Gary Rossington, the last original member of the band Lynyrd Skynyrd, a group he also helped found, died this Sunday at the age of 71. The cause of death has not been reported.
“It is with our deepest sadness that we have to report that today we have lost our brother, friend, family member, songwriter and guitarist, Gary Rossington,” the band wrote on Facebook.
“Gary is now with his Skynyrd brothers and family in heaven and having a great time, as he always does. Please keep Dale, Mary, Annie and the entire Rossington family in your prayers and please respect the family’s privacy at this difficult time.”
Rossington suffered from heart problems and underwent emergency heart surgery in 2021, according to a post by the band at the time.
Born in 1951 in Florida, Rossington founded the first iteration of Lynyrd Skynyrd in 1964 with drummer Bob Burns and bassist Larry Junstrom. His guitar solo on Free Bird, a song that lasts almost ten minutes, is considered one of the best in rock history.
The guitarist survived several serious accidents in the 1970s, including a car crash in 1976 and the infamous 1977 plane crash that killed three band members.
The group broke up after vocalist Ronnie Van Zant, guitarist/vocalist Steve Gaines, and backing vocalist Cassie Gaines were killed in the crash. But they decided to get back together in 1987 with new members, including Van Zant’s younger brother Johnny singing.
Rossington was the only original member to survive the accident and to continue to perform with Lynyrd Skynyrd afterwards. This July they planned to start a new tour.
