Gary Rossington

Lynyrd Skynyrd guitarist and sole constant member Gary Rossington has died at the age of 71.

"Gary is now with his Skynyrd brothers and family in heaven and playing it pretty, like he always does." "It is with our deepest sympathy and sadness that we have to advise, that we lost our brother, friend, family member, songwriter and guitarist, Gary Rossington, today.," Lynyrd Skynyrd wrote. Steve Mackey joined Pulp in 1989 some 11 years after their formation and he was a pivotal bassist, songwriter and performer with the band during their commercial peak. He was one of the closest friends I ever had and I loved him immensely. He was also a talented mural and fine artist and interior designer." Widely regarded as one of the most influential figures of 20th-century pop music, Bacharach penned songs for The Beatles, Dionne Warwick, Aretha Franklin, Dusty Springfield, Herb Alpert, Tom Jones and The Carpenters to name but a few. Robbie Bachman was credited with designing the BTO 'gear' logo, and he appeared on the band's first eight studio albums and their biggest hits including 'Takin' Care of Business', 'Hey You' and the international smash 'You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet.' Often referred to as the "guitarist's guitarist", Jeff Beck influenced countless musicians and he rightfully appears in the upper echelons of greatest guitarist countdowns in media publications. He was an integral cog in our rock 'n' roll machine and we rocked the world together." He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice: as a member of the Yardbirds (1992) and as a solo artist (2009). [Robbie Bachman, died at the age of 69](https://planetradio.co.uk/planet-rock/news/rock-news/bachman-turner-overdrive-robbie-bachman-dead/) on 12th January 2023. After a brief stint as lead guitarist with The Yardbirds in the late 60s, Jeff Beck fronted the eponymous Jeff Beck Group and supergroup Beck, Bogert & Appice, and he also enjoyed a critically lauded solo career.

Gary Rossington had survived all his fellow founding members of Lynyrd Skynyrd. Listen to this article. Loading audio... Lynyrd Skynyrd's guitarist Gary ...

The last lineup of the band featured Johnny Van Zant and Rossington together with multi-instrumentalist Ricky Medlocke, who had first played with the band in 1971 and 1972. Together with singer Ronnie Van Zant, fellow guitarist Allen Collins, bass player Larry Junstron and drummer Bob Burns, Rossington founded the group My Backyard in 1964, before they settled on the name Lynyrd Skynyrd in 1969. Lynyrd Skynyrd’s guitarist Gary Rossington has died at the age of 71.

“It is with our deepest sympathy and sadness that we have to advise, that we lost our brother, friend, family member, songwriter and guitarist, Gary Rossington, ...

He was a key contributor to the band’s signature sound, which blended Southern rock, blues, and country music. His guitar playing was often characterised by his use of the slide guitar, which he used to great effect on songs like Free Bird and Sweet Home Alabama. “It is with our deepest sympathy and sadness that we have to advise, that we lost our brother, friend, family member, songwriter and guitarist, Gary Rossington, today,” the band said in a statement.

Gary is now with his Skynyrd brothers and family in heaven and playing it pretty, like he always does."

“I don’t think of it as tragedy — I think of it as life,” he said upon the group’s Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction in 2006. Rossington, Burns, Van Zant, and guitarist Allen Collins gathered that afternoon at Burns’ Jacksonville home to jam the Rolling Stone’s “Time Is on My Side.” “Gary is now with his Skynyrd brothers and family in heaven and playing it pretty, like he always does.

Gary Ross, the last surviving original member of Lynyrd Skynyrd, has died at the age of 71. No cause of death was provided.

Born in Jacksonville, Florida, in 1951, Rossington was a member of the band when it was a trio named Me, You, and Him, alongside bassist Larry Junstrom and drummer Bob Burns. Please keep Dale, Mary, Annie and the entire Rossington family in your prayers and respect the family’s privacy at this difficult time.” “Gary is now with his Skynyrd brothers and family in heaven and playing it pretty, like he always does.

