In a new interview with Jay Jay French Connection, Lynyrd Skynyrd’s Ricky Medlocke discussed his late bandmate Gary Rossington.
“I made a promise to Gary Rossington when I got back in the band. I told Gary, ‘Gary, no matter what, from this day forward I’ll be with you in this band until the last note in ‘Free Bird’ is played.’ I wish he was with me, it hurt me to the core of my heart when he passed away, and honestly, we do a tribute to him every night on stage to ‘Tuesday’s Gone.’ Up until lately for over a year, I hadn’t been able to look at that film and I missed the guy,” the rocker admitted.
Medlocke then talked about their current guitarist, Damon Johnson. “We got a great guitar player playing there every night by the name of Damon Johnson. Damon is an incredible guitarist and he plays all those signature leads and rhythms and all that stuff. I love Damon man and I was the one that called out his name and called him about taking over.”
Medlocke rejoined Lynyrd Skynyrd in 1996 after leaving in 1972. He is now one of the longest-serving members and feels responsible for keeping the band going.
His decision, along with his bandmates, to continue has caused some controversy. However, he revealed that they had Rossington’s blessing to do so. “With [Rossington’s] blessing, we [realized] it was time to get someone to cover for him – you know, because we had obligations. Now, from this point, going forward, it’s going to be interesting. We’re [carrying on] with the blessings of everybody, Dale [Rossington] and the estates – all of the people that are involved. They want to see the music continue.”
Gary Rossington was the last founding member of Lynyrd Skynyrd until his passing on May 5 last year.
