1969: The One Percent, to Lynard Skynard.
Mid 1969.
Larry,19, Allen,16, Bob,18 y.o. Gary,17. Ronnie, 20.
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1969 /70, Forest Inn, (Show, #2)
Jacksonville.
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May 1969 The One Percent.
The project was Called "Lynard Skynard."
The One Percent.
While frustrating, the increasingly frequent playing about Jacksonville resulted in building the band's endurance and musical talent. Ronnie recalled, "In the beginning, we used to play one joint until midnight for kids, then they turned it into a bottle club and we'd go until 6 am.
It really tightened us up as a band. When you're from the South, you learn to work your ass off, and we did.It was hellatious. Hellatious and and the best years of our lives."
The group also became introduced to many that would later play important roles in the success of Lynyrd Skynyrd and beyond - friends like Kevin Elson and Gene Odom, players like Randall Hall, Billy Powell, Barry Harwood. And, for Ronnie, a very special lady.
Judy VanZant related her introduction to the band, "I first met Gary Rossington in 1969. Then he introduced me to Ronnie. They were still called the One Percent then.They were playing at a club on Forsyth Street in downtown Jacksonville called the Comic Book Club in 1969. They played there quite a bit." Judy and Ronnie were married in 1971 and had a daughter, Melody, in 1976.
As the gigs increased, the band began taking on the persona of rock and rollers. "We were playing the church dances and clubs around town. And we had to be cool, man, and look ike an English group," Gary explained, "The Beatles, the Stones and the Yardbirds were where we got our influences, learning from the British people. We grew our hair long, which back then was not even touching our eyebrows hardly and barely our ears, but the dress code at school said you couldn't have that."
Allen attended Forrest High School in Jacksonville, a school with a very strict dress code that forbade long hair on males. His father remembered, "The first time, the school called me. All I did was pick Allen up and take him to the barbershop to get a normal haircut, which he resented. I thought, at that time, his education was more important and I done what I thought was right. He always hated it. I didn't hear from him for two or three years because of it. I only found out later, after he and I kind of made up, that he resented it, because all of them laughed at him."
However, it was the dress code at cross-town rival Robert E Lee High School that would go down in rock and roll history, largely because of a tough gym teacher named Leonard Skinner. In 1978, Skinner recalled, "I was a gym coach in high school for Ronnie VanZant and of the others in the band. Back in those days we had a dress code. The dress code involved sideburns not coming below the ears; hair not touching the back of the collar; belts had to be worn; shirt tails had to be in; and socks had to be worn at all times. It was among the duties of the coach to help enforce these rules and apparently one of the people, or one or more of the people, that I may have sent down were members of this band."
Trying to get around the dress code's ban on long hair, Gary and the others would use Vasoline before school to slick back their hair and keep it out of their eyes and off their shoulders. Gary remembered thinking they looked like rednecks, but all the teachers thought they had short hair. All except coach Skinner, that wa
By 1969, The ONE PERCENT were appearing regularly at FOREST INN, along with BLACK BEAR ANGEL, SWEET ROOSTER, FAMILY PORTRAIT, and later, the KING JAMES VERSION. Still, the bands all managed to maintain a regular schedule of one-nighters in and around the North Florida area. It was also around this time that One Percent decided to change their name to LYNYRD SKYNYRD. Almost immediately, other things began to change for the band.
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Bob burns says they saw the Band "Free" at a Skating Rink.
Bob Burns said "Free changed our band more than any band in the world."
Some say for Ronnie, Paul Rogers and was just as influential as seeing "The Rolling Stones" 5 years Before.
Trying to get around the dress code's ban on long hair, Gary and the others would use Vasoline before school to slick back their hair and keep it out of their eyes and off their shoulders. Gary remembered thinking they looked like rednecks, but all the teachers thought they had short hair. All except coach Skinner, that was.
Gary recalled, "All the teachers thought we had short hair, but then at gym you had to take a shower - it was mandatory." Remembering the results of those showers, Gary related, "Leonard Skinner would come through the showers while you were doing it, and if he caught you with your hair down touching your ears or something he'd kick you out or send you to the principal. After about 20 or 30 times of doing that to me, and kicking me out for two weeks of suspension, I just quit school. He kicked me out and I said,`____ you, I'm gone!'
