Drummer Artimus Pyle — currently the oldest remaining member of the Lynyrd Skynyrd legacy — is releasing Anthems: Honoring The Music Of Lynyrd Skynyrd, a 13-track album, on February 2, 2024. It intends to celebrate the memory of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame band that, with Gary Rossington’s passing in March 2023, lost all of its original members.
The Get Joe Records studio album will be released and distributed by BFD/Orchard and is entirely comprised of duets between the Artimus Pyle Band and acts including Billy Ray Cyrus, Ronnie Dunn, Sammy Hagar and Dolly Parton. Pre-orders can be placed here.
A track from the album will be released digitally on October 20, 2023, to coincide with the 46th anniversary of the tragic plane crash that killed six people, including band members Steve and Cassie Gaines, plus the band’s original frontman, Ronnie Van Zant.
“This project has been a year in the making, but when the fans hear it they will understand why it took so long,” says Len Snow, Get Joe Records president. “Artimus is legendary within the Southern Rock space. The music that Lynyrd Skynyrd made will always live as a part of rock history. This album honors that music and gives Artimus a way to honor his former bandmates.”
Tracklisting:
"I Know A Little" – Micheal Ray
"Sweet Home Alabama" – Ronnie Dunn
"Simple Man" – Sammy Hagar
"Needle And The Spoon" – Lindsey Ell
"The Ballad Of Curtis Loew" – Chris Janson
"Workin’ For MCA" – Lee Brice
"That Smell" – Jerrod Niemann
"Gimme Three Steps" – Marty Raybon
"Call Me The Breeze" – Billy Ray Cyrus
"Saturday Night Special" – Warren Haynes
"The Hunt" – Artimus Pyle Band
"What’s Your Name" – LoCash
"Freebird" – Dolly Parton
Charlie Daniels recommended Pyle to join Lynyrd Skynyrd in 1974, following the release of the group’s second album, Second Helping, after the departure of Bob Burns, the band’s original drummer. Pyle performed both live and with the band on Skynyrd’s subsequent four live and studio albums: Nuthin’ Fancy, Gimme Back My Bullets, Street Survivors and their live album, One More For The Road.
Pyle was injured but survived the band’s previously-mentioned and tragic 1977 plane crash.
Both in 1979 (as the Rossington Collins Band) and from 1987-1991 (as Lynyrd Skynyrd), Pyle returned to the road with various iterations of the act. During that time, as a press statement notes, he also created the Artimus Pyle Band to “honor the music and legacy of Ronnie Van Zant.”
The Artimus Pyle Band is currently comprised of Pyle (drums), Scott Raines (guitar/vocals), Jerry Lyda (guitar), Brad Durden (keyboards/vocals), and Dave Fowler (bass). Catch them live at the following venues:
October
6 - The Historic State Theater Complex - Elizabethtown, KY
7 - Hazzard Fest - Newport, TN
13 - The Granada Theatre - Mount Vernon, IL
21 - Sugar Creek Casino - Hinton, OK
November
9 - Bank Of New Hampshire Stage - Concord, NH
11 - The Newton Theatre - Newton, NJ
December
7 - Amaturo Theater at Broward Center For The Performing Arts - Fort Lauderdale, FL
8 - Capitol Theatre - Clearwater, FL
9 - Capitol Theatre - Clearwater, FL
10 - Ponte Vedra Concert Hall - Ponte Vedra, FL
(Photo courtesy of ArtimusPyleBand.com)
