Ronnie Van Zant, the frontman of Lynyrd Skynyrd, made an enemy of Mick Jagger during a concert the two bands shared. Jagger told him there was one thing they couldn’t do. So, naturally, Van Zant had his bandmates do it in the middle of the show. Lynyrd Skynyrd took the rock and roll world by storm in the 1960s and 1970s, revolutionizing Southern rock by drawing from blues, country, and even British rock to create their distinctive sound.
While they continue to make music today, many agree it isn’t what it was in the band’s heyday, especially given the horrors they faced since then. Like countless other bands, Lynyrd Skynyrd wasn’t immune to personal problems. But before they came together, two of its members found themselves facing off against each other. In their teenage years, lead singer Ronnie Van Zant was a member of a band called The Squires, while guitarist Allen Collins joined a band called The Mods.
In a strange twist of fate, the two groups ended up competing in a band contest, which Allen’s band won. That wasn’t the last time Ronnie’s path crossed with a future bandmate, and the next time was just as competitive. Although Ronnie had already fallen in love with music, it wasn’t his only interest. He was also into sports in high school, like some other aspiring musicians.
Shortly after the band battle in 1964, he met future drummer Bob Burns and future guitarist Gary Rossington. While the three played baseball on opposing teams, it was only a matter of time before they connected through their music. All it took was an injury. The three boys became close friends whenever they met at the baseball field, and their bond was especially solidified after Ronnie accidentally hit a ball toward Bob, injuring him.
While staying with him to keep him company during his recovery, Ronnie and Gary spent the afternoon playing their instruments. Realizing their potential immediately, and meeting for more jam sessions in the garage of Bob’s parents, it wasn’t long before they decided to form a band. Eventually, they managed to complete their lineup, even if they still didn’t know exactly who they were. Ronnie got back in touch with Allen Collins and invited him to join the band.
All they needed was a name, but that was easier said than done as they were extremely indecisive. They started with “My Backyard,” went through two name changes, including “Conquer the Worm,” before finally settling on “The One Percent. ” While that seemed to be the name they would settle on, there was one problem. The band played at various venues throughout Jacksonville, Florida for about a year under the name “The 1%.
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But that was more of a hint than an actual identity. Ronnie and the others grew resentful as hecklers increasingly mocked their name, claiming they only had 1% of the talent. Fortunately, Bob Burns suddenly came up with the perfect idea for their new name and suggested they call themselves “Leonard Skinner. ” The name “Leonard Skinner” would eventually take on the more recognizable spelling of “Lynyrd Skynyrd.
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Both were inspired by one particular man, and it wasn’t out of admiration. While the band also claimed it was partially derived from the song “Hello Muddah, Hello Fadduh,” the main inspiration was a high school physical education teacher some band members had issues with, a man named Leonard Skinner. Not only did they finally choose the name the world would know them by, but they also figured out how to change music forever. Despite some hecklers in their early days, Lynyrd Skynyrd skyrocketed to local fame and became one of Jacksonville’s favorite bands by the 1970s.
There was no mystery as to why. By combining some of the most popular musical genres of the time, they crafted a distinctive image and sound that helped them revolutionize Southern rock. Fortunately for them, all their dedication and experience soon paid off. While all the band members were thrilled to sign their first recording contract, it was a big change in a short period, and not everyone could handle it.
While working on their first album, Leon Wilkeson began to feel increasingly anxious about the band’s growing fame and decided to step away from it all. Fortunately, this didn’t last long, and he returned right after the album’s release in 1973. Both Leon and the rest of the band knew he wouldn’t be gone forever. But they still needed to find someone else.
While Leon was taking a break from the band, the band still needed a bass player and had to bring someone in. But this wasn’t a temporary position. After allowing Ed King to join, the band had to make a difficult decision once Leon returned, especially since they had grown fond of Ed. In the end, they decided to keep both, with Leon resuming his role as bassist while Ed moved to guitar.
Now ready to embrace the rock star lifestyle, Leon couldn’t have returned at a better time. Although Leon had left before the band’s first album was released, he had already played on two of its tracks and returned in time to reap the rewards. The album was a massive success, selling over a million copies and earning them a gold record, which wasn’t surprising given that it included one of Lynyrd Skynyrd’s timeless classics, “Free Bird. ”
Fortunately for them, their band didn’t have just one hit song, though some might have wished it did.
Lynyrd Skynyrd didn’t get a chance to rest, as they started working on their next album, “Second Helping,” and released it in 1974, just one year after their first. The album included another of their most famous songs, “Sweet Home Alabama,” and it also sparked some controversy, as the song was a direct response to Neil Young’s “Southern Man. ”
This could easily have caused a major public conflict between them, but the truth was far from it. Based on how they dealt with Neil Young, it would be easy to assume the band was always at odds with the singer, especially Ronnie as the lead vocalist.
