I looked out of my window, and saw the left wing come off with the engine. The impact was like a thousand people with baseball bats repeatedly beating on the side of the fuselage. So I went back to the cabin like a zombie, for the last time, sat behind Cassie Gaines, over the left wing. Why didn’t I do that? The pilot and copilot didn’t know what they were doing. “What am I supposed to do, punch the guy in the face and drag him out of the cockpit when we’re that close to the ground, then fly the plane myself? Years later, I thought about it.
What I really heard him say was, ‘If you want to live, you had better get out of this cockpit.'” He said, ‘Artimus, you had better go back and strap yourself in’. When I went back to the cockpit for the last time, the pilot turned around. All the while I was playing stewardess, going back and forth from the cockpit, saying, ‘Put out your damn cigarettes, tighten your seat belts, brace for impact, get something to put in your lap’. I heard a guy named Clayton Johnson, who worked for Bill Graham and was looking out of the window, say one word, ‘Trees’. When we came out, we were over trees, close to the tops. “At one point, we became a glider in the clouds looking for a hole to land. Anyway, when we got on the plane, he and I shook hands, and I could see in his eyes that he knew”. Well, he was in his saddle with his boots on going to a gig on tour. At the time, I just said, ‘Oh Ronnie, don’t talk like that. He told me in Tokyo, Japan, that he would never live to see 30. When I got on that plane, stepped onto the back and climbed up, Ronnie said, ‘Ok we’re all here, let’s go’. We were so happy just to have gigs that we didn’t question things when we should have. His 2021 interview continues, “We thought surely our pilots would land at the closest airport, and get us off of the plane to refuel. Though it’s been 45 years Pyle recalls the infamous crash with chilling clarity. Their airplane took off from Greenville, South Carolina bound for Baton Rouge, Louisiana. In the fall of 1977, the band was on tour in support of their fifth studio album, “Street Survivors”. Long considered the ‘wild man’ of Lynyrd Skynyrd, Artimus Pyle’s powerful and distinctive double bass drumming helped define the legendary Skynyrd sound”. Per his bio, “Thomas Delmer ‘Artimus’ Pyle was born July 15, 1948. “They didn’t want to die, their families didn’t want them to die”, says Artimus in a 2021 interview conducted by journalist Jim Clash. These are his reflections of the 1977 plane crash that killed six and devastated millions. He was also an unwilling participant in catastrophe. Artimus Pyle played drums with Lynyrd Skynyrd from 1974 to 1977. It doesn’t matter, their legend had already been solidified. Skynyrd later picked up the pieces to reform in the wake of tragedy, but it was never the same. Possessing “a catalog of over 60 albums, sales beyond 30 million worldwide”. As the official Skynyrd bio states, they endure as “a cultural icon that appeals to all generations”. Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2006, their contributions to popular music cannot be overexaggerated. Lynyrd Skynyrd remains one of the most revolutionary and venerated bands of all time.
The immense loss was felt throughout the entire music community. Also, assistant road manager Dean Kilpatrick, pilot Walter McCreary and co-pilot William Gray. Others lost in the Gillsburg, Mississippi crash were background vocalist Cassie Gaines and her guitarist brother Steve. Lead singer and chief songwriter Ronnie Van Zant was among the casualties. This month marks the 45th anniversary of a disastrous plane crash that claimed six lives including three Skynyrd band members. Lynyrd Skynyrd was never the same after October 20, 1977. Music was never the same after Lynyrd Skynyrd. They are revered as brilliant musicians, consummate entertainers, and exceptional songwriters. From the mesmerizing opening chords of “Sweet Home Alabama” to the searing solos of “Free Bird”, Skynyrd is an American institution. If Sothern Rock were defined by one band, it would be Lynyrd Skynyrd.
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