Monday, March 13, 2023

Lynyrd Skynyrd plays first show since Gary Rossington's death




Despite having been dealt what can be considered the shittiest hand in rock music, Lynyrd Skynyrd have managed to carry on and thrive for five decades. Of course, their 1977 plane accident is one of the founding myths of rock, but a few days ago, the last remaining member of the original line-up passed away and nowvery single person from that first album cover is now dead, as well as a lot more from subsequent line-ups.

Tonight, a band that calls itself Lynyrd Skynyrd took the stage and played a set of old classics, because Lynyrd Skynyrd has essentially been a tribute band since 1987. They've even played a few shows without Gary before he passed away.

But now Gary is gone for good, and what will happen of the Southern Rock behemoths? Will they carry on playing with a revolving cast of players, eventually replacing even Johnny Van Zant who took the place of his dead brother Ronnie all those years ago?

There are plenty of bands out there that have zero original members. Blackfoot. Napalm Death. Foreigner. Yes. Some of them are even releasing new music. Is that what makes the difference between a real band and some cheap ersatz? How many original band members does a band need to retain its legitimacy and credibility?

Ian Paice is the only mainstay in Deep Purple since the band's inception. Obviously, a lot of rock fans will not accept an iteration of the band that doesn't include Richie Blackmore, but Deep Purple has existed longer without him than with him. Axl Rose has fired pretty much everybody from the original Guns N' Roses line-up and  re-hired some of them. Robert Fripp has been the only constant member of King Crimson throughout all of its line-ups and configurations. And for all intents and purposes, Lemmy WAS Motörhead.

Could we even envision a timeline where John Lennon kept the Beatles afloat after Paul, George and Ringo had quit? Or a version of The Rolling Stones that only included Jagger? Steve Jones carrying the Sex Pistols torch by himself, surrounding himself with hired hands?

I don't know why it's easier to accept Genesis without Steve Hackett, Peter Gabriel and Phil Collins than it is to accept Led Zeppelin without Bonzo, and I don't know what the future holds for Lynyrd Skynyrd. But I know that it's never going to be the same. Again.


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