I was 16. Junior in high school, beginning new grade. I'll never forget hearing the news of the plane crash. Just weeks earlier I met the band in Kansas City, Missouri, outside the venue they just played in. They were leaving in a white stretch limo. I ran up to the limo, they rolled down the back window. I said hi, I asked what they were drinking. I didn't know what to say. Ronnie showed me this dark weird shaped (big rounded- bottom bottle I thought was pretty) they had to stop for a red light. They gave me the bottle of Matuese after downing it and signing the label. I will never forget that memory. The boy who took me was Rob Link. I was crazy about him. A perfect night in my charmed life. So many bands were great then. We were truly blessed, and I'm so grateful I lived in those unseemingly at the time; magical, wild, and free times in America.
Coming back to this after Gary’s passing, the greatest band to ever play on a stage. As someone who has grown up in “Gen Z,” I wish more people of my generation could appreciate what these people did❤
I see kids in our generation pay to watch devil worshipers fool with the devil on stage and call it music. My daddy graduated highschool in 1978..Some people grew up listening to Skynyrd.. the cool ones still do! I know one day I'll be sitting on my porch with the grandkids listening to Nuthin' Fancy and all the like.. this day all we can do is play the music and love one another in the name of Jesus
Glad to know some of the younger generation appreciates one of the greatest Southern Rock Bands along with The Allman Brothers Band, Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers pretty dang good also. ROCK ON !
The whole band was surrounded by tragedy. The pain is evident in Gary’s face. I watched the full documentary where this clip was taken from, it was lovely, very enjoyable but sad at times too.
The LS band were cursed. Those that didn't die from the crash, died at an early age. Jo Jo Billingsley, was 58, Billy Powell was 56, Leon Wilkinson was 49, Allen Collins was 38 Ed King made it to 69. Gary, Artimus Pyle and Leslie Hawkins are still alive.
Let us all say a prayer for Gary as he is at home in Alpharetta GA, with his wife recovering from heart surgery. The wife & I are thinking of ya Gary. Get well soon.
Thanks for the likes all, & also lets keep the Dusty Hill family & ZZ Top band & fans in out prayers & hearts due to Dusty Hill's passing. Another great band & friends of Skynyrd. Such sad news so keep em in your hearts & prayers y'all. Just saying.
R.i.p Gary thank you for all the great music.and thank you for the best slide riff on free bird.its the best sound I ever hered in my life.thanks for sharing your gift with us.
It's utterly heartbreaking to see these men tell this story. You can see it in their eyes that it might as well have been yesterday that they just witnessed some of their best friends, hell, their family, die tragically. I can only hope Gary's at peace now, finally.
I remember that day. I went into my math class in high school. My teacher was an avid music fan. He had his head covered in his hands . He said "I won't be teaching. Just do your homework" Half way through the class he broke down and was crying out loud.
Such a sad deal, I was 18 at the time, now 62 crazy how it's been that long ago. A kid I grew up with had just bought the Street Survivor album and was happy as hell and called me to come over. Skynyrd was just getting huge all over, I was in California and then...that. To this day that album is hard to listen to for me and it's a kick ass album.
I was same age. A friend of mine had called me and asked if I wanted the street survivors album that there were only three left at the orange park mall at the record shop. I said yes get me one. The next evening on the 6 o’clock news as I was eating a TV dinner lol Tom Wills on channel 4 news in Jacksonville came on live and announced they had crashed. I got sick and ran out on the carport and lost all my food. What a sad sad time.
I'm the same age as you. I had just bought the album and was ready to buy concert tickets as soon as they were gonna be available. My heart was broken that day...I still get choked up about it.😔🙏
@@michaelblody3053 I was probably thinking about taking the cute girl that lived next door to me. I was gonna ask her to go to the concert with me.👍😎🎸🎶
Saddest day of my life. I was in motorcycle mechanic,small engine school In Daytona Beach FL on October 20,1977. You would have thought the President of the USA had been shot. Everyone was just numb and in shock. But even that day,I knew the music would live on. Because it was just too dag gun good!! And I knew I was right, Ronnie VanZant would be so happy and proud. SKYNYRD'S MUSIC has become bigger than all of the band past or present. That's all Ronnie ever wanted,that was his big dream!! Sadly he just did not live long enough to see it. But he knew,in his head and definitely in his heart! He absolutely knew!
Saddest day ? What about and if your granny or grandpop Or your mom or dad Or your childhood pet Dog / cat / pet frog or Spider your wife or boy friend or your bike got stolen , what about if any of those people died ? Would that still be the saddest day of your life ?
@@keithclark486 I was only 18 at the time and why and how it happened. That plane should have never left Greenville S C. Definitely the saddest day of my life at that point and time.
I believe your right on all occasions... Ronnie VanZandt aka Lynyrd Skynyrd wrote the greatest catolog of songs in Rock in roll history.. not only that but he recorded them all himself and performed them Live.. Even Willie Nelson who's in the top all time country writers can't claim the status of Ronnie.. not the Beatles the who zeppelin or the stones... Ronnie and Skynyrd is the undesputed GOAT of rock n roll Even Elvis could match him given a 20+ year career.
R.I.P Free Birds.. Sincerely..Thank you for your blood sweat and tears you put into your craft and shared with us all...As a life long Skynyrd fan I'm forever thankful and grateful for you all...Fly high. "If I leave here tomorrow...Would you still remember me?"...We could never forgot you. Much love.
True Southern USA rock and roll at its best! Everyone of their songs takes me back to a different place and time. This music shall live on forever!! God Bless their souls.