"We played at the Forrest Inn a night or two later and as a joke, because Ronnie was goofing on me leaving and what happened when Skinner kicked me out, he said `Hey, we're One Percent. We're gonna play for y'all tonight, but we're gonna change our name though. Everybody who wants to change it to Leonard Skinner applaud, Everybody who don't, don't.' Everybody knew Leonard Skinner because he was everybody else's coach too. So everybody roared and cheered and they thought it was a big joke and funny, but we kept it. And later we changed the Y's and stuff so we wouldn't get in trouble and it kind of caught on from that little joke."
In 1969, a group of kids from Florida recorded A Promotional Single, two Songs, and some demos at Jacksonville's Norm Vincent Studios. Though they had been playing live shows throughout high school under different band names, this was the first time they had entered a studio together.
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Bob,18 y.o. Gary,17. Ronnie, 20. Allen,16. Larry,19.
May 1969 The One Percent were offered their first stab to record at Norm Vincent Studios, May 1969. They recorded 2 promotional songs for Shade Tree Records!
Jacksonville has thousands of Lynyrd Skynyrd stories, and this is one of them: It’s about two local men who saw a good thing in a young band from the Westside — “the tightest little bar band you ever heard,” they liked to say — and how they signed them to a contract and got them in a studio so they could all become stars.
They made their first record, 300 copies, with “Need All My Friends” on the A-side and “Michelle” on the B. The band’s name, still a work in progress, was spelled Lynard Skynard, there on the label for Shade Tree Records of "JAX FLA."
Four other songs were recorded, though they didn’t make it to vinyl. Most notable, perhaps, was the final song: A primordial 7½-minute version of “Free Bird,” without Billy Powell’s piano lines, which would come later, and with just one lead guitar on the lengthy ending solo, instead of the overlapping leads on the best-known version.
Even so, it seemed obvious, these guys, who soon settled on the name Lynyrd Skynyrd, would be big.
Tom Markham, 83, still has the record he helped make, and he still has the tapes on which the six Skynyrd songs were recorded, all carefully stored in an air-conditioned space in his house in Mandarin.
He and his friend, the late Jim Sutton, formed Shade Tree Records in the late 1960s with high hopes. “Let’s make some money," Markham proposed. "Maybe we could make millions."
It was Sutton who came up with the Shade Tree name, which they both quickly agreed on.
"Real backyard, homey, a couple good-old boys, that’s what Jim and I were,” Markham said.
He also said it was Sutton who in 1968 saw the potential in The One Percent, a Westside band led by a stocky, self-confident singer named Ronnie Van Zant. They signed them to a five-year contract, promoted them at grocery stores and shopping center openings, and got them in the recording studio at the Norm Vincent Studio off Beach Boulevard. They also got them airplay on local TV and the Big Ape, WAPE, the city's powerhouse AM station.
It wasn't a big-budget signing. No one involved in the venture — the band or the record-company producers — had much money. Instead, Markham said, Shade Tree offered the young rockers their time and expertise in the recording studio in exchange for publishing rights and royalties to the songs.
"We all became sort of a family, trying to make it," he said.
The first two songs, "Need All My Friends" and "Michelle" (which is not the Beatles song) were recorded on two tracks. The band played live, then Van Zant sang over the musicians. Markham even hired a four-piece string section to spice up "Need All My Friends."
They switched to eight-track tape for the other four songs, including "Free Bird," which gave more flexibility.
“That mix, the way the whole thing ended up, it kind of amazes me today, because of what we had to do," Markham said.
Tom Markham still has tapes of the six Lynyrd Skynyrd songs recorded in his studio by the fledgling Jacksonville band, including the first recording of the band's iconic "Free Bird."
Markham grew up on San Jose Boulevard near the Duck Pond. He soon discovered he had an "electro-mechanical" aptitude, which he funneled into recording systems, ham radios and model airplane engines.
While still at Landon High School, from which he graduated in 1954, he made his recordings. He set up an old tape machine in his house and used a bathroom as an echo chamber.
"We took all the furniture out of the living room, brought in a band," he said. "Back then a band would be a saxophone, a trumpet, a bull fiddle, that kind of thing.“ A girl, a classmate, was the singer.
He has strong memories of the Skynyrd recordings, but wishes he had thought to take photos. They were just too wrapped up in the work to think of chronicling it.
