Tag Archives: Lynyrd Skynyrd

RONNIE VAN ZANT (VOLUME 3, EPISODE 2) PART ONE

The eternal Free Bird, Ronnie Van Zant

Ronnie Van Zant, In Concert

Ronald Wayne Van Zant was born on January 15, 1948.  His father Lacey, was a long haul trucker and his mother Marion, nicknamed “Sister”, was a part time doughnut shop employee and the fundamental caregiver of the family’s six children.  Even as a young person, Ronnie had ambitions to escape the lower middle class enclave he grew up in which was literally known as “Shantytown.”

Lynyrd Skynyrd, 1973. Ronnie Van Zant is second from the right. Ed King is to his right, Gary Rossington to his left

Typically, warmup bands for the Who were booed off the stage and even pelted with debris.  But, limited to a 30 minute set, Lynyrd Skynyrd won the crowd over and even prompted demands for their own encore.  Watching this performance, the Who entourage and their manager Peter Rudge were impressed.  Nothing of this nature had ever happened before and Rudge, who managed both the Who and The Rolling Stones, took note.

Hell House

Kooper was immediately impressed by the band’s preparation and focus, all business once they entered the recording studio.  This came from years of rehearsals at the band practice space at a location dubbed “Hell House.”  This shack, in the middle of nowhere on the outskirts of Jacksonville was an un-air conditioned, uninsulated dwelling that made for extremely unpleasant conditions, especially during the humid, 90 plus degree days of summer.  The location, on a 90 acre plot of isolated property, was an alternative to suburban spaces that usually were subject to local resident complaints and police interruption.  12 hour days at Hell House made the relative luxury of a professional recording studio a welcome alternative.

Poster for typical Skynyrd stadium show, 1974.

RONNIE VAN ZANT (VOLUME 3, EPISODE 2) PART TWO

Ronnie Van Zant, the eternal Free Bird

Ed King, left.

Heading into the recording studio, Skynyrd added two important elements to the band.  Ed King met Skynyrd when they were the warmup band for The Strawberry Alarm Clock.  King had written this group’s top ten one hit wonder “Incense and Peppermint,” and jumped at the chance to be the third guitar in Skynyrd’s unique three lead guitar makeup.

Skynyrd, 1977, Steve Gaines is second from right, Artimus Pyle is right behind him in the second row.

Ed King would eventually be replaced by the brother of backup singer Cassie Gaines.  Steve Gaines was struggling to make a living with obscure Midwestern bands when Ronnie finally agreed to let him play a few songs in a mid 1976 concert appearance.  Gaines was impressive and fit in neatly with the three guitar concept and formally joined Skynyrd in time for their live album, “One More From the road,” recorded live at Atlanta’s Fox theater in July of 1976.  Uncharacteristically, he was not a heavy drinker or drug abuser

Artimus Pyle

Bob Burns had been replaced by a 6’ 2”, 200 pound ex-marine named Artimus Pyle, who provided even more personality to the lineup.  Van Zant once commented, “We keep him in a cage and feed him raw meat and only let him out when it is time to play.”

Ronnie Van Zant current grave marker.

Unfortunately, even in death, Ronnie Van Zant has been subjected to chaos and turbulence.  On June 29th, 2000, at the Jacksonville Memory Gardens cemetery, vandals broke into the marble monuments containing the remains of Van Zant and Steve Gaines.  Although this act was initially described as a prank to confirm the urban legend that Van Zant was buried in a Neil Young t-shirt, it was actually a depraved and destructive endeavor that left Van Zant’s apparently unopended coffin completely outside of its resting place.  Additionally the plastic bag containing Steve Gaines’ cremated remains was punctured with about one per cent of its contents removed.  No arrests were ever made following the incident and Van Zant was reburied in what was initially a secret location.  This was eventually revealed to be next to his parents’ graves at the Riverside Memorial Park in Jacksonville, today denoted by a small marker.  However, this time, family and cemetery officials took extreme precautions, entombing Ronnie in a deep, concrete vault that would be immovable without an excavator that could lift several tons.  Besides a Neil Young t-shirt, it is also rumored that Ronnie Van Zant was buried with his favorite cane fishing pole and snakeskin hat, although it is ironic that this ultimate free bird will also spend eternity encased in cement.

 

RONNIE VAN ZANT (Volume 3, Episode 2) BOOK AND MUSIC INFORMATION

Information for this podcast came from the books, “Whiskey Bottles and Brand New Cars: The Fast Life and Sudden Death of Lynyrd Skynyrd,” by Mark Ribowsky

Whiskey Bottles and Brand-New Cars: The Fast Life and Sudden Death of Lynyrd Skynyrd

 

Also, “Lynyrd Skynyrd: Remembering the Free Birds of Southern Rock,” by Gene Odom

Lynyrd Skynyrd: Remembering the Free Birds of Southern Rock

 

The intro music is “Town of 24 Bars,” by Unicorn Heads.  Outro for part one is “Please Tell Me,” by Silent Partner and the outro for part 2 is “St. Francis,” by Josh Lippi and The Overtimers.