Iam in my 60s, my youngest daughter has a disease called Herion drove up to Phoenix to pick her up after a couple years in prison, the drive back , to Tucson, she said Dad , I've been listening to that guy Lynyrd Skynard, he kicks Ass 😳 needle and a Spoon
I was alive but too young to remember but after watching these videos I can seen the bond between the band members . I was a 90's child and did listen to their music and still do !
These guys are my favorite band members of all time, I was born in 2001 and this makes me sad that ill never get to see the original members play. RIP everyone who died on that plane and rip to Gary! 🕊❤🤍💙
May during covid. I have seen the boys play half a dozen times over the years. I don’t think any musician could know how much they’re music could mean to a listener. God bless you all! Thanks Johnny for doing such a great job keeping it all rolling all these years
Its amazing what Gary has seen in his lifetime. Them chasing Allen down as kids to ask him to join the band because he owned a nice amp. The look of the inside of the hell house when Ed King first played that iconic guitar lick over his rhythm. The smokey beer joints , the sold out arena's . And the plane going down. Then the faces of the band members that died in the flower arraignments.
I will never forget that day, I had just gotten my driver's license and was at school when news broke and I and I left school and just wanted to get home. My parents were huge fans and I knew my mom would be a wreck. We didn't know these guys personally but their music moved us enough to make the hurt real. I'm an old man now lol but my heart is still and always will be a diehard fan.
@@FezCaliph she was devastated. She listened to Skynyrd daily and especially freebird. I remember her crying and playing their music nearly nonstop. I was 15 when the plane crash happened and that day is forever etched in my mind. My sisters and I lost our mom 14 years ago and I know in my heart she's up in heaven front row watching these legends play their music for eternity ❤️. That itself puts a smile on my face 😊. Long live Lynyrd Skynyrds legacy 🙏.
hats off to Gary Rossington he will truly be missed rest easy my friend those good times of Lynyrd Skynrd music wont be forgoten MARK COOPER 3 -8 -2023
it's amazing how most of them survived. one of the early rescuers, someone who lived nearby and was pulling people out of the plane before any medical people arrived, he said they might have been alright if they continued to land in those soft georgia pines, but he remembers a massive oak tree being right behind the wreckage, that's probably what broke the plane up so bad.
If I remember correctly, the fuselage was wrapped around that oak tree, and the sudden stop, is what killed the people who died. Steve and Cassie Gains and Dean Kilpatrick, all died of broken necks from smashing face first into the bulk head at the front of the plane when it hit the oak tree. Their seats had been ripped from the bolts in the fuselage. The pilot and co-pilot were hanging upside down, dead, up in a tree. I have tried to find the exact cause of death of RVZ, but have been unable to do so. There was a lot of speculation about RVZ's injuries and Judy Van Zant posted RVZ's autopsy report on the fan website for a short time, to dispel rumors, but I have been unable to find it. I have read he was virtually unscathed, except for a bruise the size of a quarter on his temple. So many people survived because there was no fuel to burn when they crashed.
@@Rich-kp1eu wow, the impact is always devastating for sure. so it was the oak tree, they're massive in the south, some around my area 600 years old, they ain't gonna move for a plane. i'd heard rvz was buzzing pretty good and refused to strap in, just laying on the floor, i don't know how he could have possibly been left without a mark but some strange things happen.
@@tomitstube There are a couple of different stories of RVZ. Gene Odem, RVZ's good friend, said Ronnie had taken a couple of sleeping pills and was on the floor between Gary and Allen. When the plane was in trouble, he tried to get RVZ strapped in, but RVZ fought him on it because he was so out of it from the pills (probably Quaaludes) . Artimus Pyle has a different story, but virtually every survivor disputes Pyle's account. RVZ's father (Lacy) also said Ronnie didn't have s ingle mark on him, he looked like he was sleeping in the casket.
Skynyrd has been a very important piece of the puzzle we call life’s journey! I married my best friend on 7/4/1985, southern rock band(southbound), played our outdoor venue. Row of bikes to the reverends triumph chopper( alter), call me the breeze, only song i danced to with my bride. Years later, named our girl( pitt bull), the breeze. She lived up to it, couldn’t walk on her own(cerebellum syndrome), since she was 2, Yet we didn’t say good bye till
Johnny was absolutely fantastic to carry the legacy of the band to my generation! But man the song writing and leadership of Ronnie is immeasurable isn’t it?
Also Gary Rossington brings the band together to play all the Lynyrd Skynyrd music and later made music they write and played like The Last Rebel(Gary Rossington) Lost all his friends listen to this amazing song after the Plane Crash And Allen and Artimus and Billy and Gary and Charlie playing in 1979 2 years after the Crash a Jam sessions with Free Bird instrumental to allen fallen friends of the band. You can find it and watch it.❤
RIP Gary, your a Free Bird now.I was privileged to see you and the band the night before the plane crash, Greenville,S.C. woke up the next morning and heard the news I cried all day long.😥💔💜
I was 18 months old when that plane came sputtering over. I still live less than an 1 1/2 away from where Ronnie Ronnie and the others died... There's a memorial there now...
My dream is to come to Jacksonville, go to the cemetery with the musicians, see where Ronnie lived, and see the band's monument, but it's so expensive and far from Poland ;( But I think that one day I will make my dream come true
Damn, they played the perfect song to make you cry like hell while hearing this awful story. I think all the time about what this band would have been without this horrific event.
It’s interesting the part where Gary says Dean yanked the door off of him yet the doctors said it was an impossibility because Dean’s fatal injuries were so severe.
@@Aranck-kcnarA After my fender bender in a McDonald’s parking lot some Allman brothers told me I couldn’t come with them. Except instead of sitting on a cloud shaped log they were sitting on a Ronald McDonald’s bench.