Gary Rossington, guitarist and the last surviving founder member of legendary Southern rock outfit Lynyrd Skynyrd has died aged 71.

Twenty people on the plane survived, including Rossington, who was knocked unconscious; he awoke with the plane’s door on top of him. Johnny Van Zant – Ronnie’s brother and Skynyrd’s frontman since 1977 – once said: “I don’t think you can have Lynyrd Skynyrd without Gary Rossington.” Skinner had a zero-tolerance policy for boys with long hair – like Rossington, who was suspended and soon dropped out of school. Rossington wanted to be a baseball player, but after hearing the Gary is now with his Skynyrd brothers and family in heaven and playing it pretty, like he always does.” “I’m just an old guitar player, and we’ve spent our whole lives and the 10,000 hours of working to understand how to play and do it.

Gary Rossington of Southern rockers Lynyrd Skynyrd died Sunday, March 5. He was 71. Gary Rossington is a songwriter-guitarist and is one of the founding ...

Prior to the plane crash, Rossington also survived a car accident in 1976. Gary Rossington is a songwriter-guitarist and is one of the founding members of Lynyrd Skynyrd. In 1977 a plane crash took the lives of Van Zant, guitarist Steve Gaines and backing vocalist Cassie Gaines.

Gary Rossington, the last remaining original member of the legendary American rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd, died at age 71 on Sunday, March 5th.

“I was saddened to learn that Gary Rossington, lead guitarist & last original member of Lynyrd Skynyrd, died at 71,” one fan wrote on Twitter. Fellow guitarist Kenny Wayne Shepard called the late musician “one of the best to ever do it,” while Travis Tritt admitted he was “heartbroken” by the news. “Prayers and condolences to his family, friends & band…he and his legendary guitar work will be missed by us all.”

WASHINGTON: Guitarist Gary Rossington (pix), the last remaining original member of US rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd, died on Sunday, the band said. He was ...

Rossington was born in 1951 in the southern state of Florida, founding the first iteration of Lynyrd Skynyrd in 1964 with drummer Bob Burns and bassist Larry Junstrom. The band did not announce a cause of death, but Rossington had suffered a series of heart problems, including undergoing emergency heart surgery in 2021, according to a post from the group at the time. Rossington was a founding member of the Southern rock group best known for the 1974 song “Sweet Home Alabama.”

Gary Rossington, the guitarist and founding member of Southern Rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd, died on Sunday, aged 71. He was the last surviving original band ...

Rossington married Dale Krantz in 1982 and the couple had two daughters together. Their music was a collection of country-tinged blues-rock and Southern soul, their debut album, (Pronounced ‘Lĕh-’nérd ‘Skin-’nérd), included now-classics like Tuesday’s Gone, Simple Man and Gimme Three Steps. Rossington had previously survived a 1976 car crash in which he drove his Ford Torino into a tree, and the following year was involved in the 1977 [plane crash](https://www.nationalworld.com/news/people/travis-barker-plane-crash-injuries-burns-blink-182-victims-date-3708469) that killed three of his fellow band members.

Gary Rossington, Lynyrd Skynyrd's last surviving original member, has died aged 71. The co-founding member of the legendary Florida rock band, ...

"After this past year, the country being shut down and everything we have all been thru, The Rossingtons encouraged the band to go perform in his absence. Gary is home resting and recovering with his family at home. A statement read at the time: "Our thoughts and prayers are with Gary Rossington as he recovers from emergency heart surgery.

Lynyrd Skynyrd founding guitarist Gary Rossington has died at the age of 71 - no cause of death has been given.

