Lynyrd Skynyrd tribute album, photo courtesy of UMG Nashville.
Pioneering southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd has always had close ties to country music. Founder and original lead singer Ronnie Van Zant counted Merle Haggard as one of his heroes. Ten years after Ronnie’s untimely death in 1977 when the band’s touring plane crashed, the band regrouped with Ronnie’s brother Johnny singing lead. In 2005, Johnny and his brother Donnie (a founding member of .38 Special) released their first country album under the name Van Zant, called Get Right With The Man. Back in 1994, country artists tipped their hats to the band with the CD Skynyrd Frynds. So it’s only fitting that today’s country stars – some influenced as much by southern rock as country — would want to pay homage to Lynyrd Skynyrd, too.
Eric Church and Randy Montana are two artists featured on the upcoming album, SWEET HOME ALABAMA: The Country Music Tribute to Lynyrd Skynyrd. Eric puts his own stamp on the classic Skynyrd story song, “The Ballad of Curtis Loew,” while Randy soars with “Tuesday’s Gone.”
Here’s a sneak peek at both tracks:
Eric Church — “The Ballad of Curtis Loew”
Randy Montana — “Tuesday’s Gone”
On Monday, July 19, we’ll be featuring samples of every track on the album, which will be available only at Wal Mart, on July 20. Other artists on the CD are Jamey Johnson, Shooter Jennings, Randy Houser, Uncle Kracker, the Eli Young Band and Ashley Ray. Click here to pre-order your copy!