@@peterbilt-bo1vy Hey Peter, it looks like some of this thread is missing or off because of a RUclips glitch. I was responding to Mule. Of course I’m implying that had the rest of these comment threads been visible my comment would make sense 🤭.
Get well soon Gary god bless you. I just lost a friend this past week at work. you are a blessing. I also heard Gary is going to make a full recovery soon
I heard the news via radio broadcast while on the way to California with my dad. My dad was so supportive. I was heartbroken, and he knew it. I had seen them live in my hometown in 1976, and they were beyond fantastic in concert. I grieved for a long time after that tragedy. I loved the band and Ronnie most of all. I grieve to this day actually, almost half a century later. May God bless and keep the band and Ronnie forever 😢.
I was nineteen and at work. Somebody told me about this. Utterly shocked. My boyfriend and I had tickets and about ten other friends had tickets too. Tragically devastating. So sad.
If Gary thought he saw Dean why is it so hard to believe Artimus envisioned Ronnie holding or shaking his hand and telling him I love you brother it's not unusual to have visions when you think you are going to die
They all had major head injuries or concussions, so their memories will be skewed. But spiritual things do happen. Jo Jo Billingsley had a dream of a plane crash the night before the flight. She wasn't going on that trip but called Allen and Cassie and told them not to go... Nobody really trusted that plane, it was a POS. They never should have boarded it, but Ronnie said either you get on or you are fired....so
I remember this one I was only seven... And I was looking at my mom's album when I got home..Also in 1980... In homeroom when they announce.. Bon Scott and John Bonham. 😧🎸
Somewhere Gary said that him and Allen were in the middle seats facing each other with Steve,Cassie and Dean in the outside seats. Everyone on each side died and but they lived. Fate came down to the seat they picked. Grew up listening and loving their music. Always loved the tone and nasty sound of Gary’s Les Paul. He was a awesome Guitarist and a good guy.
Man I met Gary n the gang on September 16th 2001 in Louisville my. He told me that same story! Hes is a true guitar legend.i fell blessed that I met him and his wife.she was nice as well!
RIP Walter McCreary Jr. (1943-1977) William J. Gray Jr. (1945-1977) Ronnie Van Zant (1948-1977) Steve Gaines (1949-1977) Cassie Gaines (1948-1977) and Dean Kilpatrick (1949-1977)
Saw them as an 18 year old when they came to England around 76-77 at Leeds Uni. My girlfriend used to love Freebird. It was a great concert and later an awful of shock when we heard what had happened. RIP
buddy of mine on the railroad said skynard plane went down most gone ...I think I was 12 year's old then but remember well the best band in the world. shocked at will then later on found out who passed and who lived. rest in peace Skynard God bless you all.
At 16 after seeing Skynyrd at the Oakland Coliseum in early July a piece of me died when the six passed. Of course, no comparison to the incredible loss, pain, guilt, and void the members, family, and mates felt as they dealt with the broken bones and hearts. The world will never be the same.
in Brazil something similar happened to a national rock band. they had only 7 months of success and were the biggest at the time. to date it was the band that sold the most records. the Learget 25b jet went left instead of right and crashed into a mountain in São Paulo, killing all members, pilot and co-pilot. it was in 1996. and the most bizarre thing was that one of the members reported having dreamed of the plane crash. he spoke on video to a friend...
I was home from the Army after doing my time in Viet Nam know it was like when aircraft come out of the sky because short on fuel, Felt so bad about this band, They were so good and they were all about the good old U.S.A. I still to this day feel bad about this crash...
@jonathanolsen7254 It was years after you got back then.. On March 29, 1973, the last U.S. military unit left Vietnam. the plane crashed in Oct 20th '77.
Lynyrd Skynyrd will never be the same ever again since Gary Rossington just passed this year. So it's only Johnny Van Zant and Artimus Pyle but I think they're pretty much retired by this point. Johnny Van even admitted on Sirius Radio that there was no chance in hell that Ronnie was gonna be replaced. He said when he joined the band, it was an odd feeling that the other brother of Ronnie was gonna be their lead singer. RIP Ronnie, Walter McCreary, William Gray, Dean Kilpatrick, Steve and Cassie Gaines, Billy Powell, Ed King, and Allen Collins.
I met Leon in Jacksonville in the early 80s when I was in the Navy and stationed there, and I saw Artimus a couple of times at a marina in Orange Park where one of my uncles used to keep his boat.
My great uncle is the biggest Skynyrd fan out there. He was telling me that he had tickets for a show in November of ‘77, the first time he was to see them. The day after the crash he went to high school wearing a Skynyrd shirt, completely unaware of the crash, and some guy pointed at him saying “they’re dead!”. Confused my uncle just sat down and a short while later they announced the crash on the intercom. My uncle just got up and went home.
I can’t believe Gary has the balls to talk about this in such detail especially since he was with them since the beginning and saw everyone come and go it must be beyond emotional for him
It's all so heartbreaking. Gary should live another 40 years. I'm so angry. The only thing I want to believe now Is to see Gary embrace his friends, Brothers and sisters in Heaven
I was 15 when I heard the news on my radio station. At first I thought it was a joke. I couldn’t believe my ears. That was a sad, sad, day in October of 77’.
Weird fact. The guy at 4.44 shaking hands with Ronny was promoter Bill Grahm who died almost 9 years to the day after the Skinard crash on October 25th 1991 in a helicopter crash. His birthday was January 8th, Cassie Gains was on January 9th and Ronnie's was on January 15th. Bill Graham promoted many southern rock bands including Stevie Ray Vaughn who also died in a helicopter crash and The Allman Brothers.