He previously suffered a heart attack in 2015. The band formed in 1964 and went on to make a name for themselves with hits such as ‘Free Bird’ and ‘Sweet Home Alabama’. “Gary is now with his Skynyrd brothers and family in heaven and playing it pretty, like he always does. [died in a car crash in 2015 aged 64](https://www.nme.com/news/music/lynyrd-skynyrd-2-1220106), and bassist [Larry Junstrom](https://www.nme.com/news/music/lynyrd-skynyrd-founder-and-38-special-bassist-larry-junstrom-dies-2554547) died in 2019 aged 70. [emergency surgery to have a stent fitted in his heart in 2021](https://www.nme.com/news/music/lynyrd-skynyrds-gary-rossington-expecting-to-make-full-recovery-after-emergency-heart-operation-3003134), but went on to make a full recovery. The rest of the passengers were seriously injured.

Gary Rossington, Lynyrd Skynyrd's last surviving original member who also helped to found the group, died Sunday at the age of 71.

“I don’t think of it as tragedy — I think of it as life,” he said upon the group’s Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction in 2006. Adopting Lynyrd Skynyrd as the group’s name — both a reference to a similarly named sports coach at Rossington’s high school and to a character in the 1963 novelty hit “Hello Muddah, Hello Fadduh” — the band released their debut album (Pronounced ‘Lĕh-‘nérd ‘Skin-’nérd) in 1973. Rossington, Burns, Van Zant, and guitarist Allen Collins gathered that afternoon at Burns’ Jacksonville home to jam the Rolling Stone’s “Time Is on My Side.” “It was a devastating thing," he told Rolling Stone in 2006. “Gary is now with his Skynyrd brothers and family in heaven and playing it pretty, like he always does. “It is with our deepest sympathy and sadness that we have to advise, that we lost our brother, friend, family member, songwriter and guitarist, Gary Rossington, today,” the band wrote on Facebook.

The guitarist, founding member and the last surviving original member of the band has passed away.

"After this past year, the country being shut down and everything we have all been thru, The Rossingtons encouraged the band to go perform in his absence. Gary is home resting and recovering with his family at home. They would jam together and were later joined by guitarist Allen Collins and bassist Larry Junstrom. A statement read at the time: "Our thoughts and prayers are with Gary Rossington as he recovers from emergency heart surgery. "Please do us a favour and say some prayers for the Rossington family and if you would like to leave him a (positive) message please do! In 1977, a plane crash killed the band's singer Ronnie Van Zant, guitarist Steve Gaines, and backing vocalist Cassie Gaines.

Rossington was the last surviving original founding member of the Southern rock band, known for its anthemic "Free Bird," among many other hit songs.

"I don't think of it as tragedy — I think of it as life," he said upon the group's Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction in 2006. A collection of country-tinged blues-rock and Southern soul, the album included now-classics like "Tuesday's Gone," "Simple Man" and "Gimme Three Steps," but it was the closing track, the nearly 10-minute "Free Bird," that became the group's calling card, due in no small part to Rossington's evocative slide playing on his Gibson SG. "It was a devastating thing," he told Rolling Stone in 2006. According to Rolling Stone, it was during a fateful Little League game, Ronnie Van Zant hit a line drive into the shoulder blades of opposing player Bob Burns and met his future bandmates. He survived a car accident in 1976 in which he drove his Ford Torino into a tree, inspiring the band's cautionary song "That Smell." "It is with our deepest sympathy and sadness that we have to advise, that we lost our brother, friend, family member, songwriter and guitarist, Gary Rossington, today," the band wrote on Facebook.

Guitarist Gary Rossington, the last remaining original member of US rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd, has died at the age of 71. One of the band's founding members, he appeared on all of their albums and co-wrote the 1974 hit Sweet Home Alabama.