On the contrary, while they continued to trade insults professionally, Neil Young and Ronnie enjoyed a long-standing friendship and collaborated on several occasions. Unfortunately, things weren’t rosy with other musicians, especially those in the band. Leon wasn’t the only one feeling the pressure of the traditional rock star lifestyle. Bob Burns also found their fame deeply disorienting, which eventually led to a nervous breakdown.
Since the rest of the band was already dealing with their own issues, he decided to leave the band in 1975 as well. But unlike Leon, this goodbye was final. As they would soon discover, these problems extended beyond just their bandmates. The band took almost nothing seriously and did little to no preparation or rehearsal when they began work on their third album.
There was nothing flashy about it, but it paid off. Recording the album took about 17 days, but it became an instant success, even if one person remained dissatisfied. Producer Al Kooper had grown tired of the band. So, in 1975, he had a long talk with the members, and they all agreed his place was no longer with the band.
However, their problems didn’t stop there. In fact, they became infinitely more complicated. The band’s issues were worsening as the months went by. To make matters worse, they weren’t kept behind closed doors.
One night in 1975, Ronnie was spending time with Ed King’s guitar tech when they ran into trouble with the law, resulting in a night in jail. With both of them in custody, there was no one to set up Ed’s guitar for that night’s show, causing his strings to break mid-performance. Although they managed to get through that crisis, it was the last straw for one particular member. Understandably, Ed was furious with Ronnie for causing his tech to end up in jail, which ultimately ruined his performance.
But Ronnie didn’t see it that way. Thinking there was nothing to be angry about, Ronnie dismissed Ed and spoke to him condescendingly in front of everyone, which Ed couldn’t get past. Having decided he’d had enough, Ed quit the band. In an attempt to move forward and release their next album, the band entered the recording studio in 1976 to work on the early stages of “Street Survivors.
” But things didn’t go smoothly. Allen Collins and Gary Rossington were involved in separate car accidents. Although they both survived, they came away with serious injuries. With them needing to focus on recovery, the band had no choice but to cancel several shows and postpone the album.
Having watched this decline for a long time, the other band members could no longer stay silent. While both car accidents were terrifying, Gary’s was more serious. It was the result of excessive drinking and substance abuse. Wanting to get him to quit these habits, Ronnie and Allen wrote the song “That Smell” for the upcoming album, which highlighted the dangers of those substances.
Of course, he wasn’t the only one who had lost control, and it was time to grow up. While Ronnie wanted Gary to change his life, he wasn’t in much better shape himself, being a victim of the rock star lifestyle like his bandmates. However, a miracle in 1976 made him rethink his path and vow to become a better man. His daughter Melody was born.
It wasn’t long before he took another look at what their future might look like. After Ed King’s departure, Ronnie was happy to bring guitarist Steve Gaines on board to record “Street Survivors,” and he quickly became obsessed with his playing. Steve was such a musical talent that Ronnie seized every opportunity to praise the new member, even declaring that they would all one day be in his shadow. In fact, he was so impressed that he gave him an unprecedented honor.
Steve was such a breath of fresh air that, despite being a completely new addition to the band, Ronnie was eager to let him leave his mark on their latest album. Not only did he allow a song written by Steve to be on the album’s tracklist, but he also stepped aside as lead vocalist for the first time, letting Steve share vocals with him on that track. Tragically, the band was about to face their worst tragedy ever, one from which no one would emerge unscathed. In just over a decade, the band had achieved massive success, and the future looked bright.
But unbeknownst to them, everything was about to collapse in the most horrific way possible. The band had just released “Street Survivors,” and on October 19, 1977, they played a show in Greenville, South Carolina. They stayed the night in South Carolina, perhaps congratulating themselves on the euphoria of their achievements. The next day, they had plans to fly to a show in Louisiana.
But they never made it. Near the end of the journey, the pilots discovered a terrifying truth. The plane had run out of fuel. Flying over Mississippi, the pilots attempted to head toward an airport in Pike County.
But when it became clear they wouldn’t make it, they prepared for an emergency landing in a field. As the plane shuddered in the air, the band members gradually realized something was wrong. An eerie silence fell throughout the cabin, and some passengers began to pray. The pilots were trying desperately to control the situation, but it was a risky move.
At around 6:52 p. m. , the plane clipped the tops of trees. Guitarist Gary Rossington recalled hearing the sound of trees hitting the plane, sounding like baseball bats striking the aircraft’s exterior.
He lost consciousness, and when he woke up, nothing was the same. He was no longer inside the plane. He was outside, lying on the ground under what had been the plane’s door. The band members’ accounts of the aftermath of the crash differed, and each story was more horrifying than the last.
