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Last of the Street Survivors! Inside Lynyrd Skynyrd's tragic history as last OG member Gary Rossington dies

A plane crash killed Lynyrd Skynyrd lead vocalist Ronnie Van Zant and others early in their career

JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA: Gary Rossington, the last surviving original member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Famers Lynyrd Skynyrd, died on March 5, Sunday at the age of 71. The band’s official Facebook page broke the news to the world. The band, originally composed of five members, had undergone a series of misfortune and disbandment before reuniting again.

The current band, which is a mix of old and new members, took to the band’s Facebook page to inform about the death of the last surviving member of the original lineip of the band, Gary Rossington.

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“It is with our deepest sympathy and sadness that we have to advise, that we lost our brother, friend, family member, songwriter and guitarist, Gary Rossington, today,” they posted on Sunday. They further added, “Gary is now with his Skynyrd brothers and family in heaven and playing it pretty, like he always does.” The post also mentioned the names of Rossington’s bereaved relatives and asked for prayers for the family, “Pease keep Dale, Mary, Annie and the entire Rossington family in your prayers and respect the family’s privacy at this difficult time.🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼”. 

Tragic crash left members dead

As the band’s website narrates, the seed of the original band was sown when teenagers Ronnie Van Zant, Bob Burns, and Gary Rossington met in the summer of 1964 during a baseball match in Jacksonville, Florida. “An impromptu afternoon jam session in the carport of Burns’ parents’ house inspired the trio to form a band,” says the website. Later, guitarist Allen Collins and bassist Larry Junstrom also joined the trio. After shifting through names like ‘My Backyard’, ‘The Noble Five’, and ‘The One Percent’, the group finally zeroed in on the name ‘Lynyrd Skynyrd’ in 1969.

“By 1970, the band was well on their way to developing the hard-driving mix of blues, country, and rock that would become their signature,” continues the history. In 1973, with the production of 'Pronounced ‘Lĕh-’nérd ‘Skin-’nérd', they made their debut. The album sold over a million copies and got a position at number 19 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Their second album, ‘Second Helping’, not only debuted their hallmark “three-guitar-attack”, but also featured some of the finest Southern Rock music specimens like “Sweet Home Alabama”.

By that time a hectic tour schedule had taken a toll on the band members and rift started to appear. Next album, 'Nuthin’ Fancy', was recorded in a rushed 17 days”. Two other albums, including 'Street Survivors' were also released.

However, misfortune dawned on the band, as they were “flying from a show in Greenville, South Carolina, to Baton Rouge, Louisiana,” and “their chartered plane ran out of fuel,” and crashed into the woods “five miles outside of Gillsburg, Mississippi”. The accident killed the lead vocalist Ronnie Van Zant and band-member Steve Gaines, backup singer Cassie Gaines (Steve’s sister) and road manager Dean Kilpatrick along with the two pilots. The other members suffered serious injuries but survived. 

Following the fatal crash, the group disbanded before reuniting again in  1987 for which “was intended as a one-time tribute tour and album – 'Southern by the Grace of God: Lynyrd Skynyrd Tribute Tour 1987'. New members like Johnny Van Zant, Ed King, Randall Hall joined the previous pre-crash era band members and released their next album since 1977, ‘Lynyrd Skynyrd 1991’. With many other additions, the band grew in popularity till Rolling Stone Magazine ranked Lynyrd Skynyrd number 95 on their list of the “100 Greatest Artists of All Time”. They were inducted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame too on March 13, 2006. Among the other original band members, guitarist and co-songwriter of Ronnie, Allen Collins died on January 23, 1990. Acoustic drummer Bob Burns died on April 3, 2015. Larry Junstrom, bassist died on October 6, 2019. Since then, Rossington was the last surviving member of the original crew. 

Gary Rossington’s health history

The reason for Rossington's death has not been confirmed by the band website. After surviving the fatal crash of 1977, Rossing sustained several injuries including “two broken legs, arms, ankles, and a shattered pelvis”, reports The US Sun. Even though he recuperated, later he developed a series of ailments. Rossington underwent a bypass surgery in 2003. He also suffered a heart attack in 2015 and ultimately got a pacemaker. In 2019, he was again hospitalized to repair a heart valve. In 2021, Rossington missed a number of band’s concerts as lead singer Johnny Van Zant told the audience that he had to “have an emergency stent put in his heart,” reported the website Ultimate Classic Rock.

‘The final Street Survivor has passed’

The Internet filled the social media walls with posts of condolences on Rossington’s death. One fan wrote, "Gary Rossington's death marks the end of Lynyrd Skynyrd . The final Street Survivor has passed." Another user said, "Sorry to learn of the passing of the great Gary Rossington. With Gary’s death, the full original Skynyrd lineup can now serve as Heaven’s house band." "I was saddened to hear of Gary Rossington's death today. He's now a free bird up there with his former Skynyrd bandmates. RIP," wrote another.