Robert Burns Jr of Lynyrd Skynyrd gone at 64

[Macfanforever]

I just found out that Robert Burns of Lynyrd Skynyrd died in a car crash.
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http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/...0MV0OJ20150404


US | Sat Apr 4, 2015 4:36pm EDT
Related: U.S., Entertainment, Music
Former drummer of Lynyrd Skynyrd dies in car crash in Georgia

(Reuters) - Robert Burns Jr., a founding member and former drummer of the rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd, has died in a car crash in Georgia, state officials said on Saturday. He was 64 years old.

Burns was not wearing his seatbelt when his car went off a road late Friday, striking a mailbox and a tree near Cartersville, northwest of Atlanta, the Georgia State Patrol said.

He was the only occupant in the car and nobody else was hurt. The crash remains under investigation, authorities said.

Burns was one of the founding members of Lynyrd Skynyrd, best known for hits including "Free Bird" and "Sweet Home Alabama."

He remained in the group from its inception in the mid-1960s in Jacksonville, Florida until 1974, performing on the band's debut album, "Pronounced 'Lĕh-'nérd 'Skin-'nérd." The album launched the band to fame and helped define the sound of southern rock, which exploded in popularity during the decade.

Burns left Lynyrd Skynyrd after growing tired of life on the road and was replaced by drummer Artimus Pyle, the band's biography said.

In 1977, the band's singer Ronnie Van Zant, guitarist Steve Gaines and vocalist Cassie Gaines were killed when their plane crashed in Mississippi. Pyle survived.

In recent years, Burns had performed in Lynyrd Skynyrd tribute bands, local media reported.

Lynyrd Skynyrd was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2006.

(Reporting by Victoria Cavaliere in Seattle; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)

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RIP Robert.

What a great band LS was.Freebird was our senior class song.

[SisterNightroad]

Lynyrd Skynyrd’s Rossington ‘At A Loss For Words’ After Bob Burns’ Death
by Dave Lifton April 4, 2015 3:21 PM

This morning, it was learned that Bob Burns, the original drummer for Lynyrd Skynyrd, died in a single-car crash in Cartersville, Ga., late last night (April 3) Skynyrd guitarist Gary Rossington, who founded the group with Burns, released a statement about his former bandmate.
“Well, today I’m at a loss for words, but I just remember Bob being a funny guy,” he wrote on Lynyrd Skynyrd’s Facebook page. “He was just so funny, he used to do skits for us and make us laugh all the time, he was hilarious! Ironically, since we played Jacksonville yesterday. Dale, my daughter and I, went by the cemetery to see some of the guys in the band and my parents’ grave sites. On the way back, we went by Bob Burns’ old house, it was there in the carport where we used to first start to practice with Skynyrd. My heart goes out to his family and God bless him and them in this sad time. He was a great, great drummer.”
Another veteran Southern rock band, the Outlaws, wrote the following tribute to Burns, also on Facebook. “Our old friend and original Lynyrd Skynyrd drummer Bob Burns died last night in a truck accident in Cartersville, Ga. Another old friend is gone and like Skynyrd fans everywhere we’ll miss Bob.”
Burns and Rossington founded Lynyrd Skynyrd with Allen Collins, Ronnie Van Zant and Larry Junstrom in Jacksonville, Fla., in the mid-’60s. After two albums, Burns left the band in early 1975 due to mental health issues.



Read More: Lynyrd Skynyrd's Rossington 'At A Loss For Words' After Bob Burns' Death | http://ultimateclassicrock.com/gary-...ckback=tsmclip

[chiliD]

Pretty much leaves only Gary Rossington, Ed King & Burns' replacement Artimus Pyle as surviving members of the band.

(Not counting members prior to the start of their recording career or members of the post-plane crash reunion era)