On This Day, April 3, 2015: Lynyrd Skynyrd drummer Bob Burns died

On This Day, April 3, 2015…

Bob Burns, the original drummer for Southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd, died in a car crash near his home in Cartersville, Georgia.

Burns helped form Lynyrd Skynyrd in 1964 with Ronnie Van Zant, Gary Rossington, Allen Collins and Larry Junstrom, but left the group in 1974.

He is credited on recordings from the group’s first two albums: 1973’s (Pronounced ‘Lĕh-‘nérd ‘Skin-‘nérd) and 1974’s Second Helping. Those albums include such Lynyrd Skynyrd classics as “Free Bird,” “Sweet Home Alabama” and “Simple Man.”

In 1996, after years out of the public eye, Burns joined the band for a performance in conjunction with the film Freebird: The Movie. Then, in March of 2006, he returned to perform alongside the band at their Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction.

The last original member of Lynyrd Skynyrd, Rossington, died in March of 2023, although the band continues to tour with Ronnie’s brother Johnny Van Zant fronting the band.