[In a post on Facebook,](https://www.facebook.com/davidellefson/posts/pfbid02YQJJJMtJQ5CLkyVHAyDqF4NGivtV4TsfPCJ5TdpojMHXUPiG4PhCd7VoME4sapEHl) former Megadeth bassist David Ellefson detailed his friendship with Rossington, recalling: "It seemed Gary kept his world small to the outside world but he always let me in it and trusted me as a music buddy... To view this content choose ‘accept and continue’. Rossington, who was severely injured, had to learn to play again with steel rods in his arm. We ask for your permission before anything is loaded, as they may be using cookies and other technologies. You may want to read "It was a devastating thing. "Singles are only two, three minutes at the most, and five is lucky. [Skip instagram post by metallica](#end-of-instagram-content-1) You guys are crazy'." [said he was "heartbroken"](https://twitter.com/Travistritt/status/1632563769078435841?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw), adding: "Gary was not only a friend, but a collaborator that wrote songs with me and played guitar with me in studio recordings and onstage so many times. The lyrics cautioned that "tomorrow might not be here for you" and "the smell of death surrounds you". [A statement on the band's Facebook page](https://www.facebook.com/LynyrdSkynyrd/posts/pfbid02jkWSTqfygP7cVGb4dWBge5ggpWTQRf6MmVwozNhaWQ8McgqTHEs4sWKYdwwswyrCl) said: "It is with our deepest sympathy and sadness that we have to advise, that we lost our brother, friend, family member, songwriter and guitarist, Gary Rossington, today.

'Sweet Home Alabama' guitarist was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2006.

[Wayfair Coupon - 20% Off Sitewide](https://www.wsj.com/coupons/wayfair) No cause of death was given. Rossington, who was 71 years old, died on Sunday, the group said in a Facebook post.

Gary Rossington, the guitarist of Lynyrd Skynyrd, has died at 71. Rossington was the last surviving original member of the band, outlasting an infamous 1977 ...

After being signed by Blood, Sweat & Tears’ Al Kooper in 1972, Skynyrd released their debut, (Pronounced ‘Leh-‘nérd ‘Skin-‘nérd), in 1973, cementing their legacy as one of southern rock’s biggest bands with hits like “Simple Man” and “Gimme Three Steps.” Most notably, that album featured (As part of a settlement with the widows of two original members, Rossington was required to be a member of any future iterations of Skynyrd.) Since reuniting, Skynyrd has continued to record and tour through today. Rossington broke two arms and a leg and punctured multiple organs in the crash, and was left to carry on his band’s legacy when they reformed in 1987, as one of the only pre-crash members and the only original one.

ZZ Top's Billy Gibbons calls Lynyrd Skynyrd guitarist Gary Rossington, who died Sunday, 'the last of the breed.'

It’s so hard on me,” he [told Rolling Stone](https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/rock-band-tours-without-original-members-allman-brothers-1234637630/) last November. [plane crash](https://www.rollingstone.com/feature/remembering-lynyrd-skynyrds-deadly-1977-plane-crash-2-195371/) — was the last original member of Lynyrd Skynyrd and continued to tour with the group despite ongoing heart trouble. So when ZZ Top’s [Billy Gibbons](https://www.rollingstone.com/t/billy-gibbons/) learned that Lynyrd Skynyrd guitarist [Gary Rossington](https://www.rollingstone.com/t/gary-rossington/) [died](https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-country/gary-rossington-lynyrd-skynyrd-dead-1209960/) Sunday at 71, he found himself thinking back to all those miles traveled together on the road. Gary was the last of the breed and will be missed.” “Gary Rossington’s loss is especially profound for us as we’ve spent countless hours in his company on tour and all points in between,” Gibbons tells Rolling Stone. A fellow Southern-rock guitar hero, Gibbons raves about his fallen comrade’s deft playing.

Gary Rossington, the last surviving original member and original guitarist for the rock band Lynard Skynard, passed away at the age of 71 yesterday.

RIP Gary Rossington, God Bless the Lynyrd Gary was not only a friend, but a collaborator that wrote songs with me and played guitar with me in studio recordings and onstage so many times. Photo via Lynard Skynard Official Facebook Page

Rossington was the last surviving original founding member of the Southern rock band, known for its anthemic "Free Bird," among many other hit songs.

