Gary Rossington (1951–2023), last surviving original Lynyrd Skynyrd member

Gary Rossington was a founding guitarist of the iconic Southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd, the last of the band’s original members to die.

Larry Junstrom (1949–2019), bassist for Lynyrd Skynyrd and .38 Special

Larry Junstrom was a bassist who was a founding member of Lynyrd Skynyrd and went on to join .38 Special. Junstrom played with Lynyrd Skynyrd from their formation in 1964 until 1971, leaving before the band released their debut album and gained nationwide fame. He went on to join .38 Special in 1977 alongside Donnie Van Zant, brother of Lynyrd Skynyrd founder Ronnie Van Zant. The band had just released their debut album when Junstrom joined, and he played bass on a single track of the album. Their greatest fame was yet to come with early 1980s hits including “Hold on Loosely” and “Caught Up in You.” Junstrom went on to play bass on all of .38 Special’s albums and remained with the band until 2014, when a hand injury forced him to retire.

Ed King (1949–2018), Lynyrd Skynyrd guitarist

Co-wrote the classic rock song “Sweet Home Alabama.”

Leonard Skinner: The Man Behind the Name

Leonard Skinner died yesterday at age 77. If his name sounds familiar but you can’t quite place it, try substituting the vowels with the letter “y”...