After pulling survivors from the wreckage, it was he who staggered to a farmhouse looking for help. The film is narrated by former Skynyrd drummer, Artemus Pyle, a survivor of the crash. The next day, the band boarded a plane at Greenville’s downtown airport that was headed to Baton Rouge, LA, where the band was. Rather than a straight documentary, it’s a dramatized version of the the event. On Octoat Greenville Memorial Auditorium (which was imploded in 1997) here in Greenville, the band Lynyrd Skynyrd (creators of the iconic song, Sweet Home Alabama) played their last show together. More than 40 years after that plane went down, there’s a new film that looks at what really happened that night. The official cause of the crash was “fuel exhaustion due to pilot error.” But was that the full story? Six of the 26 people on board were killed, including lead vocalist Ronnie Van Zant, guitarist Steve Gaines, backing vocalist Cassie Gaines, and Dean Kilpatrick, the band’s road manager, were killed. For some reason, the plane ran out of fuel over Mississippi and crashed into a Louisiana swamp. Burns and Gary Rossington were already friends, and the three got together and jammed on their instruments.On October 20, 1977, members of Lynyrd Skynyrd boarded a rickety Convair CV-240 passenger prop plan for a hop from Greenville, South Carolina, to Baton Rouge. We look back at the 15 Strange Facts About Lynyrd Skynyrd Fatal Plane Crash: The Day The Music Died The phrase the day the music died, a phrase taken from the song American Pie by Don McLean, refers to the tragic plane crash that occurred on February 3, 1959, in Clear Lake, Iowa (United States).
The way the band formed is unusual, with original member Ronnie Van Zant hitting then-drummer Bob Burns with a ball on a ball field in 1964. You’re probably also familiar with other hits like “Simple Man,” “Tuesday’s Gone” and “Gimme Three Steps,” all released before 1977. The group wasn’t without their issues - violence among members wasn’t uncommon - but their music nonetheless spoke to the American public. Drummer Artimus Pyle helps other survivors of a tragic plane crash that claims the lives of several band members of the Southern rock group Lynyrd Skynyrd in 1977. Photo Courtesy: Michael Ochs Archive/Getty Images Choose from Same Day Delivery, Drive Up or Order. Lynyrd Skynyrd rose to fame in the early 1970s with songs like “Free Bird” and “Sweet Home Alabama.” The band was made up of several members, including guitarists Gary Rossington, Allen Collins and Leon Wilkeson, drummer Artimus Pyle, keyboardist Billy Powell, and lead singer Ronnie Van Zant. Read reviews and buy Street Survivors: The True Story of the Lynyrd Skynyrd Plane Crash (2020) at Target. Reports say that Ronnie always told his friends and family that. On October 20, 1977, Lynyrd Skynyrds plane crashed in the woods eight miles west of the Gillsburg exit off of Federal Highway 55 after a concert in. The band would lose their frontman, Ronnie Van Zant. Cassie Gaines, who was part of Skynyrd’s background singers group, also died that day. The band’s assistant road manager, Dean Kilpatrick, also died. Was the crash really a simple malfunction, or was it something that could have been avoided? Who Were They? Pilot Walter McCreary, and co-pilot, William Gray both died in the crash. Find out why so many fans were left dazed and confused after this tragedy. On October 20, 1977, three days after releasing their album Street Survivors, southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd performed at the Greenville Memorial Auditori. The carnage of the wreckage was a horrific scene involving twisted metal and fragile human tissue (heads up: this next part is quite bad). Their talent and the promise of amazing things to come made their untimely demise all the more devastating for fans - especially when the circumstances of the crash left a mountain of unanswered questions. According to Rolling Stone, Wilkeson was among the most severely injured in the Skynyrd plane crash.