When I was in high school in Jacksonville Florida, a friend of mine was friends of the bodyguard of Lynyrd Skynyrd. They had just pulled out a book about the crash, and the picture of one of the guys on Who survive the crash, I think it was the bodyguard, showed The stitches from his ankle all the way up the side of his body to it his underarm. I didn’t know so I could survive such a wound, it was unbelievable…
Remember hearing about Lynyrd Skynyrd back in the 70s I was just a little girl and when in 1977 they came to the Oakland coliseum I wish I could have went but I was way too young at the time Long live Lynyrd Skynyrd and all the band mates God bless you and rest in peace ✌️🕊️🙏🌹🇺🇸
I watched this on TV. Watching Billy give daily updates and the news Ronnie Steve and Cassie were gone. I knew it was all over. I've seen em several times since. Ronnie was gone but his spirit was still in the music. ❤
Love ❤️😘 y'all so very much!!! Thanks so much, y'all saved me so many times.I respect you so very much!!! Please get well soon!!!All my heart 💜❤️😘 and respect for all of you!!!
The Mid-Western fraternity guys always yelled "PLAY FREEBIRD" at our Reggea Band thinking we'd be offended...we would bust into a country rendition of it. 2 of us were fans. It was an awful loss to Music.
"Simple Man" one of the greatest songs ever written, my favorite by Lynyrd Skynyrd!
I was 16. Junior in high school, beginning new grade. I'll never forget hearing the news of the plane crash.
Just weeks earlier I met the band in Kansas City, Missouri, outside the venue they just played in. They were leaving in a white stretch limo. I ran up to the limo, they rolled down the back window. I said hi, I asked what they were drinking. I didn't know what to say. Ronnie showed me this dark weird shaped (big rounded- bottom bottle I thought was pretty) they had to stop for a red light. They gave me the bottle of Matuese after downing it and signing the label.
I will never forget that memory. The boy who took me was Rob Link. I was crazy about him. A perfect night in my charmed life.
So many bands were great then. We were truly blessed, and I'm so grateful I lived in those unseemingly at the time; magical, wild, and free times in America.
"I get juiced on mateus and just hang loose." Elton John, "Social Disease"
Thanks for sharing that amazing memory! They seemed like the nicest, most down-to-earth guys.
Hope you still have that bottle!😮
Fckn sweet story.
My mother born ‘65, father ‘55…. Me, ‘01. 😂. I want a fucking Time Machine :(
Coming back to this after Gary’s passing, the greatest band to ever play on a stage. As someone who has grown up in “Gen Z,” I wish more people of my generation could appreciate what these people did❤
I see kids in our generation pay to watch devil worshipers fool with the devil on stage and call it music. My daddy graduated highschool in 1978..Some people grew up listening to Skynyrd.. the cool ones still do! I know one day I'll be sitting on my porch with the grandkids listening to Nuthin' Fancy and all the like.. this day all we can do is play the music and love one another in the name of Jesus
At least you do, bud. Godspeed.
I did. They are my all time favs.
These guys we
Glad to know some of the younger generation appreciates one of the greatest Southern Rock Bands along with The Allman Brothers Band, Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers pretty dang good also. ROCK ON !
The whole band was surrounded by tragedy. The pain is evident in Gary’s face. I watched the full documentary where this clip was taken from, it was lovely, very enjoyable but sad at times too.
The LS band were cursed. Those that didn't die from the crash, died at an early age.
Jo Jo Billingsley, was 58,
Billy Powell was 56,
Leon Wilkinson was 49,
Allen Collins was 38
Ed King made it to 69.
Gary, Artimus Pyle and Leslie Hawkins are still alive.
Wherever they are...I hope they are all at peace.
@@Rich-kp1eu Gary is gone now, meaning all original members are unfortunately deceased.
Whats the documentary called?
@@firstroundboxing7649 It’s called If I leave here tomorrow, a film about Lynyrd Skynyrd - released 2018. It’s brilliant
Let us all say a prayer for Gary as he is at home in Alpharetta GA, with his wife recovering from heart surgery. The wife & I are thinking of ya Gary. Get well soon.
Thanks for the likes all, & also lets keep the Dusty Hill family & ZZ Top band & fans in out prayers & hearts due to Dusty Hill's passing. Another great band & friends of Skynyrd. Such sad news so keep em in your hearts & prayers y'all. Just saying.
Hope you feel get well soon Gary
@@gibsongirl4443 Same here. Hope he's picking up his guitar real soon & rocking the house again!!!
Praying for Gary ✌️❤️
@@perijetton9275 Thank you. That means a lot & I'm sure Gary feels the same way.
I was in 7th grade and I cried when a special announcement came of the plane crash. Love these guys and the whole band.
I’m only 19, but I’ve grown to appreciate and love Lynyrd Skynyrd and the legend himself Gary Rossington. RIP man, free bird
Your age is irrelevant
didnt know he had passed, you just saddened my day, rip man 🙏🏻
They were an average band and racists but still was kind of sad.
@@StanSwan one of the most original bands of all time, and their racism was just the cherry on top my friend.
@@shinosukenohara5721 So you are proud to be racist?
R.i.p Gary thank you for all the great music.and thank you for the best slide riff on free bird.its the best sound I ever hered in my life.thanks for sharing your gift with us.
It's utterly heartbreaking to see these men tell this story. You can see it in their eyes that it might as well have been yesterday that they just witnessed some of their best friends, hell, their family, die tragically.
I can only hope Gary's at peace now, finally.
Grammar is important!
