Review by Junkman
Photos by Don Baker
On a lovely summer evening in Southern California, the “Freebird” touched down on some really old friends, sang them a few songs, then flew away. As poetic as that may sound, in truth, that is exactly what happened. Resurrected for the umpteenth time, the Lynyrd Skynyrd band played the rarely used Pacific Ampitheatre, as part of the Toyota Summer Concert Series at the Orange County Fair.
After an up-tempo set from openers Jeremiah Red, Lynyrd Skynyrd hit the stage at 8:30 sharp, and gave the sold out crowd exactly what it wanted- about 90 minutes of Skynyrd classics. No new songs, just the hits from their vast catalogue of songs that date back to 1971. Opening, as they have for years, with “Workin’ For MCA” from their 1974 Second Helping LP, the band, featuring the lone original member guitarist Gary Rossington (although technically, guitarist Ricky Medlocke was the drummer and vocalist on their earliest recordings, and therefore can be called a Lynyrd Skynyrd original in many circles), got everyone in the house fired up and singing along, as they blasted out their signature Southern Rock sound.
Since first reforming the band in 1987, singer Johnny Van Zant (younger brother of original singer and bandleader, the late Ronnie Van Zant) has really come into his own. He is lots of fun to watch, and he keeps great eye contact with the crowd, much to their delight. But the real treat is Medlocke, who is constantly in motion, his white hair flying, and cranking it out on his Gibson Explorer. “Down South Jukin,” first recorded in 1971, really got the “Barndance” attitude happening. Another early highlight was “That Smell,” an autobiographical song, documenting the evils of band members’ excess in the 70s. This was culled from Street Survivors, the LP released before the fateful 1977 plane crash that took the lives three band members and badly injured the rest.
I was very impressed by the three newest members of the band: Guitarist Mark “Sparky” Metejka, keyboardist Peter Keys, and former Black Crowes bassist Johnny Colt, who literally wore many hats tonight, perhaps as tribute to late bassist Leon Wilkeson, who also favored sporting lots of different headwear onstage. All three really have done their homework, creating the sound of the original band, with excellent showmanship onstage. Metejka, in particular, shined during the guitar-heavy “Saturday Night Special,” and Keys during “Sweet Home Alabama” with its terrific honky-tonk piano throughout.
As a preamble of sorts to the ballad “Simple Man,” Van Zant called upon the crowd and dedicated the song to the members of the Armed Forces and their families, as a tribute video appeared on the backdrop. As an added touch, the names of Lynyrd Skynyrd band members — and there are a lot of them — who have passed on appeared onscreen at various points of the song. It was very patriotic and a nice tribute.
A nice surprise was when the band donned some acoustic guitars for a version of “Mississippi Kid” from their first album in 1973. It really showed the bands roots, and although it’s not one of their more popular songs, the crowd sang every word. Another treat was during “Tuesdays Gone,” when longtime Skynyrd road crew member Boxcar came out and played harmonica.
A rousing “Gimme Three Steps” got the older crowd jumping, and the classic “Sweet Home Alabama” featuring the afore-mentioned Keys, with background singers the “Hotcats” adding their sweet voices to the mix. Even though they occasionally take heat for it, the old Confederate flag, or the “Stars and Bars” as it’s known down south, was displayed as a backdrop during the song, with the words “Heritage Not Hate” adorning it. The crowd really wore themselves out during this number, singing at the top of their lungs, egged on by the onstage antics of Johnny Van Zant.
And then it was time for the inevitable. Even though the shouts of “Freebird” were surprisingly few, a short video of late vocalist Ronnie Van Zant talking about the origins of the song was shown on the big screen behind the band, as well as late keyboardist Billy Powell chiming in as the intro was played to “Freebird,” Skynyrd’s most popular song and typically the set closer. Their three guitarists and bassist Colt, stood center stage and jammed, although most of the lead guitar riffs were performed by Medlocke. Drummer Michael Cartellone’s galloping beat pushed the song to a fever pitch, and just like that it was over. A fitting climax. Short but sweet. Again the crowd roared, as they have for 40 years for this true slice of Americana. Lynyrd Skynyrd will be touring all summer long and then some. Fly On Freebird, Fly On…
