In 2023, Rossington died, having been the last remaining original member of the band. Members are also working on their fifteenth album. In January 2018, Lynyrd Skynyrd announced its farewell tour, and continues touring as of October 2019. They continued to tour and record with co-founder Rossington, Johnny Van Zant, and Rickey Medlocke, who first wrote and recorded with the band from 1971 to 1972 before his return in 1996. Lynyrd Skynyrd reformed in 1987 for a reunion tour with Ronnie's brother Johnny Van Zant as lead vocalist. After releasing five studio albums and one live album, the band's career was abruptly halted on October 20, 1977, when their chartered airplane crashed, killing Van Zant, Steve Gaines, and backup singer Cassie Gaines, and seriously injuring the rest of the band. At the height of their fame in the 1970s, the band popularized the Southern rock genre with songs such as " Sweet Home Alabama" and " Free Bird". King left in 1975 and was replaced by Steve Gaines in 1976. Burns left and was replaced by Artimus Pyle in 1974. The band released its first album in 1973, having settled on a lineup that included bassist Leon Wilkeson, keyboardist Billy Powell and guitarist Ed King. The band spent five years touring small venues under various names and with several lineup changes before deciding on "Lynyrd Skynyrd" in 1969. The group originally formed as My Backyard in 1964 and comprised Ronnie Van Zant (lead vocalist), Gary Rossington (guitar), Allen Collins (guitar), Larry Junstrom (bass guitar) and Bob Burns (drums). Lynyrd Skynyrd ( / ˌ l ɛ n ər d ˈ s k ɪ n ər d/ LEN-ərd SKIN-ərd) is an American rock ghost band formed in Jacksonville, Florida. In 2006 Ronnie Van Zant, Gary Rossington, Bob Burns, Artimus Pyle, Allen Collins, Steve Gaines, Ed King, Billy Powell, and Leon Wilkeson were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.See band members section and members list article On October 19th, 1977 at the height of their fame, Lynyrd Skynyrd played to a sold out arena in Greenville, SC where Ronnie Van Zandt closed the show singing "If I leave here tomorrow, would you still remember me?" The next day Van Zant died in a tragic plane crash which also took the lives of guitarist Steve Gaines, backup singer Cassie Gaines, and road manager Dean Kilpatrick. While the band was busy jammin' new riffs in the Hell House, Van Zant walked up from the dock singing the lyrics to their newly composed anthem, "Sweet Home Alabama" from memory. Lead singer Ronnie Van Zant would write the legendary lyrics right here on this fishing dock along Peter's Creek, and on one particular morning at this site band members weren't pleased with Canadian born musician Neil Young putting down the South in his songs "Southern Man" and "Alabama". They arrived each morning at sunup and worked all day in the Florida heat creating timeless classics like "Simple Man", "Tuesday's Gone", "Sweet Home Alabama", "Don't Ask Me No Questions", "Gimme Three Steps", and "Free Bird" which many consider to be the greatest closing song in the history of live music. In the late 1960's, before becoming world famous, the long haired Skynyrd boys from the Westside of Jacksonville were constantly getting the cops called on them for noise complaints during rehearsals, so each morning they made the 20 mile drive to this exact piece of land where an old cabin surrounded by nature once stood nicknamed "Hell House", due to its lack of air conditioning. “Beginning in 1970, members of Lynyrd Skynyrd made Rock 'n Roll history on this site, where they wrote and perfected many of their hit songs. After the band left Hell House for the recording studio, the old cabin with the tin roof burned down.
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