I remember that day. I went into my math class in high school. My teacher was an avid music fan. He had his head covered in his hands . He said "I won't be teaching. Just do your homework" Half way through the class he broke down and was crying out loud.
Wow man. They must of had a strong impact on him as it did for many.
Wow
He must've been young. There was a massive generation divide in music then.
@@skipads5141 yes. He was on the younger side and a huge rock fan and a pot head.
@@robertwells6724 Oh lord. Ya just can't do math when you're stoned :(
"Then they went away. The spirit went away." Chills. RIP to them all.
Thank you Gary. Miss the music but got my albums.
Gary walked into a bar in jax beach back in the 90's and played with the house band it was fantastic I'll never forget that night get well soon
Oh ya, what was the name of the band?
@@wildestcowboy2668 that was back in the 90' S so I don't remember just some band at the club on Jax beach
@@wildestcowboy2668 it was at the crab pot on Jax beach
3:48 when Gary talks about he and Allen's seating saving their lives while everyone on each side of them died. Man, chillbumps.
Such a sad deal, I was 18 at the time, now 62 crazy how it's been that long ago. A kid I grew up with had just bought the Street Survivor album and was happy as hell and called me to come over. Skynyrd was just getting huge all over, I was in California and then...that. To this day that album is hard to listen to for me and it's a kick ass album.
I was same age. A friend of mine had called me and asked if I wanted the street survivors album that there were only three left at the orange park mall at the record shop. I said yes get me one. The next evening on the 6 o’clock news as I was eating a TV dinner lol Tom Wills on channel 4 news in Jacksonville came on live and announced they had crashed. I got sick and ran out on the carport and lost all my food. What a sad sad time.
I'm the same age as you. I had just bought the album and was ready to buy concert tickets as soon as they were gonna be available. My heart was broken that day...I still get choked up about it.😔🙏
Do you remember what you was doing when you first heard about the plane crash ?
@@michaelblody3053 I was probably thinking about taking the cute girl that lived next door to me. I was gonna ask her to go to the concert with me.👍😎🎸🎶
@@michaelblody3053 I believe I was at work.
One of my favourite bands ever. Their music speaks to my soul. That takes some doing.
@@anndaniels3545 oh you got the play on words lol
Well put together video my favorite band God bless Gary rossington
Saddest day of my life. I was in motorcycle mechanic,small engine school In Daytona Beach FL on October 20,1977. You would have thought the President of the USA had been shot. Everyone was just numb and in shock. But even that day,I knew the music would live on. Because it was just too dag gun good!! And I knew I was right, Ronnie VanZant would be so happy and proud. SKYNYRD'S MUSIC has become bigger than all of the band past or present. That's all Ronnie ever wanted,that was his big dream!! Sadly he just did not live long enough to see it. But he knew,in his head and definitely in his heart! He absolutely knew!
Saddest day ?
What about and if your granny or grandpop
Or your mom or dad
Or your childhood pet
Dog / cat / pet frog or
Spider your wife or boy friend or your bike got stolen , what about if any of those people died ? Would that still be the saddest day of your life ?
@@keithclark486 I was only 18 at the time and why and how it happened. That plane should have never left Greenville S C. Definitely the saddest day of my life at that point and time.
@@keithclark486 he was 18 as he said moron. It’s all relative
@@keithclark486 if his boyfriend had died you wouldn't be here silly
I believe your right on all occasions... Ronnie VanZandt aka Lynyrd Skynyrd wrote the greatest catolog of songs in Rock in roll history.. not only that but he recorded them all himself and performed them Live.. Even Willie Nelson who's in the top all time country writers can't claim the status of Ronnie.. not the Beatles the who zeppelin or the stones... Ronnie and Skynyrd is the undesputed GOAT of rock n roll Even Elvis could match him given a 20+ year career.
R.I.P Free Birds.. Sincerely..Thank you for your blood sweat and tears you put into your craft and shared with us all...As a life long Skynyrd fan I'm forever thankful and grateful for you all...Fly high.
"If I leave here tomorrow...Would you still remember me?"...We could never forgot you. Much love.
I love lynynrd skynyrd may the original band members rest in heavenly peace
True Southern USA rock and roll at its best! Everyone of their songs takes me back to a different place and time. This music shall live on forever!! God Bless their souls.
Lynyrd Skynyrd the greatest most tragic rock band to ever grace this planet
Went to their concert a couple days ago... they are still rockin
Free bird is the best live song you will ever see
@@jayowens4316 the absolute best. That band left us masterpiece after masterpiece
For sure man!
Iam in my 60s, my youngest daughter has a disease called Herion drove up to Phoenix to pick her up after a couple years in prison, the drive back , to Tucson, she said Dad , I've been listening to that guy Lynyrd Skynard, he kicks Ass 😳 needle and a Spoon
Artimus Pyle with his injuries running to get help for his friends through all the pain, a true hero without a cape.
He didn't go alone, the sound man and a roadie were with him.
@@AmericasChoice In that case, all 3 of them are heroes without a cape.👍
@@Ramiobomb I agree, Artimus did take charge of the 3.
@@AmericasChoice So he's the one with the cape then.
@@Ramiobomb I guess you could say that, but Artemus embellished the story a bit. If you want to give him a cape, go for it.
I was alive but too young to remember but after watching these videos I can seen the bond between the band members . I was a 90's child and did listen to their music and still do !
These guys are my favorite band members of all time, I was born in 2001 and this makes me sad that ill never get to see the original members play. RIP everyone who died on that plane and rip to Gary! 🕊❤🤍💙
May during covid.
I have seen the boys play half a dozen times over the years.
I don’t think any musician could know how much they’re music could mean to a listener.
God bless you all!
