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(Winter 2005) by Dave
Iozzia
Rickey Medlocke is a southern rock superstar, so there’s no need to
ask him “What’s Your Name?” Rickey was a founding member
of the band Blackfoot, and he’s currently playing lead guitar for Lynyrd
Skynyrd, who are being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2006.
Rock Is Life was truly honored to speak with Rickey, as he answered interview
questions about Lynyrd Skynyrd, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Blackfoot,
and a whole lot more.
RIL: Hello Rickey, thanks for agreeing to do this interview. Happy
New Year and best of luck to you and Lynyrd Skynyrd in 2006. I attended
your concert in Atlantic City, New Jersey, and I thought the song “Red,
White and Blue” was the show’s highlight. Sitting there with
a friend whose son is stationed in Japan, hearing Johnnie’s words,
and watching that huge U.S. flag unfurl gave me goose bumps.
RM: That
song is Lynyrd Skynyrd’s statement collectively as a
band. We’re all big military and big law enforcement people. I have
a nephew who is an Army Ranger. A very good friend of mine is a gunner on
an Apache helicopter. Countless friends and people I’ve known were
killed in Vietnam. Three of my great-uncles served in World War II. I am
a legally deputized Lee County sheriff-deputy in Fort Myers, Florida. My
personal statement to everybody in the military and law enforcement is that
they’ll never know how much we appreciate what they’re doing
for us. They’ll never know how much satisfaction we get out of playing
and dedicating stuff to them. It’s very satisfying for us to know that
we can be there for them in some small way. My hats go off to them, they’re
brave people, and I honor them every night thinking of them as I play.
RIL: This coming spring, Lynyrd Skynyrd is being inducted into the Rock
and Roll Hall of Fame. Congratulations. Your band has suffered through the
tragic plane crash in 1977 and the deaths in subsequent years of members
Allen Collins and Leon Wilkerson. Lynyrd Skynyrd has endured all of the trials
and tribulations with its head held high and kept it going. The love and
support your band receives from its loyal fans must be very rewarding. How
satisfying is it for Lynyrd Skynyrd to receive recognition from the music
industry and the media, as evidenced by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction?
RM:
Yeah, Lynyrd Skynyrd’s been through a lot, but we’re
gonna keep on keeping on. I look at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame thing
not only as recognition by our peers and the recording industry, but it’s
also a huge recognition from our fans. Honestly, if it wasn’t for the
fans, we wouldn’t even be here. I get a lot of satisfaction knowing
we did something for the fans and that one day the legacy I leave behind
will inspire others to do it in their careers and continue keeping music
alive. Music is one of the greatest gifts that we can give out. It’s
too bad other cultures don’t get out of music what we do. There’d
be a lot less trouble in this world if they did. Where else can you find
one single thing that brings so many different kinds of people together for
an hour and a half to celebrate?
This thing called music lets you forget
your differences, your troubles, your problems and your blues. That hour
and a half lets you have blow-out fun, it’s a celebration of life itself.
It bothers me that we can all sit there, not seeing the gift we have called
music, and not utilize it for the whole damn world. People look at their
own beliefs in their own way and that’s just the way it goes. Our troops
fight for our freedoms, one of them being the freedom to express ourselves.
The honor of being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is a celebration
of that and everything Lynyrd Skynyrd and music stands for.
RIL: The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame has an impressive list of early influences
that have been inducted: Muddy Waters, Jimmy Rodgers, Robert Johnson, etc.
Southern rock is only represented by the Allman Brothers, Z.Z. Top, and now
Lynyrd Skynyrd. In your opinion, has the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame fairly
represented your genre of music, southern rock?
RM: I think that a lot
of southern rock bands also deserve credit. My band Blackfoot sold millions
of records, and we were on a different cutting
edge than other bands were. We played heavier, with a blues influence, and
we were still Southern. Maybe at some point in time, Blackfoot deserves to
be in there. Molly Hatchet, who also sold millions of records, was such a
big band at one point. There’s a lot more southern rock bands that
I hope will eventually receive the recognition.
