It wasn’t long before the band developed a popular following, with the success of “Free Bird” and opening for the Who on their “Quadrophenia” tour.

The single “Free Bird” from the album earned Lynyrd Skynyrd their first taste of national exposure, notorious for their three guitar attack. The band’s debut album arrived in 1973 with members Van Zant on lead vocals, Rossington on lead guitar and rhythm guitar, Collins also on guitar, Ed King on lead guitar, Billy Powell on keyboard, Bob Burns on drums and Leon Wilkeson on bass. Two years later the band thanks to headlining a series of local concerts and opening for several national acts, Lynyrd Skynyrd became a popular Jacksonville act, they honed their hard-rock, southern blues style and began to make their studio recordings.Īs a result of a successful performance at an Atlanta club Funocchio, which caught to attention of producer Al Kooper, the band singed to MCA in 1972. The earliest incarnation of Lynyrd Skynyrd, formed by friends Ronnie Van Zant, Allen Collins and Gary Rossington, performed under the moniker My Backyard, before switching to One Percent in 1968.

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