Knobbygirl Über Alles

GHB is a helluva drug Joined: 12 Sep 2005 Posts: 894

RIP Billy Powell

He may have cheated him back in 1977, but death came calling early this morning. Easily one of the best rock & roll piano players ever.

Sugar Tits Joined: 13 Sep 2006 Posts: 1452

Gringo Starr wrote:

RIP Billy Powell

He may have cheated him back in 1977, but death came calling early this morning. Easily one of the best rock & roll piano players ever.

He spoke at a "say no to drugs" rally i went to in 8th grade... or maybe it was a church youth revival, as he was a born-again Christian...

That leaves Gary Rossington and Artimus Pyle as the only classic members still alive, and Pyle's not in the band. Rossington isn't in the best of health (he had heart surgery last year).

btw, Powell was also part of the Skynard spinoff band The Rossington-Collins Band, which had a minor hit with the tremendous boogie-rock song Don't Misunderstand Me

Sugar Tits Joined: 13 Sep 2006 Posts: 1452

Gringo Starr wrote:

RIP Billy Powell

He may have cheated him back in 1977, but death came calling early this morning. Easily one of the best rock & roll piano players ever.

huh.. read this in Wikipedia

Quote:

The fact that the band chose to continue after the 1987 tribute tour caused legal problems for the survivors, as Judy Van Zant Jenness and Teresa Gaines Rapp (widows of Ronnie and Steve, respectively) sued the others for violating an agreement made shortly after the plane crash, stating that they would not "exploit" the Skynyrd name for profit. As part of the settlement, Jenness and Rapp collect nearly 30% of the band's touring revenues (representing the shares their husbands would have earned had they lived), and hold a proviso which forces any band touring as "Lynyrd Skynyrd" to contain at least two members of the pre-crash lineup. Since Collins, Wilkeson and Billy Powell are now dead, Ed King unable to tour due to ongoing heart problems, and Pyle on the outs with the others and facing his own legal problems, that leaves Gary Rossington as the Skynyrd standard-bearer.

so if Rossington dies, either Johnny Van Zant needs to come up with a new deal for the widows or he can't tour with the group as Skynyrd

GHB is a helluva drug Joined: 12 Sep 2005 Posts: 894

Actually, Gary Rossington is the only pre-crash member with the band now, therefore it cannot tour without being in breach of the contract. Unless they can talk Artimus or Ed King into coming back, they will need to work out a deal. Of course Judy Jenness (the main antagonist in the lawsuits) has gotten pretty accustomed to the free checks that have been rolling in so I'm sure she'll be more than willing to alter the deal as opposed to having to actually work.

Sugar Tits Joined: 13 Sep 2006 Posts: 1452

Gringo Starr wrote:

Actually, Gary Rossington is the only pre-crash member with the band now, therefore it cannot tour without being in breach of the contract. Unless they can talk Artimus or Ed King into coming back, they will need to work out a deal. Of course Judy Jenness (the main antagonist in the lawsuits) has gotten pretty accustomed to the free checks that have been rolling in so I'm sure she'll be more than willing to alter the deal as opposed to having to actually work.

I doubt they'll get Artimus back since he's in trouble for failing to register as a sex offender.

Ed King maybe, but he's got a weak ticker.

I think its more likely that Jennes will miss that 30% of the revenue she gets. Meanwhile, Johnny Van Zandt and Rossington can go on tour as "The Skynyrd Experience" or some other rockers seniors tour thing.