"I don't think of it as tragedy — I think of it as life," he said upon the group's Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction in 2006. A collection of country-tinged blues-rock and Southern soul, the album included now-classics like "Tuesday's Gone," "Simple Man" and "Gimme Three Steps," but it was the closing track, the nearly 10-minute "Free Bird," that became the group's calling card, due in no small part to Rossington's evocative slide playing on his Gibson SG. "It was a devastating thing," he told Rolling Stone in 2006. According to Rolling Stone, it was during a fateful Little League game, Ronnie Van Zant hit a line drive into the shoulder blades of opposing player Bob Burns and met his future bandmates. He survived a car accident in 1976 in which he drove his Ford Torino into a tree, inspiring the band's cautionary song "That Smell." "It is with our deepest sympathy and sadness that we have to advise, that we lost our brother, friend, family member, songwriter and guitarist, Gary Rossington, today," the band wrote on Facebook.

Original Lynyrd Skynyrd guitarist Gary Rossington 'is now with his Skynyrd brothers and family in heaven and playing it pretty,' the band announced.

“So in October, we were just going to do a one-show thing but it turned into a tribute tour because, 10 years later, the music’s still being played on the radio and it’s still requested and it’s still selling real good. Though the remaining members of Lynyrd Skynyrd disbanded after the crash, the group eventually returned with Rossington on guitar and Van Zant’s younger brother Johnny singing lead. He underwent numerous operations after the heart attack. Four years after the release of Lynyrd Skynyrd’s first album, Rossington survived a plane crash that killed Van Zant, guitarist Steve Gaines and backing vocalist Cassie Gaines. [drummer Bob Burns](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/music/posts/la-et-ms-lynyrd-skynyrd-cofounder-dead-in-car-crash-20150406-story.html) and fellow guitarist Allen Collins in Jacksonville, Fla. “Gary is now with his Skynyrd brothers and family in heaven and playing it pretty, like he always does.

Charlie Starr, of Southern rock band Blackberry Smoke remembers Lynyrd Skynyrd guitarist Gary Rossington, who died at 71.

That’s another hook to the song. It’s another verse to the song. Think about Ronnie saying, “Play it pretty for Atlanta” [during “Free Bird” at the Fox Theatre in 1976]. The song is not “Free Bird” without that part. We asked Starr to explain Lynyrd Skynyrd’s impact, dissect Rossington’s approach to his instrument, and unravel the mysteries of the guitarist’s signature slide intro to [“Free Bird.”](https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-country/lynyrd-skynyrd-first-show-back-free-bird-1180286/) “I said, ‘What does he want me to play?’ She said, ‘He said to play the blues.’ And I got that because that’s where Gary came from,” Starr says, calling from Zurich, Switzerland, where Blackberry Smoke are about to perform. When you listen to “Free Bird,” his playing sounds like a bird singing to you. “After they walked down the aisle, Gary yelled over to me, ‘OK, play the blues now!’ and so I did. Listen to the solo for “Don’t Ask Me No Questions,” too. “I’ll carry that with me forever.” They were all so different, starting with And those songs are like Beatles and Stones songs — they’re accessible.

Gary Rossington, a co-founder and last surviving original member of Lynyrd Skynyrd, died Sunday at age 71. No cause of death was given.

Now we're the only people to carry on for the dreamers." But he added: "I'm sure if you asked the other guys who are not with us anymore and are up in rock and roll heaven, they have their story of how it came about." "Sweet Home Alabama" references both Young and Alabama Gov. He survived a car accident in 1976 in which he drove his Ford Torino into a tree, inspiring the band's song "That Smell." Rossington, Burns, Van Zant, and guitarist Allen Collins later gathered at Burns' Jacksonville home to jam the Rolling Stone's "Time Is on My Side." "Gary is now with his Skynyrd brothers and family in heaven and playing it pretty, like he always does."

The last surviving original member of the classic Southern rock group, he played the soaring slide guitar solo on “Free Bird” and co-wrote “Sweet Home ...

