alabama where more than 111,000 people were in attendance.

R.I.P. Billy Powell (keyboards);

On January 28, 2009, keyboardist Billy Powell died at age 56 at his home near Jacksonville, Florida. Powell called 911 at 12:55 a.m., complaining of shortness of breath. He had previously missed his doctor's appointment on the day before his death; the appointment was for a checkup on his heart. The EMS responders found Powell unconscious and unresponsive, with the telephone still in his hand. Rescue crews performed CPR, but he was pronounced dead at 1:52 a.m. Although a heart attack was suspected, and it was originally reported that an autopsy was to be performed, none in fact was ever done. Powell's death left Gary Rossington as the sole pre-crash member of the band, unless Rickey Medlocke's brief stint with the band in the early 1970s is counted.

R.I.P. Ean Evans (bass);

Ean Evans, died of cancer at 48 years old

May 6th, 2009

On March 17, 2009, it was announced that Lynyrd Skynyrd had signed a worldwide deal with Roadrunner Records, in association with their label, Loud & Proud Records, and released their new album God & Guns on September 29 of that year. They toured Europe and the United States in 2009 with Peter Keys of the 420 Funk Mob on keyboards and Robert Kearns of The Bottle Rockets on bass (in place of Ean Evans, who died of cancer at age 48 on May 6, 2009, at his home in Columbus, Mississippi). Scottish rock band Gun performed as special guests for the UK leg of Lynyrd Skynyrd's tour in 2010.

In addition to the tour, Skynyrd appeared at the Sean Hannity Freedom Concert series in late 2010. Hannity had been actively promoting the God & Guns album, frequently playing portions of the track "That Ain't My America" on his radio show. The tour is titled "Rebels and Bandoleros". The band continued to tour throughout 2011, playing alongside ZZ Top and The Doobie Brothers.

On May 2, 2012, the band announced the impending release of a new studio album, Last of a Dyin' Breed, along with a North American and European tour. On August 21, 2012, Last of a Dyin' Breed was released. In celebration of its release, the band did four autograph signings throughout the southeast.

While promoting the album on CNN on September 9, 2012, members of the band talked about its discontinued use of Confederate imagery. In September 2012, the band briefly did not display the Confederate Flag which had for years part of their stage show, because they did not want to be associated with racists who had adopted the flag. After protests from fans they reversed this decision, noting it is part of their Southern American heritage and states rights symbolism.

It has been very interesting and exciting doing the research on Lynyrd Skynyrd. They have quite a history behind them and yet they’ve continued to capture the hearts and souls of the American youth thru the Baby Boomers who love that good ole’ Southern rock n’ roll. They’ve gone thru several different band members since the plane crash in 1977 and again, they continue to rock the concert scenes across the country and even world-wide. They are one inspirational group of musicians that make me want to keep playing for as long as I can.

Music and playing music keeps you young, just watch the bands like Lynyrd Skynyrd, Aerosmith, Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin and many more. Well once again, until next time, please remember to “Support Live Music”. That keeps all musicians working which is very important. Therefore your support is greatly appreciated.