| If you had the chance to see LYNYRD SKYNYRD in 1977, you saw a Southern Rock band that was on the top of their game. With albums under their belt and a tour in progress supporting the "Street Survivors" album, the sky was the limit. |
| The pilots had noticed that one engine had a fuel leak. In a panic, instead of transferring the remaining fuel to the damaged engine, they accidentally dumped all the fuel. Though the pilots attempted an emergency landing on a small airstrip, the plane crashed in a forest in Gillsburg, Mississippi. Ronnie Van Zant, Steve Gaines, Cassie Gaines, assistant road manager Dean Kilpatrick, pilot Walter McCreary and co-pilot William Gray were all killed on impact; the other band members suffered serious injuries. |
The fallen members of LYNYRD SKYNYRD, one of the world's most beloved bands.
Ronnie Van Zant
Steve Gaines
Cassie Gaines
Billy Powell
Leon Wilkeson
Allen Collins
Jo Jo Billingsley
| It's because of these people, the music they made, and the impact they made on so many lives, that SKYNYRD'S INNYRDS was formed. For the love of the music... |
| This is the back of the Memorial Shirt that we will be offering soon. |
Ean Evans
| We want to make special mention of two individuals that had a profound influence on the band that are no longer with us. |
| On October 20, 1977, just three days after the release of Street Survivors, and five shows into their most successful headlining tour to date, Lynyrd Skynyrd's chartered Convair 240 ran out of fuel near the end of their flight from Greenville, South Carolina, where they had just performed at the Greenville Memorial Auditorium, to LSU in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. |
Leonard Skinner (1933 - 2010)
| Skinner was a gym teacher at his alma mater, Robert E. Lee High School in Jacksonville, FL. Several members of the band Lynyrd Skynyrd, including Ronnie Van Zant, Gary Rossington, and Bob Burns, were students at the school in the 1960s. Skinner's strict enforcement of a policy against long hair inspired the members to name their band after him. The group reportedly changed their name after Skinner sent Rossington and others to the principal's office for wearing their hair too long. |
| Southern Rock Patriarch. He is the father of the late Ronnie Van Zant, the founder of Lynyrd Skynyrd, and Johnny Van Zant, the band's current lead singer. He was known for his long beard, white hair and ever-present overalls. He purchased music equipment, drove the bands to shows, loaned them money and repaired their vehicles. Early versions of Lynyrd Skynyrd would practice at his home, which he later opened to fans so they could see the bands' gold and platinum records. Many consider him the father of Southern rock 'n' roll. |
Lacy Van Zant (1915 - 2004)
| The Dean Memorial Bass designed by Doc and finished by our friends at Marty Bell Finishing. |
Click on the picture to check it out.
©2011 SKYNYRD'S INNYRDS
Hughie Thomasson