RIL: Progressive rock, with the exception of Pink Floyd, has been
totally overlooked by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Punk rock has a more-than-fair
number of inductees. There’s even a few bands that have been inducted
from the 1970’s, like Parliament-Funkadelic, that don’t even
fit the title of rock and roll band. In your opinion, does the Rock and
Roll Hall of Fame fairly represent the music of the 1970’s?
RM:
When you’ve given your whole life to something and other bands
go in that haven’t had the same success, it’s a weird deal. The
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame bases it on bands who made a perpetual difference
in the music and recording industries. Did the Sex Pistols, The Clash and
Blondie make a perpetual difference? I just don’t know about that.
I’m kind of sitting on the fence with the those bands. I’m glad
that David Bowie received the recognition, because he perpetuated a difference
for all of them. If it weren’t for David Bowie, none of those bands
would be shit. David Bowie was the original dude.
RIL: At the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony in New
York City, the bands being inducted typically perform a three-or-four-song
set list.
Has Lynyrd Skynyrd talked about or decided on which songs they’ll perform?
RM:
No, we haven’t gotten into that yet. We’ll figure it
out at some point.
RIL: Looking ahead to 2006 and beyond, what are Lynyrd Skynyrd’s
plans regarding the writing of new material?
RM: We’re starting to write new material, but we’re taking
our time about recording it because we’re at a crossroads with the
record label. Once everything proceeds the way it should, we’ll get
hard at work doing what we need to do.
RIL: Will touring and the writing of new material take a back seat
to, or be affected by, Gary Rossington doing a solo album or Donnie and
Johnnie’s
new project, Van Zant?
RM: Here’s the deal: Gary can do his thing, Johnnie and Donnie
can do their thing, and I’m out there acting and recording on my own.
What it comes down to is that Skynyrd is always number one. We never let
anything get in its way. People need other outlets, there’s no doubt
about it. Sometimes you’ve got to get things done before it gets too
late.
RIL: My musical preferences lean toward the heavier genres of rock
and roll. It’s hard for me to evaluate classical, jazz, country,
or other types of music. Please share your opinion of the new Van Zant
country record.
RM:
It’s a country record, but some of the tunes are borderline
southern rock. I like the record, and it’s done better in the market
than Johnnie and them thought. My hat’s off to them, I’m proud.
But I don’t consider it a full-blown country record. I was born and
raised on traditional country music. My grand-daddy, Shorty Medlocke, was
a traditional Mississippi Delta blues, bluegrass country player. To me, what
they say is country these days isn’t really what country is about.
RIL: That’s enough about 2006, let’s go back in time to the
early 1970’s. You were the drummer and a credited songwriter on many
of Lynyrd Skynyrd’s original demos. Talk about the circumstances that
lead to the Lynyrd Skynyrd lineup used on its debut album.
RM: When I
came into the band, it was in its formative and raw years. They were still
trying to figure out the songwriting and a musical direction.
What little did we know, but the songs we were writing and putting together
would be the direction and mainstays of the band for years to come. We had
the magic, the creators, and we knew what to do. I was really happy and proud
to be part of that in the beginning. I’ll carry that with me for the
rest of my life. We try to give new stuff we’re writing today the Lynyrd
Skynyrd essence of what used to be.
RIL: What was your thought process in leaving Lynyrd Skynyrd to front and
play guitar in Blackfoot?
RM: The chance to front a band of my own and
play guitar was part of my reasoning. Also, I only have one lung. My breathing
capacity is not what
it should be for a drummer. I didn’t have the stamina, and I knew I’d
be short-changing those guys. I didn’t think I could ever be the guy
to bring it together and make Lynyrd Skynyrd go further. I gave it a great
shot and guess what? It all worked out in the very end.
RIL: I guess it’s safe to say that after signing with MCA, Lynyrd
Skynyrd heavily influenced the rock scene in Florida and “paved the
way” for other southern rock bands getting signed to major record labels.
