Rossington Collins Band - Live

[cottonmike]

Who saw the them? What was the experience?

I saw them in '80 shortly after they released their first album in Phoenix and they left a scorched earth with that 90 minute performance . Frikken' unreal, it was.

It was flawless and fiery, and just an unadulterated display of raw, contagious adrenaline, conveyed from the band to the crowd. One of my best friend's brother was part owner of the company "Security Services". Those bouncers got totally shredded that night. It was completely out of control from the opening note til the end of the show.

Barry Lee Harwood was the featured lead guitarist for the night, and for that band. He played a P-90 modded Firebird, and his tone and playing was just filthy-good. Rossington and Collins were still on the mend, physically, you could tell, but the entire outfit was extremely well prepared. Still, I remember being somewhat surprised as to how readily Rossington and Collins differed to BLH. He was the spark and you could tell they were digging it.

It was one of those "pinch yourself" moments in time, cause somehow you just knew it was never going to be this good again.

Those lyrics for that first album (AAA) were very deep and mature and real. I think they are extremely strong. It's an album of no filler, no fluff. No stinkers. Extremely well executed in every way, in typical Skynyrd fashion.

There has been quite a bit of debate over at the Ed King Forum as to who really wrote those lyrics. A former forum member, who has recently passed away, laid claim to have written most all of those songs, and never been credited for it. It was a relational thing with Harwood that went bad, by her version. Most people discounted her story as well as her as being fanatical, but the more time that passed, the more her version took on cred with me. That, and the fact that Dale Krantz has never since written any worhtwhile lyrics, whatsoever.

During the intro slide part of Freebird, some drunk fan did something very disrespectful-I don't know what-Rossington stopped playing pulled back and tried to kicked the guys teeth out. Then Gene Odom, RVZ's childhood best friend, appeared from stage right, and ordered the perp to be delivered to him by the bouncers-which they complied. Dude got a serious beat down, and they picked up and finished Freebird, without missing a beat.

Without the leadership of Ronnie Van Zant, this band had a flash of brilliance, but unfortunately quickly unraveled. Having a woman lead singer caused a division between Collins and Rossington that ultimately lead to them having an all out fist fight that pretty much ended there bond that was closer than most brothers that are blood.

The more you dig, the more tragic the Skynyrd story is. Seems it never ends. Incredible band with a most incredible story.

I know not everybody here loves Skynyrd like me, but, how do you NOT make a movie about the story of this band? Really?

Here are a couple of songs that feature Barry Lee Harwood on lead and slide guitar. See what you think.

I'd love to here your experiences in seeing this powerhouse band, live.

Thank You.

Michael

Feel the power of this live band:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J-z35MSbJOY
(BLH on the P-90 modded Firebird, mid-song lead break).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WhJQ4...eature=related
(Barry Lee Harwood on slide played with an SG).

PS: I'm not a musician, just a music lover, and I really like hanging around at this forum. Great site you guys have here. Thanks for that.

[SteveGaines]

Lots of stuff happened with that band. Just before the second album was released, Allen Collin's longtime wife Katy was leaving a movie theater and collapsed and died with their unborn child, that was the end for AC who quickly spiraled out of control. Dale Krantz was supposedly involved with LS for awhile from what I've been told/read. Former roadie Raymond Watkins was married to Krantz for about 5 months. One of the roadies told me ( The Roadie RVZ sings about in What's Your Name "One of the crew had a go with one of the guests) Watkins was drunk and violent. He'd get drunk and throw all the Christmas presents out in the yard and lock her out of the house. This former roadie told me he had to get get involved in the situation more than once. Watkins ended up getting shot by some girlfriend who didn't like the way he was beating on her son while he was in a drunken rage.

Supposedly she had affairs with AC then Rossington who took she ended up marrying and moving off to Jackson Wyoming with.. Ending the Band. AC tried to make a go of it with The Allen Collins Band but problems with the lead singer and his life spiraling out of control led to that band calling it quits. ( Saw them in 1983 and they were great I thought).

They had straightened up right before the "STREET SURVIVORS" tour and after the deaths of RVZ, Steve and Cassie Gaines and Dean Kilpatrick the drinking and drug use got to be worse than ever. They all missed RVZ being around to "RUN THE SHOW"..And that's what he did with LS. The short but brief career of Steve Gaines is one of the saddest tales in Rock and Roll alone...

[FeloniousBishop]

I saw them in '81 at Rock Superbowl XI in Orlando, huge concert. They played Freebird in the encore.

[Richeray]

I saw them with SRV as the opener. Great show!

[fusion58]

Was in a T-40 band that covered "Don't Misunderstand Me" c. 1983. Great song (and record.)