Van Zant was the undisputed leader of the band, and while his temper showed occasionally, he was deferential to Markham and Sutton, both a decade or so older. “He was very respectful, a little gentleman with us," Markham said. "We said, 'Ronnie, we want to try this,' and he was like, 'Yes sir, yes sir.' We ate that up."
He tells several Skynyrd stories, including this one.“One day they came in and said, 'We’ve changed our name.' We sure didn’t like The One Percent. We wanted the Bomb Blasters or the Destroyers or the Dynamites or something," he recalls. "We said, 'Great, what did you change your name to?' They said, 'Leonard Skinner.' That was worse.”
He has strong memories of the Skynyrd recordings, but wishes he had thought to take photos. They were just too wrapped up in the work to think of chronicling it.
Van Zant was the undisputed leader of the band, and while his temper showed occasionally, he was deferential to Markham and Sutton, both a decade or so older. “He was very respectful, a little gentleman with us," Markham said. "We said, 'Ronnie, we want to try this,' and he was like, 'Yes sir, yes sir.' We ate that up."
He tells several Skynyrd stories, including this one.“One day they came in and said, 'We’ve changed our name.' We sure didn’t like The One Percent. We wanted the Bomb Blasters or the Destroyers or the Dynamites or something," he recalls. "We said, 'Great, what did you change your name to?' They said, 'Leonard Skinner.' That was worse.”
Michael Ray FitzGerald was in the audience at the Forest Inn on Jacksonville's Westside when Van Zant announced the band was changing its name.
Much of the audience was composed of Lee High School students, who laughed and cheered at the news. They knew the inside joke: Skinner was the tough Lee coach who had sent guitarist Gary Rossington to the principal's office for having longer-than-approved hair.
FitzGerald is a veteran Jacksonville rock 'n' roller who recently published a book called "Jacksonville and the Roots of Southern Rock" (University Press of Florida), which includes a section on Markham, Sutton and Skynyrd.
Signing with Shade Tree was a pivotal moment for the band, which he said was overshadowed by the Second Coming, an early version of the Allman Brothers.
“I think it turned things around for them,… they were very much underdogs on the local scene," FitzGerald said. "The fact that Tom [Markham] picked them up and got them played on the Big Ape really turned things around for them."
Markham and Sutton had 300 records made of the first single, spending their own money to get them made. A hundred of those were sent to record stations across the country, in an attempt to get airplay. Even with follow-up calls, it was hard to get noticed.
The band eventually asked to be released from their contract with Shade Tree. The partners agreed: Sutton was taking a job in Texas and getting married, while Markham was going through a rough divorce. It seemed time to move on.
"We hadn’t gotten them off the ground," Markham said. "We’d pressed records, promoted them, all that, but a spark just didn’t happen, so we released them"
He said they were pleased when Lynyrd Skynyrd, a few years later, became a success.
"When they got big, we were both happy for them. Jim and I both felt like they were family. We acted like family, and they felt like family," he said.
And they were saddened when a plane carrying the band crashed in Mississippi 43 years ago this week, killing Van Zant, guitarist Steve Gaines, vocalist Cassie Gaines, assistant road manager Dean Kilpatrick, the pilot and co-pilot.
"All of us," Markham said, "it was like being in the same foxhole, everybody trying to make it big.”
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Tom Markham.
Tom Markham Article from:
Matt Soergel of the Florida Times-Union
https://www.jacksonville.com/story/entertainment/music/2020/10/23/jacksonville-icon-reflects-recording-lynyrd-skynyrds-first-songs/3713009001/
"Michelle" and "Need all My Friends"
"Ronnie knew exactly what he was doing!
The next thing you know they have exposure and a lot of Airplay and stuff like that." -Larry Steele.
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"The Songs brought us joy, you know!!" Bob Burns.
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The project was Called "Lynard Skynard." "Need All My Friends" was the first song they completed as a band, followed up by "Michelle," and then they took the songs to Jacksonville's Shade Tree records. The songs were pressed to a 7" single, and somewhere between 200-300 copies were made. They were likely used as promotional items for the band or given to friends, and very few survived. Two years later they changed their name once again to "Lynyrd Skynyrd," and the rest - as they say - is history.
The Green Label is the Original Item!
The Yellow/Tan Label is the 1978 Reissue!
