He was the last original member of Lynyrd Skynyrd to have survived the infamous plane crash and all the other things that ultimately kill us all. A kid that dropped out of school because he was tired of being hassled about the length of his hair, Gary Rossington was the artist behind the pedal steel guitar in Skynyrd's iconic "Free Bird" (it's he that Ronnie Van Zandt encourages to "play it pretty for Atlanta and Oakland" in the live versions). He also co-wrote "Sweet Home Alabama" among many others. It was his alcohol soaked car crash in 1977 that was the inspiration for "That Smell" (“Ooh that smell / The smell of death surrounds you”).
Gary departed terra firma last week at 71. And, on this Music Friday, we think you know the hits. So we're going with one of our favorites from the phoenix band that emerged from the ashes of the plane crash, The Rossington Collins Band with Gary's wife Dale killing it. This is "Don't Misunderstand Me."
Sleep, sweet prince.
Hard to believe all the original members have passed on...RIP, Gary
Posted by: Lee T | March 21, 2023 at 11:27