[cottonmike]

Originally Posted by SteveGaines

Lots of stuff happened with that band. Just before the second album was released, Allen Collin's longtime wife Katy was leaving a movie theater and collapsed and died with their unborn child, that was the end for AC who quickly spiraled out of control. Dale Krantz was supposedly involved with LS for awhile from what I've been told/read. Former roadie Raymond Watkins was married to Krantz for about 5 months. One of the roadies told me ( The Roadie RVZ sings about in What's Your Name "One of the crew had a go with one of the guests) Watkins was drunk and violent. He'd get drunk and throw all the Christmas presents out in the yard and lock her out of the house. This former roadie told me he had to get get involved in the situation more than once. Watkins ended up getting shot by some girlfriend who didn't like the way he was beating on her son while he was in a drunken rage.

Supposedly she had affairs with AC then Rossington who took she ended up marrying and moving off to Jackson Wyoming with.. Ending the Band. AC tried to make a go of it with The Allen Collins Band but problems with the lead singer and his life spiraling out of control led to that band calling it quits. ( Saw them in 1983 and they were great I thought).

They had straightened up right before the "STREET SURVIVORS" tour and after the deaths of RVZ, Steve and Cassie Gaines and Dean Kilpatrick the drinking and drug use got to be worse than ever. They all missed RVZ being around to "RUN THE SHOW"..And that's what he did with LS. The short but brief career of Steve Gaines is one of the saddest tales in Rock and Roll alone...

So true. Allen Collins never got over the tragic loss of his wife and unborn child, surely. But, really, I don't think he ever got over the loss of Ronnie, Steve, and his band. From what I've learned, AC was the music direction leader of early Lynyrd Skynyrd. We all know him and associate him with the lead solo of "Freebird", but it wasn't until years later, and really the advent of the internet, that I learned what an incredible rhythm guitarist Allen was.

Ed king has shared an open, although somewhat guarded, insight as related to the true inter dynamics of the creative and work ethic of the band. The only thing I mean with "guarded", is that out of complete reverence to the lives that were lost by the people who made the music, he holds some information as being private in nature. I really respect him for that. He is truly grateful and respectful, and is very humble as to the huge creative impact he himself had on the band. How he came, and ultimately left, is a very important story in itself. He was an outsider, not from the south, and had really only one strong initial link to the band-Ronnie. He also developed lifelong bonds with Leon Wilkeson and Billy Powell, eventually.

Ronnie Van Zant was quoted in his last interview with Cameron Crowe, saying: "Some day we will all be standing in the shadow of Steve Gaines".

Who knows what could have been, but I can not imagine there ever would have been a better hire than Steve Gaines to fit into that band chemistry and creative dynamic's. He was a totally unassuming force of nature. Supremely talented, and just a great guy. He and Allen Collins REALLY seemed to click.

In closing, take a moment to contemplate THIS true event:

The first time Ed King ever visited the grave site of Steve Gaines, he discovered that he and Steve were born on the same day, in the same year.

Ed never personally knew Steve, but yes, he pays his respects to Steve at his resting place on a regular basis. That's the kind of gentleman he is.

[jiml]

Wow, great stuff....

We used to cover "Don't Misunderstand Me", loved playing that tune!

Was just playing Steve Gaines "One in the Sun" the other day for my bandmates, awesome tunes on that disc..

[Bluzeboy]

Off topic...

cottonmike... since you seem to have contact with Ed.. How is he doing? Artimus speaks of him with great respect.

[cottonmike]

Originally Posted by Bluzeboy

Off topic...

cottonmike... since you seem to have contact with Ed.. How is he doing? Artimus speaks of him with great respect.

From all that I understand, Ed is in fine spirits and health, at this particular moment. He has become very health-conscious through the years and has a nice balance of diet, exercise, and spiritual. He has a great wife that helps him keep on track.

He says, after almost 40 years, "Sweet Home Alabama" is still paying the rent. Call's himself the "Luckiest guitarist on earth". He was smart, and lawyered-up, and successfully laid legal claim to most of the music he created with the original band, 2-3 decades ago.

I think he still plays and practices several hours, daily. He probably is sitting on a trove of great new music he has written. Deep down, he knows his body cannot take the ravages and tempting excess's of the road. Simply, he chose life and family. Nice to have clear priorities, late in this life.

But, if a lyricist and vocalist in the league of a Ronnie Van Zant ever came into his life, he would be motivated to get back in the studio. He pretty much see's Ronnie as a genius, and once-in-a-lifetime rarity of a God given talent.

He has stated many times that in the interim time period after he left the band, that he would have returned if Ronnie had just called him once and asked him to return. That's all it would have taken, and that's the only way it could have ever have happened.

Obviously, Ronnie never called, and Ed is still alive.

Ed gives Ronnie ALL the credit, through it all.

Michael

[Bluzeboy]

Ed gives Ronnie ALL the credit, through it all.

As does Art and Billy did as well.