Mr. In 1976 Mr. Rossington and Mr. In a 1993 interview with The Associated Press, Mr. In 1987, the 10th anniversary of the crash, Mr. Van Zant; Mr. Van Zant and Mr. “We came in and did Yardbirds and Stones. “We do it now as an instrumental,” Mr. The band, playing countless bar dates around Florida and eventually beyond, evolved into a seven-piece with three guitars — Mr. The band’s breakthrough came in 1973, when the musician and producer Al Kooper caught a show in Atlanta, liked what he heard and signed the group to his Sounds of the South label. [a portrait of the band](https://www.rockhall.com/inductees/lynyrd-skynyrd) written for the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, which inducted the group in 2006, another teenager, Ronnie Van Zant, was playing in a baseball game when he hit a foul ball that struck a spectator, Mr.

Artimus Pyle, who drummed for Lynyrd Skynyrd for the bulk of the Seventies, pays tribute to Gary Rossington: 'Fly high, our free bird brother.'

We liked a lot of the same things — listening to Jeff Beck at his house on his gigantic stereo, out on the water in his boat, riding horses together.” “As it turns out, being the last living member of Lynyrd Skynyrd is not all it’s cracked up to be,” Pyle says. He’s also the last survivor of the band’s “Everyone will remember Gary as a road dog, trouper, songwriter, and one of the greatest guitar players that ever lived. Perhaps best known for his slide-guitar work on Skynyrd’s immortal “Free Bird,” Rossington was the last founding member of the Southern-rock titans. And I will cherish these texts for the rest of my life,” Pyle, who replaced original drummer Bob Burns in 1975, tells Rolling Stone over the phone from his home in rural North Carolina.

Gary Rossington, a co-founder and last surviving original member of Lynyrd Skynyrd, died Sunday at age 71. No cause of death was given.

Young liked the song and wrote in his memoir “Waging Heavy Peace” that his song “Alabama” deserved the shot from Lynyrd Skynyrd. “We had a dream,” Rossington said. But he added: “I’m sure if you asked the other guys who are not with us anymore and are up in rock and roll heaven, they have their story of how it came about.” “Sweet Home Alabama” references both Young and Alabama Gov. Rossington, Burns, Van Zant, and guitarist Allen Collins later gathered at Burns’ Jacksonville home to jam the Rolling Stone’s “Time Is on My Side.” “Gary is now with his Skynyrd brothers and family in heaven and playing it pretty, like he always does.”

The last surviving member of Lynyrd Skynyrd has died at age 71. Gary Rossington was the band's guitarist and founding member.

Rossington was knocked unconscious in the tragedy, and Rossington was the only member of the band to appear on all of their albums. Lynyrd Skynyrd disbanded after the accident but reformed in 1987. Rossington has writing credits on some of the band’s biggest hits, including ‘Sweet Home Alabama’. Rossington was an original founding member of Lynyrd Skynyrd, which started as a trio called Me, You, And Him featuring bassist Larry Junstrom and drummer Bob Burns. “It is with our deepest sympathy and sadness that we have to advise, that we lost our brother, friend, family member, songwriter and guitarist, Gary Rossington, today,” the band wrote.

Peter Frampton, Paul Rodgers, The Allman Brothers Band and more also took to social media to pay tribute to the rockstar.

Please keep Dale, Mary and Annie and the entire Rossington family in your prayers and respect the family’s privacy at this time.” “It’s painful, and I’m trying to process it and deal with it.” [wrote that](https://www.facebook.com/LynyrdSkynyrd/posts/765593788258088), “It is without deepest sympathy and sadness that we have to advise, that we lost our brother, friend, family member, songwriter and guitarist, [Gary Rossington](https://www.billboard.com/t/gary-rossington/) today. “As it turns out, being the last living member of “Everyone will remember Gary as a road dog, trouper, songwriter, and one of the greatest guitar players that ever lived. Following the news, Artimus Pyle, who drummed for the rock band during the 1970’s, paid tribute to his late bandmate.