Thanks Johnny for doing such a great job keeping it all rolling all these years
agreed. Long live Ronnie & Allen etal
I have as much of a chance seeing Elvis Presley as you have seeing "Lynyrd Skynyrd"!
Gary Rosington Always Loved, Never Forgotten Forever missed 💖💖
God bless every member of this great band. They gave us so much of themselves.
Its amazing what Gary has seen in his lifetime. Them chasing Allen down as kids to ask him to join the band because he owned a nice amp. The look of the inside of the hell house when Ed King first played that iconic guitar lick over his rhythm. The smokey beer joints , the sold out arena's . And the plane going down. Then the faces of the band members that died in the flower arraignments.
I never got to see them live, but I did see Rossington- Collins in 1980. They played "Free Bird" but no lyrics... Ultimate respect.
Their music lives on. It's amazing really.
I will never forget that day, I had just gotten my driver's license and was at school when news broke and I and I left school and just wanted to get home. My parents were huge fans and I knew my mom would be a wreck. We didn't know these guys personally but their music moved us enough to make the hurt real. I'm an old man now lol but my heart is still and always will be a diehard fan.
How did you mother react. May she rest in peace.
@@FezCaliph she was devastated. She listened to Skynyrd daily and especially freebird. I remember her crying and playing their music nearly nonstop. I was 15 when the plane crash happened and that day is forever etched in my mind. My sisters and I lost our mom 14 years ago and I know in my heart she's up in heaven front row watching these legends play their music for eternity ❤️. That itself puts a smile on my face 😊. Long live Lynyrd Skynyrds legacy 🙏.
RIP GARY. You lived 9 lives brother
I think Gary is my favorite Skynyrd Street Survivor. I just love him! RIP!! God bless
hats off to Gary Rossington he will truly be missed rest easy my friend those good times of Lynyrd Skynrd music wont be forgoten MARK COOPER 3 -8 -2023
it's amazing how most of them survived. one of the early rescuers, someone who lived nearby and was pulling people out of the plane before any medical people arrived, he said they might have been alright if they continued to land in those soft georgia pines, but he remembers a massive oak tree being right behind the wreckage, that's probably what broke the plane up so bad.
If I remember correctly, the fuselage was wrapped around that oak tree, and the sudden stop, is what killed the people who died.
Steve and Cassie Gains and Dean Kilpatrick, all died of broken necks from smashing face first into the bulk head at the front of the plane when it hit the oak tree. Their seats had been ripped from the bolts in the fuselage. The pilot and co-pilot were hanging upside down, dead, up in a tree. I have tried to find the exact cause of death of RVZ, but have been unable to do so. There was a lot of speculation about RVZ's injuries and Judy Van Zant posted RVZ's autopsy report on the fan website for a short time, to dispel rumors, but I have been unable to find it. I have read he was virtually unscathed, except for a bruise the size of a quarter on his temple.
So many people survived because there was no fuel to burn when they crashed.
@@Rich-kp1eu wow, the impact is always devastating for sure. so it was the oak tree, they're massive in the south, some around my area 600 years old, they ain't gonna move for a plane. i'd heard rvz was buzzing pretty good and refused to strap in, just laying on the floor, i don't know how he could have possibly been left without a mark but some strange things happen.
@@tomitstube There are a couple of different stories of RVZ. Gene Odem, RVZ's good friend, said Ronnie had taken a couple of sleeping pills and was on the floor between Gary and Allen. When the plane was in trouble, he tried to get RVZ strapped in, but RVZ fought him on it because he was so out of it from the pills (probably Quaaludes) . Artimus Pyle has a different story, but virtually every survivor disputes Pyle's account.
RVZ's father (Lacy) also said Ronnie didn't have s ingle mark on him, he looked like he was sleeping in the casket.
Oak tree you’re in my way
@@Rich-kp1eu I've read that RVZ was thrown from the plane and was killed when his head slammed into a tree.
Skynyrd has been a very important piece of the puzzle we call life’s journey!
I married my best friend on 7/4/1985, southern rock band(southbound), played our outdoor venue.
Row of bikes to the reverends triumph chopper( alter), call me the breeze, only song i danced to with my bride.
Years later, named our girl( pitt bull), the breeze.
She lived up to it, couldn’t walk on her own(cerebellum syndrome), since she was 2,
Yet we didn’t say good bye till
Johnny was absolutely fantastic to carry the legacy of the band to my generation! But man the song writing and leadership of Ronnie is immeasurable isn’t it?
Also Gary Rossington brings the band together to play all the Lynyrd Skynyrd music and later made music they write and played like The Last Rebel(Gary Rossington)
Lost all his friends listen to this amazing song after the Plane Crash
And Allen and Artimus and Billy and Gary and Charlie playing in 1979 2 years after the Crash a Jam sessions with Free Bird instrumental to allen fallen friends of the band.
You can find it and watch it.❤
RIP Gary. Reunited with his brothers at last.
RIP Gary, your a Free Bird now.I was privileged to see you and the band the night before the plane crash, Greenville,S.C. woke up the next morning and heard the news I cried all day long.😥💔💜
Could you write something about your impressions of seeing them? This is interesting to me. For me, it would be like touching the band :) Greetings
I was 18 months old when that plane came sputtering over. I still live less than an 1 1/2 away from where Ronnie Ronnie and the others died... There's a memorial there now...
My dream is to see him live and pray with him for the people from the band that I love the most of all. However, it is a bit far from Poland
My dream is to come to Jacksonville, go to the cemetery with the musicians, see where Ronnie lived, and see the band's monument, but it's so expensive and far from Poland ;( But I think that one day I will make my dream come true
I remember this well...., no one could believe the devastation. Such a sad day...still
Damn, they played the perfect song to make you cry like hell while hearing this awful story. I think all the time about what this band would have been without this horrific event.
