Artimus here,

It's 6:24 Thursday October 18th, 2007.  As you all know, I never go online.  But, Saturday is a very strange anniversary.  We lost Ronnie, Steve, Cassie, Dean, and our pilot and co-pilot, Walter McCreary and John Gray.  So for our friends Leon and Allen, we remember the plane crash.  Thank you all for keeping the music alive all these years.  The radio stations, movie sound tracks, television, and now even KFC commercials, keep the music in our hearts every day.  It's amazing.......I am proud to be included in this great music.  And thanks so much for your votes in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. 

Artimus Pyle, drummer RVZ's Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Lynyrd Skynyrd

The impact of Lynyrd Skynyrd on American rock and roll began with the harmonious blend of guitar driven rock with southern blues roots and can be heard today in the new rock music of the 21st Century. Artimus Pyle’s powerful and distinctive double bass drumming helped define the legendary Skynyrd sound. Artimus’ live debut with the band took place in Jacksonville’s Sgt Pepper’s Club in October 1974.  The years Artimus played with Skynyrd were the years that solidified the legend behind the band with classic rock songs such as “Saturday Night Special”; “Gimme Back My Bullets”; “That Smell”; “I Know A Little” and “Freebird”. The band quickly developed into one of the nation’s top touring draws with a grueling schedule of 300 shows a year.  During the next few years Lynyrd Skynyrd’s songs became radio staples. Their album, ‘Street Survivors’, had just been released to critical and popular acclaim. The ambitious new tour, just days underway, saw sellout crowds. On October 20, 1977, as the sun was setting in Mississippi, the chartered plane ran out of fuel and fell from the sky.