As emergency teams approached the debris field on the ground, they realized they faced a serious challenge. The forest was extremely dense, and there was a muddy creek 20 feet wide and up to waist-deep that had to be crossed. Residents living in the surrounding areas came out and did their best to help with traffic and communicate with emergency services via CB radio. The lives of Lynyrd Skynyrd members and the flight crew hung by a thread.
One band member seriously injured was keyboardist Billy Powell. His nose was nearly torn off, with deep cuts on his legs. Despite being violently knocked about, he still remembered what happened in those final moments as the plane fell. What he shared was chilling.
Powell recalled that Ronnie Van Zant wasn’t wearing his seatbelt, and said that as the plane broke apart, the lead singer flew through the air and hit his head on a tree. Van Zant died in the crash. Yet, amid the chaos of the aftermath, rescue operations, and transport to various hospitals in the area, his bandmates didn’t realize it immediately. Rossington, for example, didn’t find out until days later.
Ultimately, the crash claimed the lives of Van Zant, fellow bandmate Steve Gaines, Steve’s sister Cassie who was also performing with the band, road manager Dean Kilpatrick, and pilots Captain McCreary and First Officer William John Gray. As more details emerged about those fateful days, the stories of miraculous survival made it even more chilling. Tragically, it was later revealed that Cassie Gaines hadn’t wanted to fly with the band on the plane and had asked to travel with the equipment in the truck. It was Van Zant who convinced her to join the rest of the band on the plane.
During the NTSB investigation, they actually found no problems with the right engine’s ignition. But when interviewing survivors about other flights on the plane, they received reports that passengers had seen flames coming from the right engine. Ultimately, the report stated the cause was an unspecified engine failure, but as we’ll see, more reports about the plane’s readiness emerged later, and they were terrifying. While the band had been sweeping the world before the crash, it was nothing compared to what happened after.
Naturally, once word of the horrific plane crash spread, it shook the music world to its core and led to a media frenzy and a reaction mixed with grief and gratitude. While “Street Survivors” would likely have been popular on its own, the crash caused a surge of interest among fans and pushed the album to number five on the Billboard 200. Although the band’s label had everything prepared for the album’s release, this terrible tragedy forced them to make a last-minute change. In record time, they replaced the cover image with the album’s back photo because the original showed the band surrounded by flames, which could be seen as an unfortunate omen.
Even though the band became more famous than ever, it wasn’t the same. Although the members performed together again in 1979, they eventually decided it was time to stop, disbanding Lynyrd Skynyrd shortly after. However, while they disbanded the group, they didn’t completely stop making music. Although they believed disbanding Lynyrd Skynyrd was the right thing to do, a number of former members wanted to continue working together.
Not wanting to tarnish the legacy of their fallen comrades, they deliberately made this new band different from Lynyrd Skynyrd, specifically by bringing in a female lead singer named Dale Krantz. With their new lead singer, the former members officially formed the Rossington Collins Band, but they were far from a perfect group. After about a year, tensions escalated between Gary and Allen, as both developed feelings for their new singer, Dale Krantz. This rivalry reached its peak in 1982 when Gary and Dale married, prompting Allen to walk out of the band and form the Rossington Band instead.
Although Allen later became involved with a woman named Deborah Jean Watts, he never truly got over losing his wife. He sank into his grief with heavy drinking and drug use. This was a recipe for disaster, and on a terrible day in 1986, he drove his car straight into a ditch near his home. The crash was so severe that it killed his only passenger, Deborah, and left him paralyzed from the chest down.
After the 1977 crash that killed several Lynyrd Skynyrd members, it was revealed that another famous rock band was nearly the one to hire the plane instead: Aerosmith. According to reports, the head of flight operations for Aerosmith saw the two pilots involved in the crash drinking a bottle of Jack Daniel’s together during his inspection. Despite Steven Tyler and Joe Perry insisting on hiring that specific plane, it was their head of flight operations who canceled the deal, potentially saving their lives. At the height of their fame, Lynyrd Skynyrd was one of the most exciting bands in rock.
Above all, they were unapologetically themselves, for better or worse. Ronnie Van Zant, in particular, earned a reputation as one of the craziest rock frontmen, and it was never more evident than when Lynyrd Skynyrd opened a show for the Rolling Stones. Before the show, Mick Jagger told the band the one thing they couldn’t do was get on the Rolling Stones’ iconic tongue. But Van Zant, who never followed the rules, took his bandmates onto the tongue to perform “Free Bird” in the middle of their set.
They also ended up running over their allotted time. Needless to say, they never appeared with Jagger or the Stones again.