What is that song bud, please
@@kevinflood8330 If I'm Wrong from shade tree demo. It was a song they made before hitting the big time.
@@mygrassisblue741 ok mate, i just found out the name of if n put it on my play list. Its called "If im wrong" 👍👍👍
@@mygrassisblue741 fuck me, i just read your msg again n realised what you said. Ive had few tonight bud😯👍👍👍
@@mygrassisblue741 Thanks never heard it before, it's not often you can get another classic song 40+ years later
It’s interesting the part where Gary says Dean yanked the door off of him yet the doctors said it was an impossibility because Dean’s fatal injuries were so severe.
@@Aranck-kcnarA After my fender bender in a McDonald’s parking lot some Allman brothers told me I couldn’t come with them. Except instead of sitting on a cloud shaped log they were sitting on a Ronald McDonald’s bench.
@@averydaymond1560 What???
@@peterbilt-bo1vy Hey Peter, it looks like some of this thread is missing or off because of a RUclips glitch. I was responding to Mule.
Of course I’m implying that had the rest of these comment threads been visible my comment would make sense 🤭.
I remember when this happened. It seemed so unreal. One of the greatest American bands, Heart breaking
Get well soon Gary god bless you. I just lost a friend this past week at work. you are a blessing. I also heard Gary is going to make a full recovery soon
I heard the news via radio broadcast while on the way to California with my dad.
My dad was so supportive.
I was heartbroken, and he knew it.
I had seen them live in my hometown in 1976, and they were beyond fantastic in concert.
I grieved for a long time after that tragedy.
I loved the band and Ronnie most of all.
I grieve to this day actually, almost half a century later.
May God bless and keep the band and Ronnie forever 😢.
October 20, 1977 was the real day the music died.
Yeah man....just plain ol sad.
Very disrespectful
@@rad6666 No it ain't.
One of The best is gone....Rest in Peace one of idols
Corinna Biemiller is Steve’s daughter and Cassie’s niece. She continues to keep pushing forward.
Rest in Peace Gary. God bless you
I get their names mixed up, but I remember this on TV. Anybody who loved this music back then, had a hard time coping with the loss of this one.
Saw Artimus a few months ago with his Skynard tribute band. Still got it.
I was nineteen and at work. Somebody told me about this. Utterly shocked. My boyfriend and I had tickets and about ten other friends had tickets too. Tragically devastating. So sad.
If Gary thought he saw Dean why is it so hard to believe Artimus envisioned Ronnie holding or shaking his hand and telling him I love you brother it's not unusual to have visions when you think you are going to die
They all had major head injuries or concussions, so their memories will be skewed. But spiritual things do happen. Jo Jo Billingsley had a dream of a plane crash the night before the flight. She wasn't going on that trip but called Allen and Cassie and told them not to go... Nobody really trusted that plane, it was a POS. They never should have boarded it, but Ronnie said either you get on or you are fired....so
I remember this one I was only seven... And I was looking at my mom's album when I got home..Also in 1980... In homeroom when they announce.. Bon Scott and John Bonham. 😧🎸
Somewhere Gary said that him and Allen were in the middle seats facing each other with Steve,Cassie and Dean in the outside seats. Everyone on each side died and but they lived. Fate came down to the seat they picked. Grew up listening and loving their music. Always loved the tone and nasty sound of Gary’s Les Paul. He was a awesome Guitarist and a good guy.
He said it in this exact video
I remember it like it was yesterday I hate when tragic happens to anyone love Lynyrd Skynyrd.
Rest In Peace Gary…you’re with your Skynard brothers and sisters now.
They took the flames off of the cover of street survivors album right away after the crash
Man what a band.
Man I met Gary n the gang on September 16th 2001 in Louisville my. He told me that same story! Hes is a true guitar legend.i fell blessed that I met him and his wife.she was nice as well!
Wow the way they describe it is so visceral. Imagine going through that terrifying experience.
He's got such a great attitude. . . just get up and keep going. Get well soon, Gary.
Rest in peace Gary Rossington. We will miss you.
RIP
Walter McCreary Jr.
(1943-1977)
William J. Gray Jr.
(1945-1977)
Ronnie Van Zant
(1948-1977)
Steve Gaines
(1949-1977)
Cassie Gaines
(1948-1977)
and
Dean Kilpatrick
(1949-1977)
Saw them as an 18 year old when they came to England around 76-77 at Leeds Uni. My girlfriend used to love Freebird. It was a great concert and later an awful of shock when we heard what had happened. RIP
buddy of mine on the railroad said skynard plane went down most gone ...I think I was 12 year's old then but remember well the best band in the world. shocked at will then later on found out who passed and who lived. rest in peace Skynard God bless you all.
RIP to the Greatest southern rock band ever!
Well put together, thanks!
just seen this in 2023 and i could feel the pain and heart to all the fans that day
At 16 after seeing Skynyrd at the Oakland Coliseum in early July a piece of me died when the six passed. Of course, no comparison to the incredible loss, pain, guilt, and void the members, family, and mates felt as they dealt with the broken bones and hearts. The world will never be the same.
in Brazil something similar happened to a national rock band. they had only 7 months of success and were the biggest at the time. to date it was the band that sold the most records. the Learget 25b jet went left instead of right and crashed into a mountain in São Paulo, killing all members, pilot and co-pilot. it was in 1996. and the most bizarre thing was that one of the members reported having dreamed of the plane crash. he spoke on video to a friend...
