Lynyrd
Skynyrd
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Lynyrd
Skynyrd interview from inthestudio.net, regarding their
Christmas album and other topics. Enjoy some select tracks
from it too, Merry Christmas.
Lynyrd
Skynyrd album Reviews
Overview
Lynyrd Skynyrd had a
brilliant, but short span. Tragically
at the peak of their career in 1977 a plane crash took the life of
two of the groups main musicians, vocalist Ronnie Van Zant, and
guitarist Steve Gaines. Other
casualties include Steve’s sister Cassie who sang back-up vocals,
and assistant road manager Dean Kilpatrick; the rest of the band
and staff suffered serious injuries.
After all these years the band is still quite popular today,
which shows their music is top tier, and that their legacy is
warranted.
Lynyrd Skynyrd’s music
has a very distinct sound, that can be characterized as blending
Rock, Blues, and Country. And
of course Lynyrd Skynyrd’s trademark is their dueling guitar
solos, well-placed piano riffs, and well-crafted compositions. To
my ears, a piano and guitar in a rock setting is too rare. In addition to their rhythm section, Lynyrd Skynyrd’s
musician line-up typically includes three guitar players and a piano
begging to be heard. With so many musicians it is surprising that they do not crowd each
other. The quality of
their songwriting brilliantly choreographs the times to give each
musician a time to impress, while avoiding the musicians stepping in
each others way.
To put Lynyrd Skynyrd’s
catalogue of music in simple terms, initially they released four
solid studio albums with various personnel changes. Then in 1976
guitarist Steve Gaines joined the band, and it is our opinion that
this was by far the best Lynyrd Skynyrd line-up. With Steve Gaines in the band, they recorded their
indispensable classic live album One More From the
Road, followed by
their best studio album, Street
Survivors.
Since
1977, there have been various solo efforts and Lynyrd Skynyrd
reincarnations to various degrees of success. I had the opportunity to see the Rossington Collins band and
a later day version of Lynyrd Skynyrd.
Both were good, but the performances confirmed the fact that
the best days were behind them.
There
have been numerous Southern Rock bands that have been influenced by
Lynyrd Skynyrd, such as Molly
Hatchet, Blackfoot,
The
Outlaws, and even Lynyrd
Skynyrd offshoots, among others. Some
are good, but none are in
the same class as Lynyrd Skynyrd; they are often imitated, but not
duplicated.
What's
new
August 2009 release - God
& Guns
 |
God & Guns |
Sept. 2009 Release
1. Still Unbroken
2. Simple Life
3. Little Thing Called You
4. Southern Ways
5. Skynyrd Nation
6. Unwrite That Song
7. Floyd
8. That Ain't My America
9. Comin' Back for More
10. God & Guns
11. Storm
12. Gifted Hands
2-CD Special Edition includes:
3 Bonus tracks, Expanded artwork. Live tracks recorded at Freedom Hall in Louisville, KY.
1. Bang Bang
2. Raining In My Heartland
3. Hobo Kinda Man
Live
4. Red White and Blue (Live)
5. Call Me The Breeze (Live)
6. Sweet Home Alabama (Live)
More on God
& Guns |
|
Product Description
Driven by core members Gary Rossington (guitar), Johnny Van Zant (vocals) and Rickey Medlocke (guitar), along with longtime drummer Michael Cartellone, Lynyrd Skynyrd have recorded an album that very much lives up to the legacy begun some 35 years ago in Jacksonville, Florida. With the release of God & Guns, Lynyrd Skynyrd are poised to transcend all genres and appeal to many generations of music fans.
|
 |
A few live Lynyrd Skynyrd archival
releases from Wolfgang's vault. Released in 2009.
