Customer Reviews

An All-Star Tribute to Lynyrd Skynyrd

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

THIS IS ONE GREAT TRIBUTE ALBUM CD!!! IT WAS RELEASED DURING 2007, THE 30TH YEAR AFTER THE 1977 LYNYRD SKYNYRD PLANE CRASH. DURING 1997, LYNYRD SKYNRD THE BAND DID AN ALBUM CD "TWENTY" TO COMMENORATE THE 20TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE CRASH. SO THE TIMING OF THIS IS A GREAT TRIBUTE FOR THE 30TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE CRASH THAT LYNYRD SKYNYD FANS WILL NEVER FORGET!

THE CD CONSISTS OF 13 SONGS, ALL BUT ONE ARE LYNYRD SKYNYRD CLASSICS, SUNG AND PERFORMED BY ARTISTS THAT ADMIRED THEM ARE PAYING TRIBUTE TO THEM.

You get "Freebird" by Molly Hatchet and Charlie Daniels (Great!)

"Sweet Home Alabama" by the Outlaws featuring Hughie Thomasson on vocals
(just like Ronnie VAn Zant said "turn it UP"

"Double TRouble" by Artimus Pyle, Ed King and Leslie Hawkins and Jo Jo Billingsly (the Original Honkettes)

There are many other songs also featuring: Great White, Canned Heat, Jim Dandy, Pat Travers, Dangeous Toys, Atlanta Rhythm Section, Rick Derringer, Sky Saxon and the Seeds, and Joey Covington and Jefferson Airplane.

You get a special performance by Rickey Medlocke "Seasons", this is the only song that is not a Skynyrd classic.

THIS IS A GREAT TRIBUTE CD TO A GREAT BAND, AND I HIGHLY RECOMMEND IT!!!

HEY!!!...IF YOU'RE A FAN OF LYNYRD SKYNYRD DON'T MISS THIS CD...ONLY THE BEST OF THE BEST ARE INCLUDED PERFORMING CLASSIC LYNYRD SKYNYRD SONGS...AN ABSOLUTE "MUST HAVE" IF YOU ARE A FAN OF THIS GENRE

Thank you for this CD. Great price, fast shipment. I am enjoying it- especially the Jim Dandy version of "What's your name". Thanks again.

I have already reviewed the UNDER THE INFLUENCE Tribute CD on Amazon. This here tribute is far better. What a collection of bands too. I am sure Ronnie, Steve, Leon etc would have been proud. It would have been great to have seen other top notch Southern Rock Bands like 38 Special and Doc Holliday, for example, to complete a very special tribute. Unlike the Under the Influence CD, every track is done close to the Original versions. Charlie Daniels was a great choice for Lead Vocals with Molly Hatchet on Free Bird. Sometimes the Hatchet vocallist's nasal sound gets to me. Maybe it is because he was so close in sound to Danny Joe Brown. You can, however, still hear is distinctive voice co-vocalling on the track. The guitar Solos are AWESOME on this one. The Outlaws version of Alabama is OK but a bit bland for my liking. I think it would have been due in part respect to the male backing vocals on the chorus. The Honkettes made the Original special. Good to see the Honkettes featuring with Classic members Artimus Pyle and Ed King on the next song. Loadsa feel. The vocals were done by Thane Shearon (Who?) but he does a fine job. Great Whites version of Saturday Night Special is rather special too. Like Tesla on their current release Reel to Reel, they are very convincing indeed. The lowest point for me is the completely boring version of That Smell by Canned Heat. The music is OK. Its just the vocallist. He is completely lifeless. I agree with the previous reviewer regarding Blackfoot. As Rick Medlocke is currently a member of Skynyrd, it would have been good to see him doing a cover of a song that Ronnie originally sang. My personal choice would have been something like Needle and the Spoon. Again, I agree with the previous reviewer on Walter Trout. His guitar style is now very distinguishable and too much to the front. Skynyrd werent a one guitar band. You can hear the very basic second guitar in the background, but it sounds more like its coming from a backing track. I would also have gone the Molly Hatchet way too and employed a different singer for this song, perhaps someone in the vein of Devon Allman. I was never into Jim Dandys style, but he does himself justice on Whats your name. Pat Travers has been busy of late releasing a number of Cover version CDs paying tribute to loads of Classic 60s and 70s Bands. Some are very good, some you ask "Why did you bother?". He does a good job, in my opinion on Gimme back my bullets. Dangerous Toys are a strange choice. If I can remember right they were a late 80s or early 90s Heavy Metal Band in the Warrant or Great White vein. Their version is competent. Atlanta Rhythm Sections version fo Call me the Breeze offers no surprises at all. However, Rick Derringers version of You got that right did surprise me. I saw a concert of him on German TV earlier in the year, and I thought he was very ordinary. Unlike Walter Trout, it is good to see it is not dominated by one guitar and one vocal. Well done Rick. I only know of the name Sky Saxon as a band from the 60s, and had never really listened to their music in detail. After listening to Swamp Music, I have no intention of searching the Web under their name. Very Ordinary. Overall, apart from Canned Heat, Walter Trout and Sky Saxon, I was very impressed

This CD starts right off in 5th gear with the current Hatchet lineups version of FreeBird. Charlie Daniels opens the lyrics and first verse, Hatchet frontman Phil McCormack joins Charlie for a duet at "And this Bird you cannot change" , and then Phil does a standup job of singing the remainder of the lyrics. Guitarist Hlubeck and Ingram battle for the dual-harmony leads during the instrumental rave-up. This is a fresh take on Allen Collins original lead break of the Skynyrd version.
Another standout cut is expectedly from Skynyrd original members ED KING and ARTIMUS PYLE's take on Double Trouble. Vocalist Thane Shearon (ex-COLD TRUTH) is a soulful singer and sings Ronnies vocals like they are meant to be sung. With passion! He doesnt copy RVZ persona and sing every inuendo, however he does not stray too far from the original. This guy is a fantastic vocalist and also sings on Artimus' solo CD "Artimus Venemous" released 2007. Ed King plays slide on it, instrumentally the song is not a 100% knockoff of the original Skynyrd release. Ed's slide did not appear on the original version, however if he was still with the early Skynyrd lineup this is maybee what Ed would have done on the record. Just the "right" touch, Ed is a master of fills and chunky lead breaks. Additionally Jo Jo and Leslie sing the backing female vocals (original surviving Honketts)
The CD has no weak spots, however depending on your personal taste some of the tracks vocals are not delivered with the same chops delivered by the late Ronnie Van Zant or even cousin Jimmie Van Zants Skynyrd tribute. Case in point, "Whats Your Name" vocally is tacky, and Great Whites version of "Saturday Night Special" fails to deliver the correct lyrics in the first verse and sorta "American Idols" his way through it. (You'll need to buy it to pick it out!!) However, it rocks. Gimme Three Steps is delivered with true Southern Rock driven passion. Gimme Back MY Bullets jams out a fresh take with a hard edge to it, and a minor drum solo similar to Johnny Van Zants early bands live "No More Dirty Deals" back in 1980.
This is a solid CD, and yes it will sound great in your Harley Road Glides in dash CD player and HogTunes speakers!