Credit: Clay Patrick McBrideLynyrd Skynyrd recently was forced to postpone several tour dates when founding guitarist Gary Rossington had to undergo an emergency procedure to repair a blockage in his heart. Rossington, the last surviving original member of the legendary Southern rock group, has battled a number of health issues in recent years, including a heart attack that he suffered last October.
Longtime Skynyrd guitarist Rickey Medlocke chatted with ABC Radio this past week and shared some good news about his band mate.
“[Gary’s] at home resting great,” Medlocke reported. “I talked to him and he sounds great. So we’re supposed to go back out and start playing on the 4th of August and be back out rolling.”
Medlocke says thinks that Rossington’s latest health problem may actually have been caused by the heavy guitars he plays on stage.
“I believe from the guitar holding on his shoulder so much, those Les Pauls are heavy guitars, and I believe what happened is one of his heart stents got out of whack,” Rickey maintains. “He felt a pinch and he knew something was going on, and so he decided to go back to Atlanta, see his doctor, and sure enough, man, one of his stents had come out of place or gotten twisted or whatever. And so they had to replace that.”
Lynyrd Skynyrd is scheduled to return to the road this Thursday in The Woodlands, Texas. The band currently has more than 20 upcoming U.S. dates on its itinerary, which is mapped out through an October 15 concert in Perry, Georgia.
Here are all of the band’s forthcoming concerts, according to LynyrdSkynyrd.com:
8/4 — The Woodlands, TX, The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion
8/5 — New Orleans, LA, Bold Sphere Music at Champions Square
8/6 — Durant, OK, Choctaw Grand Theater
8/8 — Sturgis, SD, Sturgis Buffalo Chip
8/9 — Englewood, CO, Fiddler’s Green Amphitheatre
8/16 — Livermore, CA, Wente Vineyards
8/18 — Los Angeles, CA, The Greek Theatre
8/19 — Las Vegas, NV, The Chelsea at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas
8/20 — Reno, NV, Tuscany Ballroom at the Peppermill Hotel
8/21 — Murphys, CA, Ironstone Vineyards Amphitheatre
8/24 — Tacoma, WA, Emerald Queen Casino
8/26 — Pocatello, ID, Portneuf Health Trust Amphitheatre
8/27 — Salt Lake City, UT, USANA Amphitheatre
9/2 — Fort Wayne, IN, Foellinger Theatre
9/3 — Cherokee, NC, Harrah’s Cherokee
9/4 — Panama City Beach, FL, Pepsi Gulf Coast Jam
9/16 — Hutchinson, KS, Kansas State Fair
9/17 — Tulsa, OK, Hard Rock Hotel and Casino – The Joint
9/18 — Spencer, IA, Clay County Fair
9/23 — Boston, MA, Blue Hills Bank Pavilion
9/24 — Big Flats, NY, Tag’s Summer Sound Stage
10/15 — Perry, GA, Georgia National Fairgrounds & Agricenter
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