[aliensporebomb]

Some sad stories - you're right. The whole Lynyrd/Southern Rock saga would make for a terrific movie but with all the legal parties involved it would have to be fictionalized to prevent lawsuits among the living. Yipes.

[Bluzeboy]

Originally Posted by aliensporebomb

The whole Lynyrd/Southern Rock saga would make for a terrific movie but with all the legal parties involved it would have to be fictionalized to prevent lawsuits among the living. Yipes.

Actually.. that is being discussed among some folks. Lawsuits isn't even close to a strong enough term :-)

[SteveGaines]

Originally Posted by cottonmike

From all that I understand, Ed is in fine spirits and health, at this particular moment. He has become very health-conscious through the years and has a nice balance of diet, exercise, and spiritual. He has a great wife that helps him keep on track.

He says, after almost 40 years, "Sweet Home Alabama" is still paying the rent. Call's himself the "Luckiest guitarist on earth". He was smart, and lawyered-up, and successfully laid legal claim to most of the music he created with the original band, 2-3 decades ago.

I think he still plays and practices several hours, daily. He probably is sitting on a trove of great new music he has written. Deep down, he knows his body cannot take the ravages and tempting excess's of the road. Simply, he chose life and family. Nice to have clear priorities, late in this life.

But, if a lyricist and vocalist in the league of a Ronnie Van Zant ever came into his life, he would be motivated to get back in the studio. He pretty much see's Ronnie as a genius, and once-in-a-lifetime rarity of a God given talent.

He has stated many times that in the interim time period after he left the band, that he would have returned if Ronnie had just called him once and asked him to return. That's all it would have taken, and that's the only way it could have ever have happened.

Obviously, Ronnie never called, and Ed is still alive.

Ed gives Ronnie ALL the credit, through it all.

Michael

Joe Barnes was on there as a regular. ( He was the roadie Van Zant sucker punched on the plane coming home and held him down and bit him in the stomach until they pulled him off) Joe left and never came back. Matter of fact Joe had one of those T-Shirts that Van Zant wore...."SOUNDS OF THE SOUTH"..he had it in the bottom of a dresser and auctioned it off. There was a lady named Sharon Lawrence who was the publicist for MCA and LS and who wrote a book about Jimi Hendrix. She was VERY PROTECTIVE of the band and their legacy. Craig Reed who was one of the roadies was often on Ed's site. Ed's been through a lot with a heart transplant. Very private guy who said he once had a LUNATIC show up at his house claiming to be another Ronnie Van Zant. The guy had like two or three notebooks of songs and they weren't any good. Ed had to call the cops to get the guy out. Scared him so bad, he doesn't get too close with people. And Ed never knew he and Steve Gaines had the same birthday until his visited the grave sites on the tribute tour. September 14, 1949. "IT FELT LIKE HE BOUGHT MY BULLET" is what King would later say. You want to get Ed going though..Mention "THE QUEBUE SISTERS"..I believe he would walk from LA to New York City to watch them. He thinks there "THE BOMB"..

[Joe Robinson]

Back to the topic. I saw The Rossington/Collins Band at the Santa Monica Civic sometime in the summer of 1980. It was a good show. Rossington and Collins in particular were tight and controlled in the best sense of that term.

During the encore (you know the song) the whole stage output went dead during the outro, so the band walked off, then the crew got it going, the band came back and tried it again, but again, once the outro got cooking, the stage power died again, and that was the show. I don't believe they played any LS songs beyond Freebird.

I was always a huge Allen Collins fan. I thought his songwriting was better and his songs seemed to have more groove (speaking about the LS catalogue).

I was very sad the day I heard that Allen Collins died.

[SteveGaines]

Originally Posted by Joe Robinson

Back to the topic. I saw The Rossington/Collins Band at the Santa Monica Civic sometime in the summer of 1980. It was a good show. Rossington and Collins in particular were tight and controlled in the best sense of that term.

During the encore (you know the song) the whole stage output went dead during the outro, so the band walked off, then the crew got it going, the band came back and tried it again, but again, once the outro got cooking, the stage power died again, and that was the show. I don't believe they played any LS songs beyond Freebird.

I was always a huge Allen Collins fan. I thought his songwriting was better and his songs seemed to have more groove (speaking about the LS catalogue).

I was very sad the day I heard that Allen Collins died.

Allen and Gary did with "RED BEARD" before the album debuted. They chose a female singer because they said "IF WE GET A GUY..HE WILL ALWAYS BE COMPARED TO RVZ"..Red beard asked Gary why they were carrying on..."WELL..WE DON"T KNOW HOW TO DO ANYTHING ELSE BUT PICK STRAWBERRIES"...And they talked about doing "FREEBIRD" as an encore with no vocals..And Allen said..."NOBODY..I MEAN NOBODY BUT RVZ WILL EVER SING THAT SONG...NOBODY"..

Doesn't seem to me that it's been over 30 years ago.