Credit: Melissa Ruggieri
Credit: Melissa Ruggieri
For once, when fans randomly yelled “Free Bird!” in the middle of a concert, it wasn’t meant as a joke, but a legitimate request.
The thousands who attended Wednesday night’s "One More for The Fans! - Celebrating the Songs & Music of Lynyrd Skynyrd” tribute concert at the Fox Theatre would have to wait nearly four hours until the heroes of the night closed the show with the long and winding Southern rock staple.
But there was plenty of crunchy guitar rock provided by an all-star cast to fill in the gaps, starting with Randy Houser’s appropriately gritty “Whiskey Rock A Roller.”
The show’s lineup ranged from classic rock royalty (Peter Frampton, Gregg Allman, Cheap Trick) to jam band stalwarts (Gov’t Mule, moe.) to country-folk favorites (Trace Adkins, Alabama, John Hiatt) to acts that brought down the age demographic a few notches (Robert Randolph, O.A.R.).
Since the concert was being filmed by AXS TV – show producer Keith Wortman said it will likely air in the spring in conjunction with a CD/DVD release – fans had to deal with a delay between songs/acts as the sets were modified.
Credit: Melissa Ruggieri
Credit: Melissa Ruggieri
The second half of the concert trotted at a brisker pace since it was heavier on solo artists who utilized the talents of the house band, led by the formidable Don Was and featuring The McCrary Sisters on backup vocals, ace vocalist/harmonica player Jimmy Hall and noted session drummer Sonny Emory, an Atlanta native.
The band was particularly taut as they followed Adkins through a rich and soulful “What’s Your Name,” a song perfectly suited to his yowza voice, as well as the special combo of Charlie Daniels and Donnie Van Zant on “Down South Jukin,” which featured a snappy guitar solo from a giddy-looking Daniels.
Randolph, the pedal steel guitar wizard, was only on stage for the duration of “You Got That Right” (on which he shared muscular vocals with Hall), but his early presence provided the show with a welcome kick.
All of the participants offered heartfelt versions of the songs of Lynyrd Skynyrd, a band whose influence can be heard in the sticky Southern fingerprints of Atlanta’s Blackberry Smoke (who killed with “Workin’ for MCA”) to the cranked-up rockabilly provided by Jason Isbell on “I Know a Little.”
Skynyrd’s history at the Fox runs deep, as the band recorded its landmark live album, “One More from the Road” at the venue in 1976 as part of the campaign to help save the storied venue from demolition.
Backstage before the concert, the kudos for Skynyrd stacked up.
“One-hundred years from now, people are still going to be listening to Lynyrd Skynyrd,” said Aaron Lewis, who transitioned from rock to country a couple of years ago.
“They make good music,” said Gregg Allman, holding the hand of his young fiancée, Shannon. “Their music has passed the test of time – and it’s the WAY they play that makes it special.”
Allman provided a little magic himself when he slipped behind his organ, bathed in an amber light, and delved into “Tuesday’s Gone.” The McCrary Sisters added a gospel touch to the song, which proved a lovely complement to Allman’s gruffness.
Credit: Melissa Ruggieri
Credit: Melissa Ruggieri
While all of the musicians who performed appeared to enjoy contributing, Frampton wins MVP honors as the show's most spirited. He entered the stage grinning and waving to the largely inebriated crowd and, with Was and the house band behind him, steered into the bluesy chug of "Call Me the Breeze," a song he said in a recent interview with the AJC that was one of his favorites in the Skynyrd canon.
Toward the end of the show, Lynyrd Skynyrd was presented with a Marquee Award from the Fox, as well as an Atlanta city council document proclaiming Nov. 12, 2014 Lynyrd Skynyrd Day.
The act served as an appropriate segue for the band to invite the full cast of musicians onstage for a fist-pumping rendition of “Sweet Home Alabama,” which featured Warren Haynes, Daniels and Alabama frontman Randy Owen trading verses with Lynyrd Skynyrd frontman Johnny Van Zant.
But it was “Free Bird” that once again proved the definitive Skynyrd anthem. The terrific Peter Keys added a melodic undercurrent to the song, which, despite being the most overplayed track in rock radio history, still emits a furious energy live, primarily from the hair-whipping, dazzling guitar playing by Rickey Medlocke.
“We love you!” Johnny Van Zant shouted to the crowd as he raised his mic stand adorned with an American flag scarf. “Let’s keep it going for another 40 years.”
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