The One Percent
In May 1969 The One Percent Were offered their first Stab at Recording At Norm Vincent Studios, Jacksonville. The One Percent to produced two Promotional Singles for Shade Tree Records.
"Need All My Friends" and "Michelle"
Known as Shadetree Demo's.
They would use the opportunity to their full advantage, getting a single out of the deal, which they were able to parlay into ridiculous exposure over the next year, including local Radio“Need All My Friends” was released locally on Shade Tree Records shortly thereafter. The B side, “Michelle,” was a song Ronnie had written as a tribute to his first daughter, Tammy Michelle. I remember Ronnie’s performance, his first ever in a recording studio, as being very impressive, particularly on “Michelle.” There was a noticeable Robert Plant influence present in his delivery, though Ronnie never would admit to it.
The "SHADE TREE" Recordings, or some are Shade Tree Demo's.
Lynard Skynard's First Recordings, and First Single. 6 songs in total, The Promotional Single plus 4 Demo Tracks, (Shade Tree Demo's) (all have been released except He's Alive Shade Tree version, a sample in this post!
Line up was Bass – Larry Junstrom, Drums – Bob Burns , Guitar – Allen Collins, Gary Rossington, Vocals – Ronnie Van Zant.
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May 1969 The One Percent were offered their first stab to record at Norm Vincent Studios, Jacksonville, Florida.
Producers – Jim Sutton, Tom Markham.
They recorded and released 2 promotional songs for Shade Tree Records!
(Promotional Single)
1, "A" side is - Need All My Friends 3:18.,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mqrHJL3EO_E
and
2, "B" side is - Michelle 2:57,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M93MN-C1Y1Q
"Shade Tree Demo's:"
3, Free Bird, - 7:29,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WbRpz3XMdBM
4, If I'm Wrong, - 5:30,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AEejC42p10E
5, No One Can Take Your Place. - 5:25,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=faD5kagj39I
6, He's Alive - 3:-09?, (Only Quinvy demo Available)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ydnfetA3Id0
This is a small sample of the Shade Tree version of He's Alive, the full version is not available anywhere.
They recorded a single, “Need All My Friends,” which garnered a fair amount of airplay on local radio, and were able to turn that into radio airplay. They began writing more songs, better songs; these to be added to an already impressive list of covers they were currently performing.
Dean Kilpatrick had appointed himself the band’s unofficial wardrobe coordinator, which helped provide for the band a more professional stage image. But what was most impressive of all was the band’s ability to demonstrate significant improvement with seemingly every performance.
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gwtw 05They First use Lynard Skynard in 1969, for their first Single.
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They use this spelling for 2 years, and towards the end of the two years, it looks as if they are alternating between the "A's" and the "Y's", or possibly an error or miscommunication with printer.
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Example we see Skynyrd in April 1970.
We see Lynard Skynard, in 1969, and February, 1971, and even November, 1971.
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The project was Called "Lynard Skynard." "Need All My Friends" was the first song they completed as a band, followed up by "Michelle," and then they took the songs to Jacksonville's Shade Tree records.
-
The songs were pressed to a 7" single, and somewhere between 200-300 copies were made. They were used as promotional items for the band or given to friends, and very few survived.
Two years later in 1971 they changed the spelling once again to "Lynyrd Skynyrd," and the rest - as they say - is history.
The Green Label Single is the Original Item!
The Yellow/Tan Label is the 1978 Rerelease!
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Jacksonville has thousands of Lynyrd Skynyrd stories, and this is one of them: It’s about two local men who saw a good thing in a young band from the Westside — “the tightest little bar band you ever heard,” they liked to say — and how they signed them to a contract and got them in a studio so they could all become stars.
-
They made their first record, 300 copies, with “Need All My Friends” on the A-side and “Michelle” on the B. The band’s name, still a work in progress, was spelled Lynard Skynard, there on the label for Shade Tree Records of "JAX FLA."
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Award winning Author, Michael Ray Fitzgerald,
interviewed Tom Markham and reveals in his Latest book, who the man was that suggested the "y's".
The Book is , "Jacksonville and the Roots of Southern Rock." Available here:
https://www.amazon.com.au/Jacksonville.../dp/0813066654
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The last pic is mid 1969, and was taken at Olan Mills portrait studios and paid for by Shade Tree.
They are about to Change their Name from "The One Percent" to "Lynard Skynard".
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Rock'n'Roll
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