Just looked it up “mamonas assassins “
I was home from the Army after doing my time in Viet Nam know it was like when aircraft come out of the sky because short on fuel, Felt so bad about this band, They were so good and they were all about the good old U.S.A. I still to this day feel bad about this crash...
Glad you made it home.
@jonathanolsen7254 It was years after you got back then.. On March 29, 1973, the last U.S. military unit left Vietnam. the plane crashed in Oct 20th '77.
i'm 17 and lynyrd skynyrd is beyond my favourite band, truth that the greatest bands live on forever
Crazy reading the comments of people who were 17 back when this happened 😅
Lynyrd Skynyrd will never be the same ever again since Gary Rossington just passed this year. So it's only Johnny Van Zant and Artimus Pyle but I think they're pretty much retired by this point. Johnny Van even admitted on Sirius Radio that there was no chance in hell that Ronnie was gonna be replaced. He said when he joined the band, it was an odd feeling that the other brother of Ronnie was gonna be their lead singer. RIP Ronnie, Walter McCreary, William Gray, Dean Kilpatrick, Steve and Cassie Gaines, Billy Powell, Ed King, and Allen Collins.
I met Leon in Jacksonville in the early 80s when I was in the Navy and stationed there, and I saw Artimus a couple of times at a marina in Orange Park where one of my uncles used to keep his boat.
@@Johnny-ql2vd, I think I remember that place. I had a friend who lived a couple of blocks behind it.
I was stationed in Mayport at the same time ( 71 to 75 ) on a destroyer. I saw them probably 15 times in the 70s and 80s.
My great uncle is the biggest Skynyrd fan out there. He was telling me that he had tickets for a show in November of ‘77, the first time he was to see them. The day after the crash he went to high school wearing a Skynyrd shirt, completely unaware of the crash, and some guy pointed at him saying “they’re dead!”. Confused my uncle just sat down and a short while later they announced the crash on the intercom. My uncle just got up and went home.
I can’t believe Gary has the balls to talk about this in such detail especially since he was with them since the beginning and saw everyone come and go it must be beyond emotional for him
It's one of those things for people that grew up during that time period that'll forever be the most tragic thing to happen to a band.
It's all so heartbreaking. Gary should live another 40 years. I'm so angry. The only thing I want to believe now Is to see Gary embrace his friends, Brothers and sisters in Heaven
so tragic.. I cant imagine what would have become of Lynyrd Skynyrd had this crash never happened
Anyone who can keep a dry eye after watching this not only doesn't have a heart but also is not human. Just saying.
Thank you for the likes. Do appreciate it so much y'all.
Your welcome. I do agree with you. Take care guy
@@paularogers3549 Thank ya! Do take care.
The day the music died (again). I remember that day vividly.
Sad and tragic loss. R.I.P. 😢
See you at band practice in the sky. 😎🎸❤🌹
the present moment is all we ever really have
Exactly
I was 15 when I heard the news on my radio station. At first I thought it was a joke. I couldn’t believe my ears. That was a sad, sad, day in October of 77’.
A month after Elvis passed away at that
Wow, I always knew this story but to hear it told is heart breaking. Greatness always comes at a cost and we will never forget.
Weird fact. The guy at 4.44 shaking hands with Ronny was promoter Bill Grahm who died almost 9 years to the day after the Skinard crash on October 25th 1991 in a helicopter crash. His birthday was January 8th, Cassie Gains was on January 9th and Ronnie's was on January 15th.
Bill Graham promoted many southern rock bands including Stevie Ray Vaughn who also died in a helicopter crash and The Allman Brothers.
The "Day the Music Died" part 2.
When I was in high school in Jacksonville Florida, a friend of mine was friends of the bodyguard of Lynyrd Skynyrd. They had just pulled out a book about the crash, and the picture of one of the guys on Who survive the crash, I think it was the bodyguard, showed The stitches from his ankle all the way up the side of his body to it his underarm. I didn’t know so I could survive such a wound, it was unbelievable…
Remember hearing about Lynyrd Skynyrd back in the 70s I was just a little girl and when in 1977 they came to the Oakland coliseum I wish I could have went but I was way too young at the time Long live Lynyrd Skynyrd and all the band mates God bless you and rest in peace ✌️🕊️🙏🌹🇺🇸
I watched this on TV. Watching Billy give daily updates and the news Ronnie Steve and Cassie were gone. I knew it was all over. I've seen em several times since. Ronnie was gone but his spirit was still in the music. ❤
Saw him play in Baltimore in 2019 - one of my bucket list items checked off - they were terrific
Rossigton Collins band was great 🎶 music
Love ❤️😘 y'all so very much!!! Thanks so much, y'all saved me so many times.I respect you so very much!!! Please get well soon!!!All my heart 💜❤️😘 and respect for all of you!!!
What a sad story & unfair so many died in that small plane crash;( God rest their souls🙏🏼🌹♥️
I’m a huge Lynard Skynard fan,I got to visit the monument in Gillsberg,Ms. this summer,great video
Lucky YOU
In my upper teens when this happened. Still makes a tear in the corner of my eye.
The Mid-Western fraternity guys always yelled "PLAY FREEBIRD" at our Reggea Band thinking we'd be offended...we would bust into a country rendition of it. 2 of us were fans. It was an awful loss to Music.
Reggae* silly hippy 😂💜🫶
RIP Gary - you joined their spirits now...
We lost one of the most underrated guitarist in that plane crash, Steve Gaines was an amazing guitarist, rip
What about Gary Rossington did your hear his solo's before 1977?
@@duurnamets9678 yes I was just brining up Steave, Gary and Allen where very good to but Gary and Allen and Artemis didn’t die in the crash