The expanded version of Gimme
Back My Bullets has a DVD and live bonus material from
around this period, including a few songs from these
releases. |
 |
Authorized Bootleg: Live at the Cardiff Capitol Theater - Cardiff, Wales Nov. 04 1975 |
1. Double Trouble
2. I Ain't The One
3. The Needle And The Spoon
4. Saturday Night Special
5. Gimme Three Steps
6. Whiskey Rock-A-Roller
7. Call Me The Breeze
8. Sweet Home Alabama
9. Free Bird
Allen Collins - lead guitar
Billy Powell - piano, keyboards
Artimus Pyle - drums
Gary Rossington - lead guitar
Ronnie Van Zant - lead vocals
Leon Wilkeson - bass, vocals |
|
Authorized Bootleg: Live at Winterland - San Francisco Mar. 07 1976 |
1. Cry For The Bad Man
2. Saturday Night Special
3. Searchin'
4. I Got The Same Old Blues
5. Gimme Back My Bullets
6. Tuesday's Gone
7. The Needle And The Spoon
8. Gimme Three Steps/Call Me The Breeze
9. Sweet Home Alabam
10. Free Bird
Ronnie Van Zant - vocals
Gary Rossington - guitar
Allen Collins - guitar
Billy Powell - keyboards
Leon Wilkinson - bass
Artimus Pyle - drums
JoJo Billingsley - backing vocals
Cassie Gaines - backing vocals
Leslie Hawkins - backing vocals |
|
2008 release
Street
Survivors Deluxe Edition remastered with bonus disc
2006 releases
Gimme
Back My Bullets remastered with DVD
Family - A
compilation that includes the side bands.
A brief bio of
Lynyrd Skynyrd is provided by DjangoMusic

Shopping Guide of the
Essential Lynyrd Skynyrd cd's
Our analysis of Lynyrd
Skynyrd releases is designed for those who want to own the best of
their music, not for the fan that plans to buy them all.
In fact, all of Lynyrd Skynyrd’s albums up to Street
Survivors have much to offer. Our
focus is to point out the cream of the crop, and we provide
individual reviews of many of their albums.
The following are
suggestions to the best Lynyrd Skynyrd available. We
have designated a few categories along with recommendations. The
two Lynyrd Skynyrd albums with
Steve Gaines, One More From the Road, and
Street Survivors have much to offer..
1.) Lynyrd Skynyrd Lover
– A fan that loves their music, but does not need to hear
every note.
One
More From the Road, and Box
Set
Two purchases and five discs.
With this combination I
can’t think of anything material of Lynyrd Skynyrd’s
music that is missing from this collection. If
you like DVD’s, you may want to add their awesome DVD Free Bird,
or substitute it for One
More From the Road.
2.) Lynyrd Skynyrd Rocks
(Option 1) – A fan that wants to hear nearly all their best
songs, and does not need to have both a studio and live version of
the songs.
One
More From the Road, and Street
Survivors
Two purchases and three discs.
The live album has most of
the Lynyrd Skynyrd’s best songs from their first four albums in
brilliant renditions. What this collection is missing is some of the more rural
type of songs like “The Ballad of Curtis Lowe,” and “Made in
the Shade.” Though, Street
Survivors does include some of that style.
2.) Lynyrd Skynyrd Rocks
(Option 2)
Box
Set
One purchase and three discs.
Lynyrd Skynyrd's three disc
box set.
3.) Lynyrd Skynyrd
Casual Fan– For fans that enjoy hearing some Lynyrd Skynyrd
from time to time.
A greatest album. If
you want a collection of greatest hits of Lynyrd Skynyrd, they have
two worth considering. The
single disc collection is Lynyrd
Skynyrd’s All Time Greatest Hits. The two disc collection The
Essential Lynyrd Skynyrd.
4.) Lynyrd Skynyrd
Fanatic – I want it all.
If you have the money and
storage, owning all the Lynyrd Skynyrd albums would be awesome.
If you are not in that situation, owning their Box
Set can replace their first five studio albums, First and
Last, and perhaps even Collectables. All, without leaving
out much music. Sure one can buy the albums separate, but there is
quite a bit of duplication.