RM:
It definitely paved the way for Molly Hatchet. The tragic plane crash left
a big void and record companies were scrambling to find another
Lynyrd Skynyrd. Molly Hatchet was right there in Jacksonville and they fit
the bill.
RIL: Everybody’s heard the story about Lynyrd Skynyrd deriving
its name from the name of their gym teacher Leonard Skinner. Whatever happened
to him? Did he show up in subsequent years trying to extort money or get
free tickets to shows, or did he just disappear?
RM: It was nothing
like that. Honestly, he was really nice to us. It must have been a cool
thing for him, having a hometown band make it.
RIL: Where were you, and how did you first hear about the plane crash?
RM:
I was down the road playing in Columbia, South Carolina. Some clown came
up to the side of the stage and told me my old band just died in a plane
crash. I was really upset, and I figured my parents would know the facts.
I called home, my Mom was crying, and my Dad told me it was true. There was
a time period where I felt if I’d been there maybe I could have made
a difference.
RIL: Ronnie Van Zant wrote the song “Free Bird” following the
death of Duane Allman. These days it’s sad that so many names come
to mind when I hear that song: Duane, Ronnie, Steve and Cassie Gaines, Allen
Collins, Leon Wilkerson, Danny Joe Brown, Toy Caldwell, Jakson Spires, etc.
Please share the emotions that you feel night after night playing “Free
Bird.”
RM: There is no doubt about it that we think of those
guys every night. I think about everybody I’ve shared a stage with who has died. We honor
all of those who have paved the way for us, and the list goes on and on.
They’re all “free birds.” Shorty Medlocke took the time
to play the blues for us. I hope he’s up there having a great jam session
with Hendrix and Ronnie Van Zant. As some point in my life, but not anytime
soon, I’ll join them and jam. We do think of those things, but the
one thing Lynyrd Skynyrd won’t do is look back. We won’t apologize
for what we are. We think we’re just as bad-ass as anybody else is,
and we go out there every night trying to prove it.
RIL: Ronnie Van Zant was a great singer and front man, but I think
he was over-looked as a songwriter. Classic songs like “That Smell,” “You
Got That Right,” and What’s Your Name?” were personal anthems
to me and my misadventures of the 1970’s. I often think that Ronnie
Van Zant would have matured as a songwriter. Hence, the music world was deprived
of songs that he could have written about the changing times in the 80’s
and 90’s. Do you share those sentiments?
RM: As a songwriter, Ronnie
was way ahead of his time. He had so much insight, writing clever lyrics
that everybody could understand. He was like
so many of my favorite songwriters: Bob Seger, Don Henley, Bruce Springsteen,
and John Lennon. They’re like painters hanging a piece of canvas on
an easel, and they paint a picture your eyes can actually enjoy looking at.
Ronnie, like the rest of those guys, painted a beautiful and clearly understandable
picture with his words. Ronnie would have done a knock-out job writing new
songs about current events and our ever-changing world.
RIL: What are your favorite Lynyrd Skynyrd songs to perform nightly?
RM:
I love playing “Needle and the Spoon,” “Cry for
the Bad Man,” “Tuesday’s Gone,” and “Simple
Man,” which was my mother’s favorite Lynyrd Skynyrd song. When
I play those songs, they take me back to another time. I really enjoy changing
up the set, adding different things to get a different perspective, and I
really love learning new songs.
RIL: Is there an overlooked song from the back catalog that you’d
like to dust off and work into the set list?
RM: I loved dusting off “I Got the Same Old Blues” and “Saturday
Night Special.” We’re going to start playing something we never
do, “I Need You,” off the “Second Helping” record.
I’m excited that we might start playing “Ballad of Curtis Loew” again.
RIL: Can you think of one simple sentence that best describes Lynyrd
Skynyrd, a sentence that could be used as their epitaph? I think Neil Young
had a
perfect one when he was quoted, “They play like they mean it.”
RM:
Lynyrd Skynyrd does play like we mean it. We are the real deal!
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RICKEY
MEDLOCKE
